Your Suggestions For Reducing, Reusing and Recycling

Here are the entries for our recent Carlisle Focus Magazine competition. There were so many good entries we've decided to share the best with you. Congratulations to Mrs Murphy of Lowry Hill, who will receive a compost bin and water butt for her winning entry.

From Mrs Kathy Wynne, Kirkhouse

• Ask at your local supermarket or fishmongers for their unwanted fish delivery boxes. Punch drainage holes in the base and you can use the boxes to grow salad crops or even strawberries. If you raise them off the ground they are a great way to avoid slug damage and can easily be netted to deter flying pests and birds.
• Tetra Pack Potting Plants - wash out the Tetra pack, and pull out the 4 flattened corner 'wings'. Using scissors cut off approximately 5cm of the bottom. Cut off a triangle at each corner of the pouring end to allow for drainage. Now turn it so that you have a container open at the top with drainage holes at the base. You can now fill the Tetra pack with compost and use it for potting plants.

From Emma Newbold, Cargo

• Old yogurt pots make good pots for growing seeds in.
• Tops of plastic bottles can be used in the garden to cover and protect small plants.
• Old bed sheets can be cut and sewn up to make sleeping bag liners. They also make good coverings when decorated.
• Old egg boxes can be used as Christmas bauble storage and for starting off seed potatoes.
• Old margarine tubs make good storgae for food in the freezer.
• Old takeaway plastic boxes are a good size for sandwich boxes.
• Old takeaway foil containers are useful for roasting small quantities of food.
• Old wrapping paper can be cut up and is great to use when card making.
• The hanging ribbons from shjoulders of clothing are good for card making.

From Trish O'Hara, Carlisle

• Re-use birthday and Christmas cards by using the fronts to create new cards and the backs for shopping lists.
• Use polythene bread bags as doggy bags when out walking.
• Compress old newspapers and use for fuel for example in log burning stoves.

Belinda Lloyd, Carlisle

• Use old plastic bags as dog poo bags
• Use cardboard from old boxes to make greeting cards. Decorate with wrapping paper or sweet wrappers
• Use newspaper or magazines as wrapping paper for presents
• Foil quiche trays make great saucepan lids
• Use old jam jars or sauce jars to store lentils, chickpeas etc
• Margarine tubs are good for storage in the freezer
• Old clothes (not good enough for charity shops) can be cut into rags for cleaning bikes.
• Old boots make good decorative plant pots

Miss H Nixon, Linstock

• Take a reusable bag when you go shopping (Carlisle City Council offer reusable bags at events throughout the year – look out for one near you soon!)

Mrs Baty, Upperby

• Use cardboard shoe boxes as a kitchen fruit and vegetable scrap bin. Once worn out, use it for the last time and put it (and its contents) into a compost bin.

Mrs M J Campbell, Upperby

• In streets/areas where there are several families with young children, exchange clothes - recycles the clothing and gives children different outfits!

Mr G Barratt, St Edmunds Park, Carlisle

• Use your old black dustbins for growing vegetables in, or as a water butt or storing your green recycling bags in to keep the cardboard dry.

David Altham, Stanwix

• Buy items, such as fruit and vegetables, without packaging

And the winner is…

Mrs Alice Murphy, Lowry Hill, Carlisle

• Shredded paper can be used as an alternative to pet litter
• Soak the outside of cabbage leaves in water for a few days (smelly, but the liquid is excellent for pouring over plants and vegetables to deter pests i.e. slugs)
• Spectacles can be recycled at opticians