I’ve gotten a lot of reader quesions via email lately. If I haven’t posted your question no worries I’ll get to it sooner or later.

Today’s question comes from River who says, “I found your blog when I searched Popsicle recipes today. Great ideas! I have an allergy to cane sugar. Can the recipes that require a sweetener be made with maple syrup, honey, or agave? Will these interfere with freezing?
Do you know anything about homemade throat lozenges? I have seen a recipe but cannot find it. It takes a large amount of slippery elm, some honey, and other herbs, but …read more

Today’s reader question comes from Karen, who asks…

I have a question for you. I’ve decided to start going green slowly, as you’ve suggested, and have focused first on body and cleaning products. With both of these, I am finding some difficulty in figuring out what products are actually green and which are not. Some products say they are biodegradable, some say eco friendly, some talk about fair trade, and as I’m sure you know the list goes on. How do you choose what types of products to use? Since you seem to really know about these things, I’d love …read more

Folks have a lot of questions about green cleaners. Most recently on the post, 25 Safe, Non-toxic, Homemade Cleaning Supplies, Tosha asked, “Does anyone know how long you can keep these products once you mix them?” Then Caroline followed up with, “I too am interested in knowing if you can mix a batch up and save it? Or do you have to mix and use immediately? No one has answered Tosha on this…and I would like to know too!”
The issue here is that there are 25 cleaners posted in that post – so as you might guess, each can have …read more

Recently, on the post 32 Unique Homemade Popsicle Recipes & Ideas someone asked:
“Instead of using plastic molds, why not try making your iceblocks in shot glasses or other containers.”
First of all, many ice pop molds are plastic (not cool), but you can also get molds made of silicone which is a much better option than plastic. Also, in the grand scheme of things, a good set of ice pop molds will save eco-resources over time so I’d rather use plastic molds than none at all.
WHY NOT USE SHOT GLASSES?
If you’ve ever stuck a glass in the freezer, with liquid in …read more

Last year we posted a green wedding series here at Tree Hugging Family. Of course being a blog, we get readers way later on who find the series, and still have questions. Recently, someone asked an excellent question on the Eco-Wedding Ring Options post…
“So what would people recommend doing with wedding and engagement rings they already have? My husband and I didn’t realize the ethical issues with gold and diamonds when we got married and are unsure what to do next. Keep it because the damage is already done or sell it and make a more ethical ring choice?”
It’s a …read more

Today’s green question appeared on the post, 25 Safe, Non-toxic, Homemade Cleaning Supplies; a reader asked, “I have some old floor cleaners, wax, ect.. what’s the best way to get rid of it with out hurting the environment?”
First of all you’ll need to know which household cleaners are worth keeping, and which should be tossed. You can read the following post; How many cleaning supplies are under your sink that your child could safely drink? to sort out your chemicals.
Secondly, you don’t want to toss them in the sink. Cleaners can be just as toxic to the environment as paint …read more

In a previous post here about homemade sugar body scrub, a reader wanted to know if this body scrub is appropriate for facial use. In the comments I said something akin to… “I could use this on my face because my skin is pretty hardy, i.e. doesn’t break out or respond badly to essential oils. However, I don’t generally suggest it for facial use because one, getting oils in your mouth or eyes is not ok, and two, sugar and oil is not the best skin care regimen for many people.”
There are better homemade facial scrub/cleaner options than the sugar …read more

I’ve got an idea for a new deal here at Tree Hugging Family. Plenty of you ask questions regarding posts here, and while I try to answer you all in the comments, I do miss some, plus if you’re asking there’s a good chance that someone else is curious too.

That said, I’ve decided to try and post an ongoing series of Q&A. Questions asked by readers and answered by yours truly. This will be in addition to my regular posts and I may not run it each day depending on time allowed, but at least a few times a week …read more