Thursday, April 28, 2011

Repurposed Kalona SuperNatural Milk Bottle as DIY Water Sprinkler

DIY Water Sprinkler from Milk Bottle
We love the milk from Kalona SuperNatural, headquartered just a little ways down the road. Short of having your own cow or owning part of a herd, this organic milk is as good as it gets. It is not homogenized, so you can see the cream line, and it is pasteurized at a low temperature. (The yogurt, by the way, is the best I’ve ever tasted. Ever. The strawberry especially.) Kalona SuperNatural supplies the milk for HyVee’s house brand of organic milk, but not all HyVees carry this product.


But what to do with the plastic bottles with their nice lids? I am all for recycling plastic, but it seems wasteful to immediately recycle perfectly good bottles.

Until I come up with new ideas, I will make sprinkler bottles to water my plants.

It holds a half gallon and is light and easy for houseplants or a deck container garden. It also would be useful for applying liquid fertilizer such as compost tea or fish emulsion.

Because the lid removes easily, you can keep it clean. Sprinkling rosettes on standard watering cans sometimes get clogged with detritus. At least mine do because I leave them exposed to the elements.

Read on to see the directions for a DIY Water Sprinkler from Kalona SuperNatural Milk Bottles.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Watching the Rivers

River watching begins in late winter as thick slabs of ice break and begin their way down stream. Tributaries feed the Cedar, Cedar to Iowa, Iowa to Mississippi, and from there to the world.

I found a stretch of road that runs right up beside the Cedar River. I took these photos from the car (as a passenger).

Spring flooding strikes more fear than it once did. In June 2008, the Cedar River flood devastated some 10 square miles of Cedar Rapids. Homes in the 500 year floodplain and other areas never thought to flood were inundated.


Friday, April 1, 2011

Antiques and Hamburgers in Mt. Vernon

After a drive through Palisades-Kepler State Park last Sunday, we continued over to Mt. Vernon which has several antique shops, including Polly Ann’s. Lots of cool housewares in so many rooms you will easily lose your companion if you are not careful. This place has too many vintage linens and kitchen gadgets for my own good. Next time, we’ll hit the school-turned-antique-mall across the street.
In the basement, enough gloves for a tournament.
The chandelier is a fancy touch in an otherwise casual theme.

I love the floral curtains and the green corner hutch.
Read on to see more.