thegreenhub1
Kira Simpson
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All things sustainable living & nature 🌱
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Fractals are repeating patterns found in everywhere nature - like these branches and leaves or waves crashing or wind rippling across water. The research found that our brains really like fractals, which have a soothing effect on our mind and help regulate our emotions, similar to when we listen to music. Most us of live and work inside, and we haven’t evolved to find comfort in four bare walls - wallpaper patterns don’t count. Our brains are hardwired to need to see naturally occurring fractals to help us destress. Feeling relaxed isn’t just a want, it’s a biological need. So if you’re feeling out of sorts, get outside and look at nature 🥰
Research: The Nature Fix: Why Nature Makes Us Happier, Healthier, and More Creative -Florence Williams
What Happens in Your Brain When You Walk Down the Street? Implications of Architectural Proportions, Biophilia, and Fractal Geometry for Urban Science
by Aenne A. Brielmann 1ORCID,Nir H. Buras 2,Nikos A. Salingaros 3,*ORCID andRichard P. Taylor 4
Human Physiological Benefits of Viewing Nature: EEG Responses to Exact and Statistical Fractal Patterns C. M. Hägerhäll1, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Alnarp, Sweden, T. Laike, M. Küller, E. Marcheschi, Lund University, Sweden, C. Boydston, and R. P. Taylor, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR
#fractals #natureismedicine #connectwithnature #slowliving
Research: The Nature Fix: Why Nature Makes Us Happier, Healthier, and More Creative -Florence Williams
What Happens in Your Brain When You Walk Down the Street? Implications of Architectural Proportions, Biophilia, and Fractal Geometry for Urban Science
by Aenne A. Brielmann 1ORCID,Nir H. Buras 2,Nikos A. Salingaros 3,*ORCID andRichard P. Taylor 4
Human Physiological Benefits of Viewing Nature: EEG Responses to Exact and Statistical Fractal Patterns C. M. Hägerhäll1, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Alnarp, Sweden, T. Laike, M. Küller, E. Marcheschi, Lund University, Sweden, C. Boydston, and R. P. Taylor, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR
#fractals #natureismedicine #connectwithnature #slowliving
The plan for the gardens 🥳 Project rewild our gardens is a combination of bringing biodiversity back to our yard, and creating a space we love as well.
🌱The Mediterranean garden is purely decorative, with some citrus trees because I’m tired of paying $2 for lemon 😭
🌱Behind the pool is for the wildlife, all natives, some flowering trees like Grevillea, banksia, wattle, with bird baths and places for lizards and small animals to hide.
🌱 The only patch of grass for Charlie to 💩
🌱 The corridor with pavers and ground cover, and sloping garden with lots of shrubs and flowers - well tackle this first because it won’t be impacted during the house renovations.
🌱 The veggie patch with a little cottage garden, a greenhouse, and compost bins 🥰
We we’re working with a landscape designer to help us choose the plants to suit each area, I’ll share those when we have them. This is a long term project, it won’t happen overnight like the magic of social media often portrays. But I will share our progress as we go along. And if you’re interested in the house reno you can follow @thegreenhousegc all the inspo images are on my Pinterest page linked to the original sources.
#australiannatives #rewildsuburbia #pollinatorgarden #nativegarden
🌱The Mediterranean garden is purely decorative, with some citrus trees because I’m tired of paying $2 for lemon 😭
🌱Behind the pool is for the wildlife, all natives, some flowering trees like Grevillea, banksia, wattle, with bird baths and places for lizards and small animals to hide.
🌱 The only patch of grass for Charlie to 💩
🌱 The corridor with pavers and ground cover, and sloping garden with lots of shrubs and flowers - well tackle this first because it won’t be impacted during the house renovations.
🌱 The veggie patch with a little cottage garden, a greenhouse, and compost bins 🥰
We we’re working with a landscape designer to help us choose the plants to suit each area, I’ll share those when we have them. This is a long term project, it won’t happen overnight like the magic of social media often portrays. But I will share our progress as we go along. And if you’re interested in the house reno you can follow @thegreenhousegc all the inspo images are on my Pinterest page linked to the original sources.
#australiannatives #rewildsuburbia #pollinatorgarden #nativegarden
Project rewild my backyard over the next few months! Our property is pretty big and I feel like we have a responsibility to manage it with respect to our local area and support wildlife. Rather than leaving a thirsty lawn and plants that need a lot of water and don’t support biodiversity. The goal is to fill each area with drought tolerant mostly natives, with lots of flowering plants for the bees and birds. It’s a big project and will take a long time, so settle in and I’ll share our progress over the next few months. I’ll know we’ve been successful when I starry seeing wildlife move in 🤞 I’d really love a resident kookaburra, and I wouldn’t be mad if a possum or three found a home here too ☺️💚 Inspo photos are on my Pinterest linked to original sources.
Some of the natives I picked up at a local plant market:
Westringia– a great for ground cover.
Leptospermum – they smell amazing and have the prettiest flowers.
Banksia - we plan to have lots of these because birds love them.
Plectranthus – they have strongly perfumed flowers - I have this dream of our garden being a feast for the senses.
Pheballium with beautiful flowers – it will grow into a small shrub and the bees love them. The same with the Philotheca - wax flower.
Allyn Radiance Grevillea is going to be perfect for the sloping garden – it spreads really well so you only need a few plants.
#australiannatives #rewildsuburbia #pollinatorgarden #nativegarden
Some of the natives I picked up at a local plant market:
Westringia– a great for ground cover.
Leptospermum – they smell amazing and have the prettiest flowers.
Banksia - we plan to have lots of these because birds love them.
Plectranthus – they have strongly perfumed flowers - I have this dream of our garden being a feast for the senses.
Pheballium with beautiful flowers – it will grow into a small shrub and the bees love them. The same with the Philotheca - wax flower.
Allyn Radiance Grevillea is going to be perfect for the sloping garden – it spreads really well so you only need a few plants.
#australiannatives #rewildsuburbia #pollinatorgarden #nativegarden
Systemic change only comes from more people being aware of the problem. We don’t just wake up one day and decide to help dismantle the systems destroying the planet. It starts with small sustainable lifestyle changes and grows from there. Our individual actions may not save the planet, but the culture shift we’re creating will 💚
#sustainableliving #lowwastelifestyle #fortheplanet
#sustainableliving #lowwastelifestyle #fortheplanet
Morning visitors. We feed the ducks and swans peas and spinach from the garden 1-2 times a week. And leave fresh water out every day, especially in summer. If you want to encourage wildlife its as simple as leaving water out for them. At the moment we live on the canals, so our backyard is full of water birds. But when we move to the new house, I’ll create water stations around the yard, and plant natives to feed birds and pollinators. Anyone can help rewild suburbia. Biodiversity in suburbs has been steadily declining over the years, from a combination of land clearing, habitat destruction, no trees, use of pesticides and insecticides, and a lack of native plants for wildlife to live in and feed on. Looking after wildlife can literally start in own backyards. It’s the best feeling seeing wildlife enjoying the little eco haven you’ve created for them in your home.
. #goldcoast #backyardbiodiversity #rewildsuburbia
. #goldcoast #backyardbiodiversity #rewildsuburbia
A third of all the food we buy is thrown in the bin! 🤯 A quick reminder why food waste is such a problem. When we send food waste to landfill it doesn’t break down properly. Landfill is not a giant compost. In landfill conditions there’s not enough oxygen, so the food waste rots and produce methane, which is a greenhouse gas. So, when we chuck food in the bin, it’s contributing to climate change. Fortunately there are lots of ways we can learn how how to reduce our food waste, and a big part of it is storing fresh produce correctly so it stays fresh, lasts longer, and we’re more likely to eat it.
#foodwaste #reducefoodwaste #lowwasteliving
#foodwaste #reducefoodwaste #lowwasteliving
Here’s a first look at our sustainable house renovation on the Gold Coast! The house was built in the early 80s and has had two renovations in its lifetime. That office used to be a bar! The house is in great condition, so we’ll keep things like the floors, bathrooms, and the main bedroom as is because there’s nothing wrong with them.
The purpose of the renovation is to make the house fit our lifestyle. We’re child-free by choice, so we don’t need extra bedrooms and living spaces. We both work from home and love entertaining, so we want an open-plan kitchen and lounge room for all our friends and family to hang out in. Plus two home offices/library – we spend a lot of time in our offices, so we want to make them special! Before the renos start, we’ll have a company come and check out the kitchen, doors, lights etc, to see what can be salvaged to recycle as much as we can.
We won’t be renovating ourselves, Dave and I both have full-time jobs, no time and no renovation experience, so we’re working with a wonderful builder to help bring our dreams to life. To save money, we will be doing all the landscaping ourselves. You can follow my stories on Instagram to watch us rip out what feels like a thousand palm trees and agaves and transform the dark and wet backyard into a sunny native pollinator haven with a veggie patch. And for the detailed stuff, suppliers, costs etc you can sign up to the newsletter on the blog. #thegreenhousegc #sustainablehouse #sustainablerenovation
The purpose of the renovation is to make the house fit our lifestyle. We’re child-free by choice, so we don’t need extra bedrooms and living spaces. We both work from home and love entertaining, so we want an open-plan kitchen and lounge room for all our friends and family to hang out in. Plus two home offices/library – we spend a lot of time in our offices, so we want to make them special! Before the renos start, we’ll have a company come and check out the kitchen, doors, lights etc, to see what can be salvaged to recycle as much as we can.
We won’t be renovating ourselves, Dave and I both have full-time jobs, no time and no renovation experience, so we’re working with a wonderful builder to help bring our dreams to life. To save money, we will be doing all the landscaping ourselves. You can follow my stories on Instagram to watch us rip out what feels like a thousand palm trees and agaves and transform the dark and wet backyard into a sunny native pollinator haven with a veggie patch. And for the detailed stuff, suppliers, costs etc you can sign up to the newsletter on the blog. #thegreenhousegc #sustainablehouse #sustainablerenovation
Stop throwing away those wilted veggies! It’s terrible for the environment and for your bank account. In Australia alone we throw away a third of all the food we buy. That’s like buying three bags of groceries, and on the way to your car, chucking one bag in the bin! 😳 Get into the habit of doing a weekly fridge stocktake to see what food needs to be eaten before you anything new. Get creative in the kitchen and make something using only what you have on hand. This one is an Italian dish called Scarpaccia, all you need are a few zucchini’s, an onion and a simple batter made from flour, polenta (can leave out if you don’t have any), water, salt and pepper. Bake for 30 minutes and you have an easy no food wasted dinner 💚 #reducefoodwaste #lowwasteliving #veganrecipes
Easy weeknight meal idea when you have broccoli and leafy greens that need to be used up. Not real recipe here, this works with any greens you have on on hand, and measure with your hear. Add nutritional yeast, salt, pepper and lemon to taste. Enjoy! #reducefoodwaste #easydinnerideas #lowwastelifestyle
You need to try this simple 3 ingredient vegan chocolate mousse made using Aquafaba aka chickpea water. It’s so creamy and decadent 🤤 To make: whip the water from 1 can of chickpeas for 10 minutes, add 1/2 cup of sugar and whip for another minute. Add in half a block of melted dark chocolate and gently mix in. Pour into ramekins or small bowls and leave to set in the fridge for at least two hours. Enjoy!
#aquafaba #veganmousse #lowwasteliving #reducefoodwaste
#aquafaba #veganmousse #lowwasteliving #reducefoodwaste
(ad) What to do with the giant cabbage you just can’t finish? Make sauerkraut! Most important is to wash the bowl, storage jar, and your hands to make sure you don’t introduce any bad bacteria into the sauerkraut. I always have a bottle of @ecostore antibacterial handwash on the kitchen sink, for when I’m making food, it’s pH balanced and so gentle on my skin. And like all ecostore products, it’s made with plant and mineral-based ingredients, it’s vegan, and never tested on animals 🥰
Store the sauerkraut in a cool dark place like the pantry for 2-3 weeks. Then do the smell and taste test – trust your nose. Your sauerkraut should smell nicely sour and it should taste like tart cabbage. It should not smell bad or look yeasty. #foodwaste #sauerkraut #lowwasteliving
Store the sauerkraut in a cool dark place like the pantry for 2-3 weeks. Then do the smell and taste test – trust your nose. Your sauerkraut should smell nicely sour and it should taste like tart cabbage. It should not smell bad or look yeasty. #foodwaste #sauerkraut #lowwasteliving