Inside and Out, Homeowners Can ‘Go Green’ With Their Houses

incandescent lights. This is due to the material used to create these LED lights not being able to produce carbon dioxide gas compared to other lights.

Installing low-flow appliances, such as a shower head or toilet, can significantly reduce water use. According to a June 2022 article in House Beautiful magazine, standard toilets use up to seven gallons of water per flush, while low-flow toilets only use 1.6 gallons. Low-flow shower heads also decrease water consumption by “at least 40 percent.”

Growing a garden can be a fun way for a homeowner to spruce up the outside of their house, as well as be environmentally friendly. Gardening with native plants — a plant that occurred naturally in a particular region without human introduction — can require less maintenance and water. They help the environment the most when planted in places that match their growing requirements.

If one is unsure what to plant, resources such as Native Plant Landscape Design Corp in Falls Church can help a homeowner decide what native plants to choose based on the climate of their region.

To help care for one’s garden and backyard, the use of a rain barrel or garden can save water by using repurposed rainfall to nourish plants instead. According to the same House Beautiful cle, rainwater contains more of the nitrogen, oxygen and carbon dioxide plants flourish with.

Recently, the Falls Church Village Preservation and Improvement Society (VPIS) announced grants to city resi- dents for rain barrel and garden projects to reduce potentiallydamaging stormwater. VPIS Board Member Jeffrey Peterson said rain barrels and gardens can prevent pollution in local streams and reduce flooding in the area. He also said a homeowner can have an “improved” landscape with these projects as it causes less water ponding in one’s own backyard.

SPRING HOME & GARDEN