Sustainable Backyard Tour returns June 22nd.

St. Louis Earth Day is a proud partner of the 4th annual Sustainable Backyard Tour, Sunday, June 22nd from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event is free and open to the public, but please register online.

Choose carefully and start early – over 30 backyards, side yards, front yards and courtyards will be on display, highlighting different approaches to sustainable practices at home. The tour is a self-guided, open-house format, showcasing eco-friendly yards in St. Louis City and County.

A diverse learning experience.

More than 80 families have welcomed tour goers into their yards over the past three years, demonstrating a range of green living practices, including low-impact lawn care, composting and using recycled materials creatively, organic gardening, chicken and beekeeping, gardening with native plants, mushrooms, fruit and nut trees, as well as rainwater conservation, pesticide and herbicide reduction, renewable energy production, and backyard habitat creation.

Attendees design their own routes, choosing from a map with addresses and descriptions; and in most cases homeowners will be on hand to answer questions and share stories.

For more information, visit the Sustainable Backyard Tour’s website: www.sustainablebackyardtour.com.

Food on the move.

This year, Slow Food St. Louis’ Truck Farm project will be on display at SLED Executive Director, Cassandra Hage’s house. Tended by Brian Desmet, the Truck Farm is a mobile community farm, and a public art and education project – present at this year’s St. Louis Earth Day Festival in April.

Every year, Cassandra has participated as a tour site showcasing her small South City lot which yields hundreds of pounds of food annually – including a variety of herbs and fruit. Additionally, visitors can find out more about beekeeping and home-brewing – both activities which benefit from the diverse landscape she and her husband have cultivated.

For more details about Cassandra and Tim’s impressive homesteading operations, check out their profile in Alive Magazine from April 2013.

Earth Day Action Grants… in action.

The Sustainable Backyard Tour was the recipient of an Earth Day Action Grant in April. A member of our second class of awardees, beneficiaries of the new initiative which aims to provide micro-grants for community groups and small organizations for specific projects with Earth Day-aligned goals.

Read more about our 5 grant recipients who were recognized at this year’s St. Louis Earth Day Festival in Forest Park on Sunday, April 27th.