3 Ways to Honour Mother Earth this Mother’s Day

by Liz Child

Mother’s Day is coming up and I’m very excited to receive my homemade cards, breakfast in bed and I’ve got my fingers crossed for some of these Booja Booja chocolates! Mother’s Day is all about saying ‘thank you’ to the people that nurture us and take care of us, be they our biological mothers or not. So the one mother we shouldn’t forget to show some love and appreciation to is, of course, Mother Earth. So here are some ways to honour our mothers and our incredible planet at the same time this year.

Plant Trees

Buy your mother some native trees or hedgerow to plant this year. If she doesn’t have her own garden why not donate to a native tree planting scheme in her name or get involved in a tree planting event? It is national tree week 20th-26th March and the Tree Council have organised a nationwide program of events here. Is there one near you? We plant native trees every year on our organic farm in Galway and are raising money to donate to tree planting charities too. Here is a list of Irish tree planting charities in Ireland:

Eat Green

Make a home-cooked meal to celebrate Mothers Day and Mother Earth. Include lots of locally grown, in-season vegetables and buy organic and plastic free. Our 100% Irish box ticks all the boxes. Click on the photo to see what is included this week. What could you make from all that Irish produce? We have lots of ideas here on the blog. Here’s a menu idea for you:

Clean Up

Don’t leave the cleaning to your mum! Get involved and think about Mother Earth at the same time. Use eco-cleaning products to clean up inside then how about a lovely walk in your local woodland or at the beach? Take a bag and some gloves and pick up litter as you go. Here are some of our favourite green cleaning products from our online shop. You can add them to your next fruit and veg order along with lots of other organic groceries.

3 Ways to Show the Planet Some Love this Valentines

by Liz Child

Green gift ideas and activities for Valentines Day.

The cynics amongst us will scoff at Valentines Day as a marketing ploy to get people to buy more, consume more, spend more. Us healthy cynics, well unfortunately we are usually right. Out of season, worryingly cheap roses grown with untold chemicals and slave labour are wrapped in plastic and flown across the world. And don’t get me started on the crappy, unsustainable chocolates! But Valentines Day doesn’t have to be all about overconsumption, after all if it’s to be about love, let’s show our nearest and dearest (and the future generations to come) some love by taking care of our one and only, incredible planet Earth. Here are 3 easy ways to show the planet some love this Valentines Day.

1. Send A Card

Not just to your love interest, write to your local authority or TD and ask for positive, environmental change in your area. Write to your favourite brands and businesses and ask for positive change. Could they use more sustainable packaging? Could they source products or ingredients from closer to home? Put up cards in your community and get together to do litter picks, beach cleans, walk to school schemes, car shares etc. Start a food waste prevention club in your community or how about a composting club? Write to people and let them know you love the planet and your community, you never know when the feeling might be reciprocated.

2. Sustainable is Sexy

Consciously choose gifts, treats and sweets that have a lower impact on the planet. Look for organic, plastic free chocolates. Gift your loved ones a subscription to an organic veg box. Plant some trees? Start a vegetable garden together? How about sourcing second hand gifts to keep new products from being made needlessly and keep old products out of landfill? For the ultimate thoughtful gift, get a local cobbler or tailor to mend your partners favourite worn out boots or coat as a surprise.

3. Eco-Activities

Enjoy the great outdoors with your loved ones this Valentines. Head to your local woods, hike that mountain, go to the beach. Take care of the earth as you go. How about organising a beach clean or a local litter pick? And after all that fresh air? You should eat a really delicious meal together. Support a local restaurant or cook up a feast at home using local, organic ingredients for the lowest impact. We can help with that here.

We’d love to hear about what you are getting up to this Valentines in the comments. Keep it clean though folks!