By Ann Lapides

Bring refreshing bright color to your sunny areas with the outstanding native Missouri perennial, Rose Verbena, Verbena canadensis. This delight gives us clusters of rose-pink blossoms from late spring through late summer and well into fall. Its sprawling, low-growing habit makes it an ideal ground cover. It resembles its annual cousin, but this beauty queen is […]

Ready for some springtime-fresh ARTful opportunities???

By Michelle “Mike” Ochonicky, Healthy Planet Arts Editor

At MOCRA (Museum of Contemporary Religious Art) on St. Louis University’s campus, Vincente Telles and Brandon Maldonado bring their works together in Cuentos Nuevo Mexicanos. Telles is firmly rooted in the Santero tradition (creating images of saints) while Maldonado describes his own work […]

By Amy Davis, MD

In honor of Autism awareness month, I would like to share what I have learned in the last 25 years treating Autism Spectrum Disorders and raising a son with severe Autism.

Autism has risen dramatically over the last 25 years. In the 1980’s the rate was 1 in 2500 children. In the 1990’s […]

By Natalie R.Toney M.F.A., C.H., Healthy Planet Food Editor

Spring has sprung, and with it lovely flower lined walks, blooming trees (for some of us the sneezies),and the long awaited return of hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees! An abundance of fresh asparagus will also begin cropping up at local farmer’s markets, produce stands, and area grocers. Asparagus […]

By Fair Lady Crimson

Hi Everyone! I would like to share a bit about myself:

In approximately 18 months, I experienced many of the top 10 “stressors” repetitively. Even though I had always been a very positive person and helped others, MY world fell apart!

During this period, I experienced: both parents passing, a few close friends passing, […]

By Jasmin Acosta, Healthy Planet Staff Writer

The foundation to upholding and building up a community is through selflessness and kindness, which stems from actively participating in helping the people around us, as a community cannot function without us acknowledging that we are inherently a member in it held together through understanding that we are all […]

Attend the Heartland Hypnosis Conference to Learn How Hypnosis Can Help You

By William Mitchell M.Div., BCH, CI

When people find out that I am both a Protestant Minister and a Hypnotist, they want to know what can be done with Hypnosis. Most people immediately think of the entertaining hypnosis stage shows. However, Hypnotism is much more […]

Confluence Zen Center STL (CZC) is a small Zen center that formed because a group of practitioners saw the need for a place in St. Louis where people could practice Zazen (meditation) together at least several times a week in a quiet, welcoming environment.

We practice in the Japanese Soto tradition that honors Shakyamuni Buddha as […]

By Dan Zarlenga, Missouri Department of Conservation

Photo Caption: A Jack-in-the-pulpit spreads the gospel of spring throughout the forest. Photo courtesy the Missouri Department of Conservation

April is the time of year to spread the good word of nature. A visit to a nearby forest might seem to some like a religious experience. The miracle of life […]

By Sarah Wilson, MA, Healthy Planet Staff Writer

Come: A Couple of Common Canine Confusions

Canine Come Confusion #1: What Did You Say?

“Watch this,” a man told me as our dogs played in an open field. “Max, Come!” he called out. Max instantly bolted away from him. “See how defiant he is!” the man said.

 “What if, every time you […]

By Jean Ponzi

Keystoners, Leveraging

Like the piece at the top that secures an arch, a Keystone Species is one who holds together the structure (and health, and vitality) of their community of diverse individuals and groups.

Keystone Species are important — and everyone else in the ecosystem is too. But our Keystones uniquely contribute to their interdependent […]

For Veterans, Firefighters, Farmers and Others Exposed to Toxins

By Simon Yu MD

Let me introduce you to a new extraordinary therapy called ozone dialysis therapy, short for extracorporeal blood oxygenation and ozonation (EBOO). Another name for EBOO is Recirculatory Hemoperfusion (RHP) therapy. I have been searching for medical facilities that can do dialysis to remove environmental […]

By J.B.Lester

As Earth Day approaches April 22, I am taking the time to reflect on what Mother Earth means to me. In my lifetime I have enjoyed much of what our planet has to offer, whether it be a hike in the woods or lying in the grass as a child and looking up at […]

Relearning Healthy Habits

By Christina Staff, Healthy Planet Staff Writer

Walking stick in hand and water nearing his knees, my son was not at all concerned about getting wet feet, as he was determined to forge his own path through the creek. With the world at your fingertips and the luxury of innocence on your side, everything […]

By Tom & Carol Braford

The theory of evolution has come a long way since Darwin published On the Origin of Species in 1859. Biological, social, economic and even spiritual and religious theory and practice continue to evolve. 

One big change is that we now know that biological, social and other forms of evolution have as much […]

By Deb Powell, Healthy Planet Columnist

We know every continent has different weather, since I‘m writing from a cold climate, I know that getting outside this month in the (hopefully) warmer weather is (like) a breath of fresh air. Let’s get prepared!

Wet Season

Last month we talked about getting the summer clothes out so don’t forget to […]

By: Amy Williams, Licensed Massage Therapist and Esthetician at Vitality Unlimited Spa

Getting a massage from a licensed professional at Vitality Unlimited Spa is a great way to help manage pain or handle stress. However, what you do afterward is essential too! After your therapist helps release your pain and tension, the results will eventually start […]

Every Day is Earth Day

By Susan Hunt-Bradford

I grew up in the Adirondacks in northern New York, in Lake George. It was and still is the most idyllic place I’ve ever been.

Although Missouri and Illinois have beautiful scenery that can also be breathtaking, there is something unbelievably special about Lake George and the Adirondacks. Lake George […]

By Linda Wiggen Kraft, Healthy Planet Green & Growing Editor

There is a special place, some may even say a sacred place, in Forest Park that honors and nurtures the history and living lineage of the land before settlers. Old growth savannas once covered millions of acres of Missouri. Now there are just a handful of […]

By Audrey Friesen

Choosing sustainable fashion over fast fashion is a small but meaningful contribution toward the fight for climate security. Sustainable fashion aims to achieve a carbon-neutral fashion industry built on ecological integrity and equality. Slow fashion – made-to-order clothing – reduces waste and overproduction.

Fast Fashion – coined in the 1990s – explodes consumerism by […]

Kare Reiki, a Metaphysical Center, is located at 524 S. Main Street, Suite #04 (downstairs), in Saint Charles, Missouri. After discovering the wonders of Reiki, Kare (pronounced “care”) began a business in an effort to spread Energy Work. Shortly thereafter, she added Tarot Card Readings and Medium Readings to her business. She is a retired […]

The 18th Annual Builders St. Charles Home Show, presented by LP® SmartSide® Trim & Siding, is April 14-16 at St. Charles Convention Center, with free admission and parking. Local companies bring countless experts to this event who offer valuable home improvement knowledge and advice. People can see, learn about and buy the latest home products and services in […]

Annual festival in Forest Park emphasizes the importance of a sustainable lifestyle 

Take part in the largest Earth Day celebration in the Midwest on April 22 and 23, 2023, at the Muny Grounds in Forest Park. Free to the public and running from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days, earthday365’s annual festival offers ample opportunities […]

By Dr Gail Cloud

The winds of change are calling into my ear

As I choose to listen even with my fear

What comes next

And what do I hold dear?

Is there a particular calling?

One that I can hold close to my heart?

Or is it time to nestle in, to listen to all my parts?

Sitting all day doing word […]

By Emily Andrews, LEED AP O+M, GPRO O+M, Executive Director, Missouri Gateway Green Building Council

“We need a world of green buildings.” I read this sentence in World Green Building Week materials a few years back and got really excited. Of course that’s what we need because our buildings – greener, healthier buildings – are solutions. […]