REALizeUtah.com Real Estate

With all the rain this May/June, you obviously haven’t needed to do much watering for your lawn yet! Just because the sun has been out for a few days doesn’t mean you need to start now. You want your lawn to have a healthy, deep root system, this is just one of many reasons NOT to turn your irrigation on yet. Deeper roots draw moisture from a larger volume of soil, and therefore, require less irrigation.

There are 2 tests you can use to determine if your yard is dry enough to start watering. The first is a screwdriver test. Adequate solk moisture at 6 to 8 inches deep is sufficient to maintain grasses during the summer. A long slender screwdriver pushed into the ground in several locations can give a quick assessment of the moisture condition of the soil. The screwdriver will easily penetrate to the soil depth that is still moist.

The other test is called foot-printing. Walk across your lawn late in the day and look back to see if your steps left footprints. Your footprints will appear in a lawn when the grass has low levels of water. When the blades are compressed by your feet, the low ater levels prevent the grass from springing back. If footprints remain for an extended period of time, it’s time to water.

Taller grass has a deeper root system that draws moisture from a larger volume of soil, and needs less irrigation. Grass should never be less than 2.5 inches after mowing. Mowing once a week is usually enough to maintain the proper height. A lawn that is 3 to 3.5″ will have a better chance of surviving prolonged drought and water restrictions.

To keep your root system healthy, water no more often than every third day, and make sure to turn it off after it rains. If you are served by Park City Municipal, call 615-5301 to obtain your Every Third Day watering sign, and you will be exempt from the every-other-day (odd/even) watering ordinance.

Many of these tips have been borrowed from Tom Ward of the Park City Water Conservation Taks force, so thanks to him for providing this helpful information.

If you are a person who constantly tries to do the right thing when it comes to the environment, then maybe it’s time to take a look at your pets! Here are a few ideas to help you pooch get his green on!

• Feed organic pet food! With the recent recall of more than 100 brands of pet food (some considered ‘premium’), it might be time to take a closer look at what you’re feeding your pets. I recommend Only Natural Pet Store for an excellent selection of all natural and organic pet foods! For treats and other pet products – another great resource is Jake’s Doghouse – cool stuff for cool dogs!
• Use all natural or organic pet shampoo! Many people just use human shampoo on their dog. This is not a good idea, because many formulas contain chemicals and other stuff that can irritate a dog’s skin and make him itchy. It also doesn’t rinse out very well. I recommend Newman’s Own organic oatmeal dog shampoo! This stuff smells great, and rinses out much easier!
• Consider an alternative way to deal with poo! Composters.com has some great ideas for pet waste. This keeps it out of landfills, and also keeps it from polluting the environment! CLICK HERE
• Thinking of getting another pet? Adopt! There are SO many pets out there that need homes, INCLUDING puppies, kittens, and purebred pets! Save a life instead of purchasing from a breeder. Friends of Animals is a great resource, and also look at Broken Hearts Animal Rescue for some great single pets looking for love!

Several times in the past couple of months, Areas of Utah have been rated as having some of the WORST air quality in the country. This is due to our inversions, and also to the high rate of pollution in some of our cities. Salt Lake County, Utah County and the Logan/Cache Valley areas get these inversions. Click on this link to read about how inversions are created, and how they affect air quality. http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/slc/climate/TemperatureInversions.php

The Utah Division of Air Quality is a great source of CURRENT conditions in Utah. You can also have email updates when the air quality starts to get to unhealthy levels, by signing up for the DEQ’s (Department of Environmental Quality) Listserv. http://www.airquality.utah.gov/

Park City, though, continues to have CLEAN, FRESH mountain air. We’d like to keep it that way, and here are a few things you can do to help with the situation, no matter WHERE you live.

1. Carpool
2. Use Mass Transit. Park City has an EXCELLENT bus system!
3. WALK
4. Ride a bike
5. Do your business over the phone and/or internet
6. Walk to lunch, or Pack lunch and eat in!
7. Put off errands that can wait, and combine trips, ESPECIALLY if it’s a “red burn” day!

If we all try to follow these guidelines, we will be able to Breathe Easier into the future! As always, Please feel free to comment with questions, or if you have anything to add!

Here are five ways you can lower your impact on the environment this thanksgiving!
1) Buy locally and regionally produced food! Most farmers markets will carry locally and organically grown sweet potatoes, carrots, home made jams, cheeses, breads, and much much more! If you’re family tradition includes a turkey, look for an organic, free-range turkey. Yes, it does cost a few bucks more, but it’s also much healthier!
2) Minimize your use of Plastics! Use re-usable leftover containers instead of disposable plastic wrap, and even tin foil wrap! Try to avoid using plastic plates, silverware, etc. Plastic never fully breaks down, so if you MUST use plastic, make sure it gets recycled.
3) Celebrate at home! Thanksgiving is one of the busiest travel weekends of the whole year! Why not help to reduce global warming? Skip the stressful holiday travel, and celebrate an eco-friendly Thanksgiving at home. If you MUST travel, be conscious about the environment. Drive as little as possible, and take your most fuel efficient vehicle. Carpool whenever possible. If you’re flying, consider purchasing carbon credits to help offset your portion of the carbon dioxide emissions.
4) Don’t OVER Cook. While Thanksgiving leftovers are great, most people end up THROWING OUT over half of their leftovers Spend a few extra minutes planning, and try to cook only what you and your family will be able to eat.
5) Here’s a great way to give back on Thanksgiving. Consider donating to a local charity or food bank, or give a donation to The United Way. Thanksgiving is all about being thankful for everything we have – why not help by giving back to those who need it most?
Please comment on my BLOG if you have any questions, or ideas I can share with others!

Here in Utah, Summer temperatures are still hot!! But the nights are starting to cool off, so instead of cranking your AC all ay, instead try opening windows at night, and using a fan to help bring in some of the cool night air! Then, in the morning, close your windows and the house will stay cool most of the day! You’ll save energy, and $$!

As always, feel free to comment with questions or if you have anything to add!

This one is pretty obvious, but still you see some people who just dump out old oil, antifreeze, etc without thinking about it’s impact on the earth.

Nearly every household has some kind of hazardous waste: old paint cans, used motor oil, unused pesticides and weed killers. If you dump these things down the drain, you’ll end up polluting the water supply. Old Batteries, CFL Light bulbs, and other hazardous solids should be considered as well. They should be disposed of in a site specially designed for hazardous or toxic wastes. Some cities and counties have monthly or annual pickups. Other areas have special drop-off sites. Call your city or county government to find out the proper way to dispose of such trash in your area. Try organizing a hazardous-waste-collection day in your neighborhood or at your school, encouraging others to dispose of materials properly.

As always, feel free to comment with questions, or if you have anything to add

During this heated election season, this is a great one, and it can REALLY make a difference, especially at the local level! During election campaigns, ask candidates about their position on the environment. Try to ask specific questions that relate to situations in your community– whether they support a mandatory recycling program, for example, or whether they plan to get tough on polluting companies.

A little can go a long ways here, if you have a little time, work as a volunteer on a “green” candidate’s campaign. As a volunteer, you can canvas neighborhoods in your local community, make phone calls, and help with fund-raisers! This is also a great opportunity to meet some like-minded individuals to network with, perhaps you will even get some business!

As always, feel free to comment with any questions or if you have anything to add!

Today’s tip is a very easy one! SKIP the fast food joint! Most fast food is overpackaged and most fast-food companies are responsible for producing mountains of trash. By avoiding fast food whenever possible, you’ll help reduce this needless waste, AND help reduce your waist line!! Fast food is often made with unhealthy preservatives, from meat laced with hormones and drugs of all kinds! Ditching fast food for good will improve your overall health in addition to the other benefits I have listed!

As always, Please feel free to comment with questions, or if you have anything else to add!

This one is obvious to some people, and not so much to others! Did you know that a SINGLE polystyrene (styrofoam) cup conains ONE BILLION BILLION molecules of CFC’s? That’s 1,000,000,000,000,000,000. Once a CFC atom reaches the ozone layer, it can take over 100 years before it breaks up and becomes harmless!

Think about this when you’re buying picnic supplies, and especially when you’re at the restaurant! Most “to go” containers are made out of styrofoam! Consider taking your own re-usable plastic tupperware container instead of the one that will end up in the land fill, and likely even the atmosphere!

As always, please feel free to comment with questions, or if you have anything to add!

An animal, a stream, a whale, a highway, a child! There’s almost no limit to the number of environmental causes to which you, your friends, or your family can turn.

If you’re looking for a new pet, adopt one from the shelter, and give a chance to a pet that might otherwise not get one.

If you’re looking for a community service project, adopt-a-highway litter control is a good one!

Adopting a child is an amazing way to add to your family WITHOUT addint additional impact to our earth!

As always, please feel free to comment if you have any questions, or anything to add!