Fall is here; isn’t it wonderful? The temperature cools, the leaves change into beautiful pops of color, and all those fun and festive holidays approach.
Although fall is also a time when nature gets ready for its winter snooze, it’s no time to stop thinking about ways to stay environmentally conscious. You may have to shift your practices a little, but it’s easy to head into fall with everyday rituals that keep you living green.
Enjoy the fall harvest
Eating locally and seasonally during the fall means putting a wealth of delicious foods on your dinner table at home. If you can, taking a family field trip to pick any of it fresh is such a rewarding experience as well.
Common foods in season in the fall include:
- Pears
- Apples
- Mushrooms
- Brussels sprouts
- Squash
- Pumpkin
- Cauliflower
- Potatoes
Keep in the heat
All summer long, all you’ve wanted is for your home to keep out the heat. Now, it’s time to prepare your house to do the opposite. Cooler weather means you want your heater to keep the warmth in. To do that, and ensure everything runs efficiently:
- Check windows to make sure they seal tightly.
- Clean dryer ducts to get the best airflow when washing those cozy sweaters and big blankets.
- Check doors for loose weather stripping and replace if necessary.
You’ll want to make sure there are no cracks or gaps where heat can escape. When this does happen, your heater has to work extra hard to maintain your home’s temperature, raising your utility bill as well as wasting energy.
Reverse your fan
While we’re talking about heat, another way to maximize the warmth your heater delivers is to change the direction your ceiling fans spin. In the summer, fans should spin counterclockwise to help push air down, creating a cool draft. Reversing it in the fall helps circulate the warm air throughout the room without the cooling effect.
Clean up your yard
The leaves are certainly beautiful in the fall, but then the trees release them and suddenly your lawn is covered. After making that perfect leaf pile for the kids, or simply crunching your way through the leaves, it’s best to clean them up or add them to a compost pile. Leaving leaves on your lawn can contribute to weed and insect issues come spring.
If you live in an area where it snows, having a blanket of leaves between the precipitation and the grass isn’t good either. As the leaves decompose under the snow, they steal moisture from the soil.
Update your outdoor lighting
Cooler weather, and the drop in the mosquito population, makes the outdoors infinitely more inviting. You may find yourself enjoying your porch or deck more often, even staying out after dark. Make sure your outdoor lighting uses energy as efficiently as possible by checking and replacing bulbs. You should aim for LED or compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs), and even consider installing timers so you never have to worry about whether you remembered to shut the lights off when you go inside.
Fill your pantry
Your home may be ready for fall but what about the hungry people who live inside it? Fall means school and sports and a variety of activities that keep you on the go with your family. All of the back and forth puts snacks at a premium, and you can shop greener when it comes to snacks too. There are a variety of delicious snacks out there that take an environmentally-conscious approach to provide healthy options for hungry bellies.
To make it easy to identify just a few of these snack makers, IMPACT COLLECTIVE provides its partners with IMPACT Seals that appear on all their products. Partners can get a seal for reducing their carbon impact, reducing their plastic impact, supporting renewable energy, and reducing their water impact.
Partners like Talty Bar, Happy Campers, and incrEDIBLE Eats are all already doing their part through their work with IMPACT, so make sure you stock your pantry with snacks from responsible businesses.
Fall into a greener home for the season
With these easy tips, now’s the perfect time to up your green game before the holidays overtake you. Take a day or two to help your home use energy better, and think about where your food continues to come from as you slow cook a stew or plan a family meal. Above all else, get outside and enjoy the beauty of the season. There’s nothing better than a crisp fall day!