Caring for the environment should an essential value in our day to day lives. As such, recycling then takes on even greater importance. In some cases, that is as easy as just sorting out your garbage before you take it out to the dump, but, in others, it takes a little more thought.

As much as possible, we should be creative in our recycling. When we have something that we can reuse, we should use it. That saves time, energy, and money, because it requires little to no energy to convert it. So what about the stuff that we typically throw away or separate into bins? Cardboard quickly comes to mind.

Well, here are ten ways that you can recycle the cardboard in your home to benefit your family and make the world a greener place.

Pet Bed Filler
Pet bed filler can quickly add up, particularly if you have a large pet or a houseful of pets. But shredded cardboard makes an excellent bedding material. For rodents, you can shred it into fine pieces and drop it directly in the tank. It's non allergenic, which works great for your more sensitive rodents.

Dogs and cats, however, tend to prefer a more luxurious approach. Our boxer, Maggie, refuses to sleep on anything but a people comforter. Her favorite was my daughter's custom comforter from Vision Bedding. Rather than fight the dog, we ordered an identical duvet cover from Vision Bedding and stuffed it with shredded cardboard. The duvet cover is sturdy enough to stand up to multiple washings and our dear dog's need to feel like a part of the family. By changing out the cardboard, we ensure that it always smells fresh.

To make a larger pet bed with filler, you can get a duvet cover. Vision Bedding is my favorite at this time because the quality is amazing. Or you can make your own duvet cover. You just then fill it with shredded cardboard. For easy containment, you can put the cardboard in a large garbage bag, seal it, and then slide it into the pet bed.

Compost
After you have used the shredded cardboard as pet bed filler, you can dump it in your compost bin. Cardboard, whether shredded or not, makes a wonderful addition to the brown material you need in your bin.

Compost should ideally be composed of both green and brown matter. Brown matter is that which is carbonaceous whereas the green are the nitrogen rich materials, generally moist and fresh. By adding cardboard to a mix of leaves and other vegetable matter, you enhance your mulch. Personally, I always shred the cardboard, even if I don't plan to use it for bedding, just because it makes it easier to use.

Sheetblocking
Here's another great trick for plant care. This technique requires larger sheets of cardboard. To use them, you place them over your plants during the cold months of winter so that you insulate the plants. You can cut out sections to allow your bushes and shrubs to grow beyond the cardboard, but to make sure that you cover everything, let the cardboard overlap.

Once you finish laying out the cardboard, you need to add two to three inches of mulch. This creates the warm barrier that will protect the garden creatures like earthworms as well as your beautiful plants. By the time spring rolls around, the cardboard will have rotten most likely, and the mulch will still be in place to fertilize the new spring flowers that begin peeking over the top.

Playhouses and Dollhouses
Larger boxes make delightful play spaces for small children, while smaller boxes can be glued together to make dollhouses. Get the children involved to decorate it and make it as unique as they are.
The best boxes for playhouses are moving or appliance boxes. Doll houses can be made from anything from pasta boxes to mailing packages. In some cases, you may actually be able to use an appliance box for a frame and glue the smaller boxes inside for the individual rooms. To be even more environmentally friendly, consider making your own paints for decorations.

Future Gifts and Mail Packages
Come Christmas and birthday time, there never seems to be enough boxes. To save your cardboard bounty throughout the year, take a sharp knife and "break down" the box. You do this by cutting the tape at the bottom, and pressing the box out so that it will lie flat. You can then store it under the bed or in the closet.

If you choose to store it in the basement or some place damp, you need to store the boxes in garbage bags or something waterproof to prevent mold. Should your boxes become moldy, don't throw them away. Use them for mulch and compost.

Organizers
Smaller sectioned boxes make wonderful dividers. You can use them to organize your junk or beauty drawer. Light bulb containers in particular are great for hair scrunchies, and cardboard egg cartons make wonderful bead dividers. The possibilities are as varied as your needs and imagination.
TLC recommends using pieces of cardboard to wrap electrical cords, Christmas lights, and other items that easily tangle. The cardboard does not have to be sturdy, and it could even be a portion of a cereal box. Personally, I like using the cardboard to help hold my Shetland wool yarn. It prevents the yarn from tangling as easily.

Winter Sleds
The Mount Sunapee Race was looking for fun and games when they came up with this challenge, but it works well for those of us who are trying to take care of the environment and still have fun with our families. The premise is simple. Rather than just purchasing a plastic sled, you make one out of a cardboard box.

You can make the box last longer by rubbing the exterior with candle wax, or you can just go out and have a great time. Creativity and fun are both required to sled in cardboard boxes, and some kids enjoy designing their sleds before fun in the snow. Making a box sled is not overly complicated, and it makes a great family activity.

Pet Toys
Rodents love chewing. They really don't care what they chew so long as it's something. To this end, cardboard tubes from paper towels and toilet paper make the best toys. Our gerbils go through five to six tubes in a day easily, and as they chew the tubes, they make their bedding. After they're done using it as bedding, we can recycle it! It makes for a multi step recycling process that ensures that we get the most out of that cardboard.

Also, by carefully placing the tubes, including oatmeal and spaghetti containers, you can create a fun system of tunnels. These cardboard pet playhouses are better for your furry friends in the long run because you do not have to clean them and must supply them with fresh. Cleaning plastic pet houses is not only expensive and time consuming but risky. It is difficult to get all of the bacteria out of the crevices in some of those tight turns.

Cooking Oil and Liquid Disposal
For those wax lined boxes, one of the best uses can be to save them for after the peanut fish fry. Good oil, regardless of how healthy it is for your body, should never be poured down the drain. And if you pour it straight into the garbage can, you run the risk of springing a leak in your garbage bag.

Save yourself the trouble and pour the oil and liquids into an old wax lined box such as a cardboard milk carton. If you use a funnel, you eliminate spill, and you prevent further mess in your kitchen. Since I buy the milk from our local organic dairy comes in these wax covered cartons, I always rinse them out and then store them under the sink.

Costumes
Halloween isn't the only time that youngsters and the young at heart like to get dressed up. My children look for every opportunity to make themselves look like creatures from outer space and scuba divers. Rather than spend the money on expensive costumes that they quickly outgrow, we save boxes that are approximately their size to turn into costumes. While an adult should cut out the arm and head holes, children can easily decorate their costumes on their own.

Costumes can easily be painted using homemade paints as well. When done with these boxes, they can either be used for unique storage or shredded to make compost or pet filler.

It's very important that as we seek to protect our planet that we make the most of every opportunity we have. By reusing materials multiple times and ultimately giving back to the earth, we make better use of the things we have been given.