This pelican is not visiting the Lagoon. Once critically endangered, these Dalmatian Pelicans, distinguished by silvery-white plumage and a vibrant orange bill, are now thriving in Lake Kerkini, in northern Greece, due to myriad conservation efforts. Take a look!

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Skip scrolling! Here's what you'll find in this edition of the Bluedot Newsletter:

• Dear Dot: Are Nuts Bad for the Planet?

• Greener, Cleaner Laundry

• DIY Seed Balls

• Climate Quick Tip: De-Drip Your Tap 

• Chewy Maple-Pecan Cookies

• Handy Primer for Planting Native

• Bluedot’s Guide to Citizen Action

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Ready for Spring?

Roxanne Kapitan in her garden last spring. Read the story about her Edible Backyard here.

Vesna Nepomuceno, who puts this newsletter together, just told us about a seed library at the OB Library. “I picked some up last week,” she said. “It’s the perfect time to direct sow cold-weather crops and start summer ones from seed.”

Our friends at Vineyard Conservation Society are asking for help as they plan for their annual Earth Day Beach Cleanup on April 19. They could use bags (you can drop them at the Wakeman Center), Beach Kit-Making (April 9, 9 am to 12 pm at the Wakeman Center), prizes for trash gatherers, food donations, and volunteers! Write Signe Benjamin at signe@vineyardconservation.org

VCS is also sponsoring a Sustainable Lawn Care workshop with horticulturist Mark Lavoie at the Ag Hall on March 29 from 2 to 4 pm. 

You can find more events and inspiration here.  

There are few ways to celebrate spring that are as lovely as a Jorie Graham poem, especially this one, “Spring.” Here are a few lines:

Earlier rain. Then sudden sun. 

Wings to every bud, every latched-on sucker. 

Each thing swaying from its tight home. 

And turning, and opening, because so held Spring.

You can read the rest of her poem here. 

See you in April! 

– Britt Bowker, Leslie Garrett, and Jamie Kageleiry

For more tap tips, check out Bluedot’s Room for Change: The Bathroom.

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“Restoring native habitats is healing … it’s something we can all do to make a positive difference,” Liz Durkee wrote in this Field Note from the MV Commission about the importance of native planting in creating resilient landscapes. The Commission worked with BiodiversityWorks, Polly Hill, and VCS to create a collection of how-to manuals for planting native gardens. Here’s the rest of our story. The guides are available at Donaroma’s, Gayle Gardens, Vineyard Gardens, Jardin Mahoney, and Middletown, or you can download it here. 

Buy Better Marketplace:

Greener, Cleaner Laundry

If you purchase anything via one of our links, including from Amazon, we may earn a small commission.

Spring has finally sprung and it’s glorious. Some of you may be embarking on major cleaning projects; others may just want to take a long walk outside. Either way, chances are you’ll be generating laundry. This week, we’re showcasing two Bluedot laundry faves and two innovations that may just change how you do laundry. 

Our Favorite Detergent

Dirty Labs makes super-concentrated, enzyme-powered, plastic-free detergent that’s available fragrance-free and in two sophisticated scents (think magnolia and matcha). They also make an excellent enzyme booster for particularly dirty loads. Save 15% on your first order with code BLUEDOT. Shop today or read our review.

Adorable Dryer Balls

All dryer balls reduce static cling, decrease drying time, and prevent the need to buy wasteful, often toxic dryer sheets. Only Friendsheep dryer balls make us smile every time we do the wash. The Fair Trade brand’s cheerful colors and patterns have elevated dryer balls to an art. Save 10% with code BLUEDOT. Shop today or read our review.

A New Kind of Washing

A newsletter reader emailed us about the Terra Wash+Mg, a little magnesium-filled satchel that she uses to wash clothes. “I haven't bought bottled detergent in four years,” she wrote, yet “very dirty clothes come out clean.” Our marketplace editor started using it in January and has been amazed. Shop on Amazon or read our review.

An Ingenious Dryer Hack

If you often re-run your dryer due to tangled-up sheets, you’ll love the Wad-Free, a little device that you connect to the corners of sheets before washing. Miraculously, it prevents wads, saving you — and your dryer — precious time and energy. Shop on Amazon or read our review.

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DEAR DOT: Are Nuts Bad for the Planet?

– Illustration by Elissa Turnbull

Dear Dot,

I know moving to a plant-based diet is good for the planet. But I wonder about whether some nuts (cashews and almonds, for example) have a large footprint as well in terms of land use, water use, and transportation. What say you?

– Ann

Dear Ann,

Many nuts are not true nuts at all. Cashews, it turns out, are drupes, alongside pistachios and almonds. Peanuts are legumes — part of the pea family, making the “pea” part accurate, while the “nut” part is not. Walnuts and pecans are something of a hybrid. And mangoes and peaches, which we don’t think of as nuts at all, are also drupes, though we eat their flesh, not the seed contained within. Want to get your hands on some true nuts? Reach for chestnuts, hazelnuts, and acorns. But whatever we call them, what we typically think of as nuts have, like any food, an impact on our environment. Alas, we cannot live on air. So let’s, ahem, crack this climate nut open.

Sophie Egan wrote in How to Be a Conscious Eater (on Amazon) that more than 80% of almonds eaten around the world are grown in California. “One of the biggest gripes about the high toll on California’s drought-stricken agriculture system is that two-thirds of the almonds grown are exported,” she wrote. “This ‘virtual water’ gets shipped abroad. … So, it was a big deal when we learned that it takes an entire gallon of water just to produce one almond. Ouch. Suddenly something long seen as a sign of a health-conscious eater was making shoppers think twice.”

And what’s true for almonds is true for many nuts, including walnuts and pistachios (both of which, in the U.S., are also primarily grown in California, largely for export). 

But Big Nut is pushing back. Keep reading for Dot’s advice … in a nutshell.

See more Dot here. Got a question for her? Write her at deardot@bluedotliving.com

Chewy Maple-Pecan Cookies

Before March is out and your thoughts move on from treats made from maple syrup, we thought we’d share this recipe for Chewy Maple-Pecan Cookies from new Bluedot contributor Brian Levy. And if you’re wondering how maple trees are weathering climate change, check out Caroline Saunders’ story. 

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DIY Seed Balls

Our Southern California garden writer Laura McLean shared this super-helpful story about seed balls, and it’s good for wherever you live. “The best time to plant seed balls is late winter. I toss them in the ground, let the rains do their job, and come spring, wildflowers slowly emerge from the soil.”

Fresh off the (digital) press:

Bluedot Living Kitchen’s latest issue is here!

Inside each issue of Bluedot Living Kitchen, you’ll find fresh cooking inspiration for seasonal, planet-friendly eating, tools and tips for creating a more sustainable kitchen, and inspiring stories of the people behind your food. Don’t miss the groundbreaking education and regenerative farming work of Vermont’s Shelburne Farms, our tribute to maple syrup, Easter, and more! 

Claim a free sample of this issue now! No payment information required. 

The Keep-This Handbook

Wondering if you might be better at this whole government thing than those currently in office? Run for something! There are a bunch of organizations to help you. Find them in Bluedot’s Guide to Citizen Action. And for more Island eco-resources, consult our Ultimate Simple, Smart, Sustainable Handbook to Martha’s Vineyard. 

Britt Bowker has been writing and editing for newspapers and magazines across New England, spending a lot of her time on MV.

Leslie Garrett has been covering climate stories for 20 years. Anywhere near the water is her favorite place to be.

Jamie Kageleiry is a longtime magazine and newspaper editor from Oak Bluffs. Her favorite spot on earth is being in a kayak, anywhere on MV.

SIMPLE / SMART / SUSTAINABLE / STORIES

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