1000 Flowers for the Planet - #173 Use a Rake

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #173 Use a Rake

Here’s a good way to benefit both the environment and your health at the same time. When you pick up the blower vac to shift the autumn leaves you use energy in the form of petrol/gas or electricity (possibly fossil fuels or uranium). It certainly makes the job quicker and less strain on the muscles, but the alternative has so many more benefits than that. By using a rake to tidy your garden/yard you give yourself a good physical workout, which improves your fitness and benefits your health. You will save money when you look after your health and even more money on the fuel you haven’t had to purchase. The environment will benefit from all the resources you’ve prevented from being used and their associated costs (transportation, fossil fuels, water, air pollution, carbon emissions) and there will be no urban run-off (Flower #35). Your neighbours will also benefit because they won’t be disturbed by noise pollution, meaning better community relations. SO many benefits!

And on a final note, picking up a rake gives you a wonderful opportunity to slow down, take pleasure in your garden, gain some quiet time for reflection or just having your own head space, and conclude with the reward (on so many levels) of a job well done.