Disclaimer: I don’t kill bugs, unless they’re in my house and they’re too small to free outside.

Many moons ago, a company called EcoSmart sent me a sample of their organic ant and roach killer to test out. I finally got some ants inside my humble abode today, so I put the organic pesticide to the test.

Let me tell you, las hormigas didn’t stand a chance. They were dead within seconds, as a licorice scent filled the room. All I had to do then was wipe up the residue, which was easy to do.

So if you’re looking for an organic insecticide that’s non-toxic and safe around kids and pets (so they say), then check out EcoSmart. But you don’t have to take my word for it.

Bienvenidos al Carnival o’ the Green!. Last week Evangelical Ecologist did a fine job hosting it, and next week GreenDealsDaily is ‘posed to host it.

But enough idle chit-chat; let’s get this show on the road.

Organic Mess

Have you ever wanted to compost, but it just seemed too dang complicated? Then you’re in luck, for Talia has provided some tips on simple composting.

Neighbor Nancy shows y’all how to get some free vegetable seeds and how you can grow a ton in small containers. I’m about to go plant even more plants in old containers now.

Julie has ten reasons why organic lipstick is the way to go, to get that special bee-stung look that’s all the rage.

Jennifer took composting to the extreme and even composted her finger! What a true eco hero!

Ed Biado spouts off about organic this and that. While I approve of most organics, I don’t think they’re always the best option.

Go Green and Save Green

Ah, helping the environment whilst helping your wallet. That’s what EcoJoes is all about.

ishan is all about that, too. He dared to ask the question “Do hybrid cars really save you money?“. His conclusion is much the same as mine.

JT has some leftover stuff, but doesn’t want to throw it away. Here’s how he makes money by selling used mess.

Energy

FreeOrganicNews ponders what exactly is solar energy? His findings may shock you; then again, they may not.

Big Mack has found some zany CFL designs, and he brought them for show-and-tell.

Nancy Miller has found 50 blogs that have good info on energy. Not to be one to judge, but her site is kinda weird and spammy.

Getting out and Enjoying the World

TravelCat4 has some handy eco-tips for how to travel in an Earth-friendly manner. My favorite tip was the ‘grow a beard’ one; zero effort required, plus you get that rugged look that draws all the ladies in!

All our new-fangled technology is no substitute for the real world and real life. Get out and enjoy the real world now, people!

Global Warming

Not content with one submission to the Carnival, Mack also wrote this Debbie Downer article about global warming. Heed his warnings, people.

Sally decides to go all the way to the top, and ask Mr. Barack Obama to help prevent future extinctions.

Other Green Mess

Another post by Ed Biado gives some tips for living a greener life.

The aptly-named Mesquite Pete is all about some DEET. He has had enough mosquito bites, and decided it’s time to fight back.

Earth Day is right around the corner (April 22). Astrid Lee has provided this handy chart of ways to celebrate this planet we live on.

Beth Terry contemplates the pros and cons of recycling plastic into oil. I think it’s great that they’ve found a way to do this, but I do understand Ms. Beth’s concerns.

Ryan and Leslie help us visualize the huge number of plastic bottles used in the U.S. in just five minutes.

Alex has some easy ways to save car fuel, and it looks like he’s from England, talking about “tyres” and “boots”.

Scott is eager to let you know that this recession is a great time to start a green business.

Dang, that about wraps it up for this Carnival. Thanks for all the submissions; hopefully I didn’t forget anyone or mess up a link. Until next time, this is EcoJoe, signing off.

Last week I came home to find a large cardboard box from Papa Spud’s. What is Papa Spud’s, you might ask? Welp, Papa Spud’s is a company that delivers mainly local, mainly organic fruit and vegetables to Raleigh and its surrounding towns. Almost all their produce comes from inside North Carolina, which means that you’re supporting local farmers plus cutting down on the transportation pollution.

Here’s the plethora of nutritious vittles that greeted me when I tore open the box. Please note the insulating lining that keeps the produce nice n’ cold.

• 3 big yellow peaches from NC
• Pint of grape tomatoes (NC)
• 2 slicing cucumbers (NC)
• 2 big eggplants (NC)
• 6 red dale potatoes (NC)
• and from California, a ginormous bag of red seedless grapes

Since I opened the box, I’ve tried all of the foods and have only an eggplant and some grape tomatoes left. It was dang good, with no messed up fruit or vegetables. The grapes and peaches were especially good. I’m about to finish up the eggplant and tomaters tomorrow.

Oh yeah, they reuse their insulated boxes. Each week, you put them outside on your doorstep, and they pick them up when they bring your new vegetables. A simple, efficient, non-wasteful system.

Anyhoo, if you live close to Raleigh, you should go check them out. Their website explains how you can start getting local, organic food delivered to your house this week. The best thing about it is that it encourages you to try some new healthy foods, plus support yo’ local farmers, all without leaving the comforting womb of your own home.

If you care about the environment, and you care about free mess, AND you care about coffee, then this bad boy is for you. All’s you have to do is follow these simple instructions to get a free sample of some organic coffee.

1. Go to Isla Earth
2. Sign up for the E-Digest on the left side o’ the screen
   
3. Fill in the required parts of the form. Where it says I want the sample of free organic coffee, just put “Yes” or “Heck yeah” or something to that effect.
4. Wait by the mailbox.

That’s it. Hopefully this free organic coffee sample comes through. I am wondering how different organic coffee will taste. Since it’s free, I got a feeling it’ll taste superb.

Back in December, I wrote that Design A Tea was offering free samples o’ their organic tea. I had long since given up on getting some free tea… BUT, Brian, the owner of that company, recently wrote and told me that they’d had over 10,000 requests for free tea in two days! Since they pack all their orders by hand, it’s going to take awhile for them to fulfill all those requests.

Anyhoo, Brian was nice enough to send me a lot of free samples of their tea; many different flavors and combinations, and I gots to say, I recommend it.

The good thing about their company is that it lets you combine different teas with different flavors. So far I’ve tried green tea with vanilla, and black tea with pecans. Both were too good.

So if you requested a sample from them, it is coming, fret not. One more good thing: their tea is organic and Fair Trade Certified. So give them a looksie, won’t you?

“Youch, my dry, scaly feet!” Have you said/thought this recently? Do you fancy that people make fun of your ashy, crackly, grotesquely dry feet? Dry your tears, for I am about to solve your problem…

Simply CLICK HERE to gechoself a completely free sample of organic foot cream from Gilden Tree! Here is what they have to say about their (apparently) wonderful cream:

Our Nourishing Foot Cream is an organic, aloe-based formula that’s intensely moisturizing and softening. It nurtures feet naturally and we think it’s the best foot cream made.

Well hot dang, if that didn’t convince you to try it, then nothing will. I’m looking forward to rubbing a whole bunch of free organic foot cream all over my feet, wahoo.

There you stand, in the grocery store, wishing that you had enough money to get you some of those crazy expensive protein bars. Sadly, you turn away, lamenting your puny muscles, wishing that there was some way to get protein bars without all the extra packaging and high prices. Well pay attention, for here is how to…

Make Your Own Protein Bars

Thanks to Krista’s protein bar recipe, I was able to make some protein bars of my own. Follow along with this picture essay, and you will learn the secrets of how to make some cheap, homemade protein bars.Here are the ingredients. If you want to use some eco-friendly protein powder, or organic bananas, or what have you, then by all means do. I opted for the cheapest ingredients for this demonstration.

• Banana
• Whey protein
• Oats
• Peanut butter
• Raw Peanuts (optional)

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