After being cooped up in a stuffy house all winter long, it's finally time to fling open the windows, shoo away the cobwebs, and take on your annual spring cleaning.  

Here are just a few quick items of note that can help you to help the environment while taking care of your spring cleaning. 

1. Hang dry your laundry. Drying your clothes in an electric or gas dryer isn't just hard on your clothes; it's also hard on the environment. Don't stop with natural laundry detergent. Stay green every step of the way and install a clothesline in your backyard. If space (or aesthetics) is an issue, look for a "retractable clothesline" (search Gaiam for a version which takes up virtually no space when not in use). Weather permitting, line-dry your clothes outside to reduce pollution, cut your energy bill, get more exercise, enjoy the sunshine, and extend the life of your clothes. Plus, they'll smell like a clean breeze, not a fake "clean breeze scent."

2. Add a little greenery. Install a living air filter-houseplants! Some of the most efficient air-cleaning houseplants include Spider plants, English ivy, rubber plants, and peace lilies. You'll need 15 to 18 medium-sized (6 to 8-inch diameter container) houseplants for the average 1,800 square foot house. If that sounds like a lot, place a few plants in the room where you spend the most time.

3. De-clutter your wardrobe. Donate gently worn items to charity, where they'll get a second life, and donate torn and stained items (if they're made of an absorbent fabric) to your rag collection, where they'll replace wasteful paper towels. And as you're packing up your winter sweaters, replace those stinky mothballs with a natural and better-smelling version: Stuff a lonely unpaired sock with cinnamon sticks, bay leaves, and whole cloves and tie it at the end.

4. Paint your walls green. If spring cleaning at your house involves a fresh coat of paint, consider the VOC content of the paint when choosing your paint. VOC's, or Volatile Organic Compounds, are chemicals that form vapors at room temperature. Some VOC's, like the ones in many paints, contribute to smog and indoor air pollution, and can cause a host of short- and long-term health problems. The good news is that many paint manufacturers have started making low- or no-VOC paints. The bad news is that many of those manufacturers have simply substituted VOC's with other non-VOC-yet-still-toxic chemicals. For truly eco-conscious safe paint, check out these products: Eco-Spec, by Benjamin Moore; Clarity, by Dutch Boy; Enviro-Pure, by MAB Paint; American Pride Paint; and BioShield Milk Paint.

5. Swap out your Swiffer. Instead of continually buying expensive single-use mop pads, invest in a reusable mop. These are widely available in health food stores and general stores. Their mop heads can be washed in your washing machine, hung dry, and used again and again-well worth their moderate price tag.

6. Ditch the paper towels. Save trees, cash and landfill waste. You can buy specially-made, washable cleaning and dust cloths (in all types of fabrics from cotton to microfiber). But better yet? Use what you already have and give an old piece of cloth (stained towels, ratty sheets and pillowcases, too-small T-shirts, etc.) a new life. Simply cut or tear your old item into smaller squares (if you want to get fancy, finish the edges with a sewing machine), and voila! Pop them in the washing machine with your laundry to clean, and use them again and again.

Cleaning up your home for spring doesn't have to be dirty work. When you implement some of these ideas and products, you can rest assured that you're benefiting your body, your home and the planet all at once. Many of these changes are small ones, but their impact on your health and the environment can really add up over time. Happy spring cleaning!