The 4th R - Raise your own

Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle are the best known words to those who care about environmental issues, but I think a fourth "R" word could be Raise as in raise your own foods. I know Earth Day was a few weeks ago but where I live the weather has been more than just a little soggy. We've made national news and set new records for the amount of rainfall and the river levels all down the Mississippi. This has made spring much less appealing than normal and prevented crops from being planted by not only the large crop farmers but also the small time gardeners like myself. I started my seeds months ago but have not been able to transplant them. And, I like to celebrate Earth Day everyday anyway ;)

Last year we had an abundance of tomatoes in our garden but few of my favorite veggie - green beans. So, this year I bought seeds instead of just a few seedlings. I was surprised at the value in the seed packet - I had alot of seeds left and may start some other plants in a few weeks so I can rotate the plants - when some stop producing, hopefully the others will start. In the meantime, I needed a place to keep those extra seeds and it occurred to me that I could make a seed packet for them from Paper Trunk papers.

I cut a library pocket from some Batik paper using my Silhouette. I then cut from the other side of the paper a background to attach to the front of the pocket. The green beans and leaves were hand cut from Jellybean paper and inked on the edges. I also rolled them and folded them to give them some dimension before attaching them to the background. The Carson Chocolate stickers were perfect for labeling the pocket.
And the top folds over to keep the beans safely inside the pocket.

I have thought about giving these seeds to my son's school and to do so, I thought I might also make a card to give to the teachers. To make the card I cut the globe, letters, and butterflies on my Silhouette using the same Jellybean and Batik papers as were used for the seed packet. I layered the butterflies and sewed them in place around the outside of the globe.

I think the seed paket and card make a lovely gift to a classroom or a friend. I can see the children learning to care for seeds and tiny seedling and maybe even taking the plants home so they could eat their beans when they are ready. Perhaps this activity would create a new generation of people to care for the planet.


I hope you will consider more ways to celebrate the Earth and to protect our environment with your crafty projects, not just on Earth day but everyday.

Rachel