Spring Green

March is probably the most Green of all months. Spring is here, the first buds have opened, and St. Patrick’s Day brought out all shades of green. How green are you? How is your progress on reducing, reusing, recycling, and rebuying?

REDUCE
__ Now is the time to start your own organic herb garden outside your tea room or in a window sill. If you don’t have much space, you can grow it in containers (e.g. teapots) inside the tea room. It will look fresh and give a wonderful scent when someone touches it. Basil, rosemary, chives, oregano, lemon balm and mint are excellent herbs for micro-gardening and are beautiful edible decorations on your foods.
__ If your space allows it, plant native fruit bushes/trees outside and start a small vegetable garden (tomatoes, bell peppers, zucchinis, etc.) Imagine announcing today’s food served with home-grown produce!
__ Serve a quick fiber-rich appetizer on the house. It will take away the worst hunger and customers get satisfied on less food on the tea platter.

REUSE
__ Do you use tea light candles for your tea warmers? If so, you will have a lot of empty aluminum cups when they are burned out that are just thrown out, right? Collect them and reuse them for individual flower arrangements for special events, e.g. birthday parties. Press the aluminum cup into an oasis block, cut it off and wet it. Fill it with flowers of the season and use for individual ‘centerpieces’ and as give-aways to special customers. They fit perfectly into a teacup!

__ Use fabric napkins instead of paper. A tea room is the perfect place to teach customers to “re-invent” this tradition at home, too. Consider selling nice fabric napkins and reusable napkin rings. If you must use paper napkins, use those made from 100% recycled, unbleached paper.
__ Reward customers who bring their own to-go reusable travel mugs and shopping bags.

RECYCLE
__ Use glass and porcelain containers instead of plastic, plastic bags, Styrofoam, and aluminum. Use recyclable paper products instead of plastic. For take-out containers, use recyclable materials – and never polystyrene foam, “Styrofoam” (doesn’t decompose.) Biodegradable and 100% annually renewable products are e.g. bagasse (waste product from sugar canes) and PLA (biodegradable thermoplastic derived from corn), http://www.biosmartpackaging.com/Biodegradable_Materials.html. Renewable take-out containers may be a huge competitive edge for you. BioSmart surveyed more than 2000 people at a street fair in LA and learned that 62% would be more likely to frequent a business who used earth-friendly materials (9% would less likely, and 29% didn’t care).

REBUY
__ Use cleaning products that are non-toxic and biodegradable. We all know that tea stains are hard to deal with, but a 100% nature friendly product such as “Nature Bright” from Shaklee’s Get Clean series takes off stains from your vintage table cloths, carpets, upholstery, towels and clothes. Even though it is chlorine/phosphate-free and color safe, it actually works wonders. Their “Scour Off” cleans tea stains from your most delicate antique tea cups without damaging cups or nature. If you also use Shaklee’s Get Clean dish wash, laundry and cleaning products you can proudly announce to your customers that you have a 100% Toxic-Free Tea Room! http://www.shaklee.net/pmatlock/product/GetCleanHousehold

RESOURCES
A good book to read: "Green Goes with Everything" by Sloan Barnett, Atria Books

TAKE ACTION! GO GREEN!
Kirsten
http://www.tea4u.com/