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2002 ARCHIVE
Hi all you SB Organic
Gardeners!
Oct 2002 News
SANTA BARBARA ORGANIC GARDEN
CLUB NEWSLETTER
Oct 2002
Editor: Linda Buzzell-Saltzman --
lbuzzell@aol.com
Contents:
1) This month's free talk:
"GROWING ANTIQUE APPLE TREES ORGANICALLY" with Neil Collins, owner of
Trees of Antiquity in Paso Robles, Wed, Oct 16, 7 pm. Next month:
"PREPARING FOR BARE ROOT SEASON: ROSES, BERRIES, FRUIT TREES, RHUBARB,
ARTICHOKES AND MORE!"
2) HOLLY-LEAF CHERRY -
NATIVE SHRUB, CHUMASH FAVORITE
3) NEWS: Check out GARDENS
FOR PEACE at www.gardensforpeace.org
4) GET ON OUR LIST OF
ORGANIC LANDSCAPE DESIGNERS
5) TIPS OF THE MONTH: a)
DON'T CONFUSE PINEAPPLE GUAVAS WITH STRAWBERRY GUAVAS! b) WHERE TO GET
YOUR BENEFICIAL INSECTS (Send us your best tips too.)
6) FACTS ABOUT LAWN CARE
from member Mardena Waller
(*If you'd like to be removed
from our e-newsletter list, just e-mail us back with your request.)
1) October event: GROWING
ANTIQUE APPLE TREES ORGANICALLY. Neil Collins, owner of Trees of Antiquity in
Paso Robles (formerly Sonoma Antique Apple Nursery) will teach us how to choose
varieties for our climate, how to order and plant bare root stock, and how to
care for young apple trees throughout the year. Neil is at (805) 467-9909. FREE
APPLE TASTING!!!
Date/Time: Wednesday, October 16,
2002, 7pm
Location: Community Environmental
Council, 930 Miramonte Drive, Santa Barbara
Fee: FREE
Call for info: (805) 563-2089
Reservations: Not necessary
November event: PREPARING FOR
BARE ROOT SEASON: ROSES, BERRIES, FRUIT TREES, RHUBARB, ARTICHOKES AND
MORE! Larry Saltzman, co-founder of the Santa Barbara Organic Garden
Club, leads a discussion of best varieties for Santa Barbara, where to get
them, how to prepare for planting. Date/Time: Wednesday, November 20, 2002, 7pm
Location: Community Environmental
Council, 930 Miramonte Drive, Santa Barbara
Fee: FREE
Call for info: (805) 563-2089
Reservations: Not necessary
2) HOLLY-LEAF CHERRY IS A
NATIVE SHRUB whose fruit was loved by the Chumash. Prunus ilicifolia is also
called Islay or Evergreen Cherry and is a chaparral plant that loves full sun,
good drainage and dry hillsides. It is covered with creamy flowers in
spring and then berries that are loved by people (although they are a little
tart with more skin and seed than pith), birds and other wildlife. The
plant is slow growing to 25 feet, and is native to the coast ranges.
3) NEWS: Peace is on a lot of
our minds these days, and it's nice to know that GARDENS FOR PEACE
(www.gardensforpeace.org) exists "to identify and link established gardens
throughout the world where contemplation and meditation by individuals and
communities will foster respect for the environment and a climate for peace
among all peoples."
Gardens for Peace has gardens
on four continents with educational programs for elementary through college
students drawing on the concepts of ecopsychology.
The SADAKO PEACE GARDEN AT CASA
DE MARIA IN SANTA BARBARA was dedicated as an official "Garden of
Peace" on June 30, 2002 by Arun Gandhi, the 63 year old grandson of the
great peacemaker and head of the M.K. Gandhi Institute for Peace.
OTHER OFFICIAL 'GARDENS FOR
PEACE' are in Tacoma, Atlanta, Decatur, Madrid, Nairobi and the Republic of
Georgia, among other locations Obviously we need more! Besides the
Sadako Peace Garden, only one of these gardens, the 10-acre estate Lakewold
Gardens in Tacoma, Washington, is on the West Coast.
"Throughout history, the
garden has symbolized the ideals of spiritual harmony and quiet contemplation
-places of peace - as reflected in literature, art, philosophy and religion.
The work of Gardens for Peace is to promote publicly a worldview that focuses
on meditation, and to affirm and link efforts to create individual and world
peace and environmental responsibility. The organization connects gardens
across the world, as well as the people who share in the peace and harmony of
those gardens, bringing places and people of the world closer together.
Gardens for Peace is nonprofit,
nondenominational organization based in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1984,
Gardens for Peace was created to promote the concept of the garden as a place
of meditation and peace and to identify and designate existing gardens around
the world as symbols of peace."
"The philosophy of the
organization finds its roots in history, where the garden has long stood as a
symbol of spiritual harmony and quiet contemplation. Many of the world's
religions and mythologies include gardens as symbols of innocence, peace and
spiritual equilibrium. Artists, philosophers, poets and other literary figures
from all ages and cultures have long recognized and used the symbol of the
garden in their works. Throughout these works, gardens have been represented as
refuges where people can be at peace and in spiritual harmony with themselves,
their world and nature."
"Taking this philosophy to
a more tangible level, Gardens for Peace has established criteria for selecting
and designating national and international gardens, as well as gardens on
college campuses and in corporate settings, that best exemplify ideal sites for
meditation, and development of a sense of harmony between man and nature. The
designated gardens may be publicly or privately owned, but one criterion for
designation is that the public have access to the garden so that the
organization's message can reach the largest possible audience."
WANT TO CREATE A GARDEN FOR
PEACE? "Any garden considered for designation as a member of the
international network of Gardens for Peace must meet certain, general criteria.
For example, the garden must have a feeling of peace and tranquility, as well
as a sense of safety and refuge. It must provide a sense of enclosure and offer
visual stimuli in terms of line, form, color and texture, as well as non-visual
stimuli, such as running water or fragrant scents. In addition, while some
gardens may charge an admission fee to ensure proper upkeep, each garden in the
network must be open to the public.
Other factors include:
_ Coherence: a unified setting
with repeating elements, textures and structural factors;
_ Legibility: familiar patterns
which bring an ease to making sense of the scene;
_ Complexity: variety or diversity
to ensure interest and keep viewers occupied;
_ Mystery: the degree by which
more information can be obtained by proceeding further into the scene"
WANT TO NOMINATE A LOCAL GARDEN
TO BECOME AN OFFICIAL "GARDEN OF PEACE?" "The Board of Directors
and the members of Gardens for Peace are continually reviewing and evaluating
gardens for inclusion in the network. There may be one in your area. If you
would like to nominate a garden for consideration, you can download our
nomination form and send it to us! Please include photographs. If the garden
you are designing as a Garden For Peace is approved an official garden marker
will be purchased for your garden site."
4) ARE YOU AN ORGANIC
LANDSCAPER? We're getting quite a few requests for referrals to folks who
will design and build organic gardens. If you'd like to be on our list,
please send us a brief paragraph about what you do and how you'd like clients
to contact you. And of course we recommend certified "Green
Gardeners" (www.greengardener.org) for ongoing maintenance.
5) TIPS:
a)For us, October is PINEAPPLE
GUAVA (or, more properly, feijoa sellowiana) month. Our godson starts
begging us for guavas in August and there is great celebration when they
finally arrive in late Sept and early October! The feijoa is easy to grow
in pot or ground, and rewards us with luscious, sweet, egg-shaped fruit. And
the secret is that the spring flower petals are absolutely delicious as candy,
and taste great out of hand or in a salad. But don't make the mistake of substituting
the Strawberry Guava (Psidium cattleianum or littorale), a quite different
fruit.
b) WHERE TO GET YOUR BENEFICIAL
INSECTS:
Ron Whitehurst
Marketing Manager
Rincon-Vitova Insectaries,
Biological Solutions for Pest
Management
P.O. Box 1555, Ventura, CA
93002-1555
805-643-5407 800-248-2847 (BUGS)
fax 805-643-6267
e-mail: bugnet@rinconvitova.com
web: http://www.rinconvitova.com
6) Member Mardena Waller has
passed along some interesting statistics that support the notion of edible
landscaping vs. traditional lawncare:
Here are national annual
average expenses of
home gardening:
lawncare $220
landscaping 174
tree care 97
flower gardening 88
Insect control 60
vegetable gardening 58
flower bulbs 40
indoor houseplants 40
It's probably cheaper to do
edible landscaping and flowers, than to do a lawn, and they can be easier to
care for. Your water bill could be about the same or less (depending on what
you plant), but you have something to eat from it, and it's very appealing
visually. (Note from Linda: we're currently saving thousands of dollars a year
from our fruit trees and backyard veggies vs. what they would cost at either
the Farmers Market or Lazy Acres)
Wildflowers are great and I
will investigate costs of wildflowers to see
if that vs rose gardening or other
flower gardening would cut costs even
more.
Deleting harmful chemicals for
"insect control" is another cost cutter over time, and if you put in
attractive plants, water and shelter, our ever-faithful working birds will do
your bug extermination."
The next meeting of the Santa
Barbara Organic Garden Club will be tomorrow -- Wed, Sept 18 at 7pm.
We'll present a FREE talk on
WHAT TO DO WITH YOUR ORGANIC FRUIT HARVEST: JAM, CHUTNEY, DRIED FRUIT. Mary
Luce Wellington of Wellington Farm (www.wellingtonfarm.com) will teach us the
old-fashioned way to use seasonal fruits. We'll cover everything from figs to
feijoas, plums, apricots, peaches, citruses etc. The Santa Barbara Slow
Food Convivium is co-sponsoring this event with us - thank you!
Location: Community
Environmental Council, 930 Miramonte Drive, Santa Barbara
Fee: FREE
Call for info: (805) 563-2089
July 2002 News
SANTA BARBARA ORGANIC GARDEN CLUB
NEWSLETTER
July 2002
Editor: Linda Buzzell-Saltzman --
lbuzzell@aol.com
Contents:
1) This month_s free talk:
"BUILDING A WATERSHED-FRIENDLY LANDSCAPE: THE JOYS OF PERMEABLE PAVING,
ECO-ROOFS, DRY STREAMBEDS AND SWALES" with landscape architect OWEN DELL,
Wed, July 17th, 7pm
2) ARE YOU AN ORGANIC LANDSCAPE
DESIGNER?
3) NEWS: Monte Vista school needs
organic garden helpers! Earth charter news. "How to Build a Straw-Bale
Home" workshop.
4) CAPERS ? a Mediterranean that
likes our climate
5) TIP OF THE MONTH:
... SEND US YOUR BEST TIPS TOO!
6) Next month_s talk: WE TAKE
AUGUST AND DECEMBER OFF! Our next meeting will be on the 3rd Wed in
September. See you then! Happy Fiesta!
1) The Santa Barbara Organic
Garden Club will present a free talk on "BUILDING A WATERSHED-FRIENDLY
LANDSCAPE: THE JOYS OF PERMEABLE PAVING, ECO-ROOFS, DRY STREAMBEDS AND
SWALES" on Wednesday, July 17 at 7 p.m. at the Community Environmental
Council Gildea Center at 930 Miramonte Drive in Santa Barbara.
Santa Barbara_s OWEN DELL, a
nationally recognized landscape architect and contractor who specializes in
sustainable landscaping design and construction, will describe the rapidly
growing "New Watershed Movement" -- the design and management
of watershed-friendly homes, landscapes and public infrastructure. He will
also share practical ideas and slides showing many ways that homeowners,
gardeners, landscapers and builders can both protect Santa Barbara_s creeks and
oceans and at the same time harvest free water for their gardens by installing
eco-roofs, permeable paving, dry streambeds and more.
For more information call:
(805) 563-2089.
2) ARE YOU AN ORGANIC
LANDSCAPER? We_re getting quite a few requests for referrals to folks who
will design and build organic gardens. If you_d like to be on our list,
please send us a brief paragraph about what you do and how you_d like clients
to contact you.
3) NEWS:
We also have a booth lined up
at the Organic Festival, coming to Santa Barbara's Oak Park on Saturday and
Sunday Sept 8-9. Our booth will feature the fabulous Michael Thompson and
his worms! (Those of you who attended Michael's extraordinary presentation to
our group a while back will know that I'm not exaggerating). As he did at our
talk, Michael will have a water garden and vermocomposting bins for display and
will give away free worm samples and information. BUT WE WILL NEED YOUR
HELP TO MAKE THIS EVENT A SUCCESS!
Here's what we need: 1) help
decorating our table with vegetables, baskets, flowers, etc. 2) your help in
sitting at the booth for an hour or so (we'll make up a schedule) on either
day. 3) if you're an artistic type, we could use a poster on posterboard with
our name on it! 4) if you have a xerox, you could run off some club flyers so
we can hand them out to folks attending the event. 5) if you have a canopy or
umbrella on a stand, this would give us some shade!
If you attended last year, you
know it's lots of fun. Even if you don't have time to help, we hope
you'll visit the Festival and drop by our booth to say "hi!" and see
Michael's wonderful worms!
HELP IN AN ORGANIC SCHOOL
GARDEN. There are some organic school gardens in need of volunteer support,
"starts," advice, etc. The vegetable, herb, and butterfly gardens, as
well as the native plant nature trail at Monte Vista School on Hope Avenue, Santa
Barbara, have ongoing needs and opportunities. Anyone interested in supporting
this environmental and nutrition education work may contact teacher Judy Sims
at her home at 687-3262. Here_s a letter from Judy with specific request
for composting help:
"Hi folks!
I was SO SORRY not to make the May
15th "Habits of highly Successful Composters" event. Eric Werbalowsky
was undoubtedly an inspiration and full of helpful hints. I need to get his and
your help. Here's the scoop.
I have various kinds of composting/recycling
projects going on at Monte Vista Elementary School. One BIG one, started with a
grant from the California State Deptartment of Education, was in the area of
garden-enhanced nutrition, and had as a major portion the development of a large-scale
VERMI-COMPOST project, aimed at recycling all of our school's lunch food waste
(minus the meat and cheese, of course). Well, an engineer father at the school
designed and helped get the project constructed. We've lined up some worms to
be donated from Santa Monica City College. However...here's where I hope some
of you can come in...the project needs help in finishing the covers for the two
20 foot by 3 and 1/2 foot frames (6 covers). They are designed and built, as
roll back, canvas covers, and one is installed, but 5 more need assistance.
Also, setting up and carrying out the process of food collection and
composting--and caring for the worms!--is in need of help. I have tons of
supportive materials and contacts, but I'm teaching K fulltime, and can't be
there to do it all (nor am I physically capable of the construction part,
alone).
PLEASE consider visiting us,
advising, helping, etc. This has the chance to be a fantastic demonstration
project for other schools and businesses. I plan to develop a school assembly
in the early fall to introduce the process, once everything is ready to roll.
My goal is the first week of school, or as soon as it can happen!
I also have 6 compost bins and a
compost roller that could use help.
Our environmental project work at
Monte Vista School (730 Hope Avenue) as been featured in the news, and will be
highlighted in two publications from the CA State Dept. of Education, soon to
be released. We would love for some of you folks to be a proud part of this!
I may be reached at home at
687-3262, and live very close to the school, so could come over on short notice
to meet at the site with anyone interested in "having a tour." Please
consider our work for some meaningful volunteer assistance for a super cause!
We need to teach these kids, and their families (and the staff!) the importance
of making fantastic compost by recycling food waste (and green waste).
I also hope that schools can be
targeted for green waste pick-up. It bothers me that the neighborhood has this
service at the curb, but that the neighborhood school has no opportunity (I've
written letters) for this service. A once-a-month, drive-by shredder service at
the dumpster site would be a start...a donated service, with a set time, where
school gardener and youth garden/nature trail project people could pile up
material, ready to be chipped! And...we could keep the chips and use them!
Hoping to connect with you
wonderful people."
Judy Sims, K teacher, Monte Vista
School 687-3262 (school: 687-5333
THE UNITED NATIONS_ "EARTH
CHARTER" IS PICKING UP STEAM. The Ark of Hope carrying the Earth Charter
is travelling around the globe and will arrive in South Africa on 10 August and
will be on exhibition in Johannesburg until 17 August. On Sept 28, 2002 the
Second Earth Charter Community Summits will host grassroots gatherings
simultaneously that inspire people to make the vision and principles of the
Earth Charter, a reality in their homes, workplaces, schools, and communities.
"The Earth Charter
Community Summits are a time to come together and to
choose a future and to follow a
path that is rich in hope, optimism and
love. The plan for this year's
Earth Charter Community Summits is to
involve as many cities as possible
to host festivities and interactive
discussions so people are inspired
by the Earth Charter's vision and
principles and take part in the
implementation of the Earth Charter in
their locales. The First Community
Summits took place last September.
There is an interest in expanding
this year's summits beyond the US to
include cities in other countries.
Summits across time zones around the
globe present a challenge for
satellite uplinks and whole-scale round-
robin connections via webcast
among the cities. For more information see
http://www.earthchartersummits.org"
For more information on these
and other Earth Charter activities taking
place around the world, please
visit the Earth Charter website at:
http://www.earthcharter.org or
contact us at: info@earthcharter.org
from CLifeChris@aol.com:
HANDS-ON WORKSHOP "HOW TO
BUILD A STRAW BALE HOME" July 27-28
Spread the word - an excellent
camp and conference center is in the making! Set in a beautiful living forest
with incredible ocean views, Camp Ocean Pines is ideally situated to gather
people of all ages for retreats and events that encourage personal, physical
and spiritual growth. Get involved where your idealism and vision will make a
difference!
"YOU get hands on
experience from the leaders in the field and WE get two new
strawbale cabins! Talk about a
"win-win" situation! On Saturday-Sunday, July 27-28, the
Sustainability Group (local
leaders in solar and straw bale architecture) will be leading
a 2 day workshop on straw bale
construction. Cost for the workshop is $50, limited to
the first 40 to register! If you
are coming from out of town and would like to spend the
night in completed strawbale
cabins and have all meals prepared for the 2 days, add
$75."
Chris Cameron
Director, Camp Ocean Pines
1473 Randall Drive
Cambria, CA 93428
805-927-0254
CLifeChris@aol.com
5) MORE ON CAPERS. Miriam Kresh
of Tsfat, Israel has posted some fascinating info on capers at
http://www.ibiblio.org/herbmed/index.html She tells us that the caper
grows everywhere the olive grows ? that_s California! Recently we saw a
lovely plant growing in a gravel path at Sycamore Herb Farm in Paso Robles, and
the flowers are stunning.
Miriam says this Mediterranean
plant, whose Latin name is Capparis spinosa (thorny butterfly), "is an edible
weed with a history stretching back to Pharaonic times. Tightly rooted in a
rock crevice, it bushes out gallantly during the most arid months of the
Mediterranean summer. Small buds, closed tight as fists, spring daily from the
long shoots, opening eventually into exquisite white flowers with violet
pistils and stamens; they look like butterflies at rest. The small,
thumbnail-shaped leaves descend the reddish stem at short intervals, armed at
the joint with subtle, small hooks which discourage grazing animals; it_s known
that not even a camel will eat the caper. Caper fruit resembles a small
cucumber hanging down, and may be also be pickled, after having been soaked.
"The literature on the
subject of capers is most concerned with its rubefacient (skin-irritating)
property, as the plant yields mustard oils, upon being crushed. That_s probably
another reason grazers stay away; I myself am prepared to come home with hands
pricked and stinging from a caper-picking expedition. Folk medicine, however,
knows the fruit and tender tips to be alterative, astringent, diuretic,
expectorant, and carminative.
Known best as a culinary herb,
Capparis spinosa_s pickled buds are a gourmet item whose cost is justified by
the laborious and painful process of hand-picking. The smallest buds, viewed as
the choicest, are the most expensive. (Large buds are those which are close to
blooming, and could become mushy in the pickling process.) Despite this, a new,
giant variety is gaining popularity. It is known as the caperberry, and can be
substituted for olives in many recipes. Spain and Africa supply most of the
world_s pickled capers, although they are cultivated (or grow wild) all along
the Mediterranean through Turkey, Iraq, and Egypt. In effect, climates where
olive trees thrive are those good for capers. Rarely is the caper found in the
United States, although parts of Florida or California are possibly suitable.
It is known as an "exotic": I have seen prices as high as $2.50 for
five seeds...
"You have to be dedicated
to pickle the caper. Harvesting it means bearing a certain amount of prickly
agony. Tiny green buds appear daily on the bushes, which must be constantly
monitored for new appearances. The small, closed bud with no streak of white on
it is what you pick, if you want a firm but tender product. For pickling the
shoots, cut them into finger-sized lengths and peel them. If picked too mature,
the fruit_s seeds will be large and bitter, rendering it unpalatable, so pick
only the smaller fruit.
"Then your crop must be soaked
for two days, changing the water once; this allows a flavorful fungus which is
on the plant to develop (good cheese also needs fungus). Finally, get out your
mason jar and cure the caper: any simple salt or vinegar pickling recipe will
do. The flavor of the finished product will be piquant; bitter-sour."
5) TIPS: Cut your lawn down to
size this month ? and let it go "golden." By mid-summer you can
tell how much flat green-space you really need for entertaining, kids playing,
paths etc. You may find that you don_t need any, and can substitute
gravel, dirt or permeable paving of some kind. Or you may want to put in
a super-drought tolerant lawn substitute. What we_re trying this year is
letting our grass paths go "golden" naturally, like the rest of the
state. It_s an interesting look!
6) AUGUST IS A MONTH WE TAKE
OFF. NEXT MEETING: SEPTEMBER.
April 2001 News
Many of you planted fava bean
seeds last fall and have a wonderful crop in your gardens now, just begging to be
eaten. ?Others may have seen the fat-podded fava beans now showing up at the
Farmers Market -- by all means pick some up!
Favas are a wonderful, very
easy annual crop -- they're Mediterranean, so they like our climate. ?Also,
they add beauty to any part of the garden, as they look like a cross between
pale delphiniums and bear's breech, with pale whitish flower spikes up to 4'
tall (even taller if they like your manure!).
A couple of things to know
about favas: 1) some people of Mediterranean extraction are said to be allergic
to them, so start with one or two beans to see how you do.
2) The outer coating of the beans
can be bitter, especially on mature beans. ?Many recipes suggest that you boil
water, put the shelled beans in it for a minute on simmer, then drain and douse
with cold water. ?At that point you can pierce the outer coating of the bean
with your fingernail and squeeze the inner beans out. ?This is a lot of fussy
work, so I only do it with really mature beans. ?I kind of like the flavor of the
outer coating once it's been boiled for a minute or two. ?
The easy thing at this point is
to just pour some vinaigrette over the beans, and serve warm or cold.
Organic Garden Club member
Diane Erceg passed along a couple of recipes to me -- thanks! ?Here's a version
I like:
In a large skillet, heal olive
oil over medium heat. ?Add beans that have been prepared as described above, a
clove of minced garlic and some rosemary chopped fine. ?Cover and cook until
beans are tender, 5 minutes for young beans, more for older ones. ?Stir in a
little lemon juice and season with salt and pepper.
Yum! ?Thanks, Diane!
February
2001 News back to top
Hope you've marked your
calendars for our next meeting Wed, Feb 21 at the CEC/Gildea Center, 930
Miramonte Drive in Santa Barbara. The Santa Barbara Permaculture Guild's
Wesley Roe will moderate a discussion on "PERMACULTURE TIPS FOR THE BACKYARD
GARDENER" with Ojai permaculture designer Pierre Constans. They'll
cover spiral herb gardens, "chicken tractors", irrigation systems,
soil health, flowers, beneficial insect habitat and much more!
And many thanks to member Baker
Moore and arborist Bruce Van Dyke for a very successful January meeting,
greatly enjoyed by all who attended.
Also, member Mardena Waller is
organizing a wonderful event Sat Feb 24 at Cal Tech in Pasadena on how
bioengineered foods are imperilling the health of people with gluten
intolerance. Our own Marshall Chrostowski will be one of the featured speakers.
BIOENGINEERED FOODS AND CELIAC
AWARENESS
February 24, 2001, public invited,
free.
Contact Robert Jeffers or Mardena
Waller, (626) 564-8339,
msomac@earthlink.net. For
more information
on celiac disease, contact Carol
Tipton, (818) 845-8054,
catipton@pacbell.net.
Celiac disease, an autoimmune
disease, is an intolerance to gluten contained in wheat, oats, rye, barley,
etc. Treatment is removal of gluten from diet; no surgery, no drugs.
The meeting is in Beckman
Institute Auditorium at Caltech (California Institute of Technology) in
Pasadena, California. Noon to 3:00 p.m., February 24, Saturday.
Free admission, free parking, and free food. Celiacs and non-celiacs are
invited. All speakers are donating their time.
Danna Korn, founder R.O.C.K.
(Raising Our Celiac Kids), author of "Kids With Celiac Disease", book
purchase and signing, 12:00 - 1:00 p.m.
Robert Jeffers, Caltech Ph.D.
and celiac, "Long-Term Medical Record-Keeping for a Lifelong Disease
(Celiac)", 1:00 - 1:30 p.m.
Steve Sprinkel and Marshall
Chrostowski, "Bioengineered Foods and Celiac Awareness", 1:30 - 3:00
p.m.
Gluten-free foods, Living
Without magazines, and other goodies and treats donated by Pasadena's Wild Oats
Community Market.
Our group is the Celiac Disease
Foundation -- Burbank, Glendale, Pasadena Connections Group. We have
originated the program and are sponsoring it. We are neutral, and have no
affiliations with Caltech or any other University or biotech research programs,
any food growers or food processors, or any governmental or environmental
organizations.
The two closest hotels
are: Hilton Pasadena, (626) 577-1000, or Ritz-Carlton Huntington, (626)
568-3900. Caltech is 5 minutes from the Huntington Gardens and
Library. The closest airport is Burbank.
Directions to Caltech in
Pasadena, CA:
#134, exit Lake Ave., South, to
Del Mar,left (next to Macy's), 2 blocks to Wilson,right,1/2 block park.
Free Caltech parking structure on Wilson, between California and Del Mar.
Walk across street (Wilson) to Beckman Institute Auditorium (behind
construction site).
#110, in Pasadena,turn right on
Del Mar, go past Macy's, right on Wilson, park.
November 2000
News back to top
Instead of our regular meeting
at the Gildea Center/CEC, in November we will be co-sponsors of a special
Pacifica Graduate Institute presentation on "Rescuing Heirloom Garden
Plants" featuring Kent Whealy, Executive Director of the Seed Savers
Exchange. Other co-sponsors include the Community Environmental Council,
The Ending Destructive Genetic EnGineering Campaign, Growing Solutions, Island
Seed & Feed, KUSA Seed Research Foundation, La Casa de Maria, Santa Barbara
Permaculture Network and Seed Savers Exchange. Pacifica's Marshall
Chrostowski, who spoke at our last meeting, is organic land manager on the
campus and has been growing out heirloom and traditional seed varieties since
1991 on the school's organic farm.
This should be a great event --
we hope to see you there!
NO MEETING IN DECEMBER -- HAPPY
HOLIDAYS! -- NEXT MEETING JANUARY 17 AT THE CEC/GILDEA CENTER.
More on that in our next
newsletter _
NEWS FROM OCT 18TH MEETING
The meeting last Wednesday
night with Stefan Long of Rincon-Vitova Insectaries in Ventura (pinch hitting
for new grandfather Ron Whitehurst) was a big success and gave our members a
lot of practical, nitty gritty info on how the "good bugs" can help
organic gardeners balance our backyard ecosystems.
Matt Buckmaster of Island Seed
& Feed did a great job of MC'ing the proceedings, which were a little more
chaotic than usual as we met in the CEC kitchen! But our cozy surroundings only
added to the ambiance and we all learned so much.
For example (and I hope I got
this right, Stefan_)
HONEYDEW-FEEDING ARGENTINE ANTS
ARE "BAD GUYS" PREVENTING "GOOD GUY" PREDATORS LIKE GREEN
LACEWINGS FROM GETTING TO GIANT WHITEFLIES (ALSO MEALYBUGS, APHIDS)
Stefan explained that these
honeydew-feeding ants prevent "good" predator insects from getting to
the whiteflies -- which cause the strands of white, snowy filaments now showing
up around town on hibiscus and many other plants -- and gave us a couple of
tips you might want to consider:
1. Apply tanglefoot to base of
infested plant (although one of our members was concerned that this might hurt
certain birds).
2. Fill a soda bottle with Boric
Acid Syrup Ant Bait (recipe below), stuff the narrow top with cotton wool and
gently lie it on its side where the ants can get at it. They take it back
to their nest.
ANT BAIT RECIPE
1 Cup sugar
2 Cups water
1 teaspoon boric acid (less
toxic to humans than table salt)
Mix all ingredients and stir to
dissolve.
We also heard about the
beneficial effects of nematodes, which kill ground termites, ants, grubs -- but
not earthworms.
AVOCADO HEALTH TIP
Stefan suggested we water our
avocado trees less and use slow release organic fertilizer to avoid "nitrogen
flush" soft growth that's attractive to "bad guys."
RINCON-VITOVA DONATED REFERENCE
BOOK TO S B ORGANIC GARDEN CLUB
Stefan donated a 3-ring binder
full of info on biocontrol agents, pests etc. to our club, so our members can
look up articles and tips on organic controls. Thank you!!!
OTHER NEWS:
"GARDENING CAN BURN UP TO
300 CALORIES AN HOUR AND IT'S A GOOD FORM OF RESISTANCE TRAINING," says
the L.A. Times (Oct 16, 2000) "Turning a compost pile and digging holes in
the ground provide a challenge to your muscles similar to lifting
weights. Continuous raking, shoveling or hoeing strengthen your heart and
lungs just like walking on a treadmill. And squatting down to pull out
weeds or reaching overhead to prune trees improves flexibility and balance throughout
your body." And no expensive gym or class fees! Plus you cut
down on garden helper costs. Sounds like a bargain to us -- especially if
you garden organically so you're in a healthy environment. Plus new
research shows that exercising outside has greater health benefits than indoor
exercise. But then we gardeners could have told them that a long time
ago, no?
IF YOU WANT TO USE GARDENING AS
YOUR MAJOR FORM OF EXERCISE, three books on gardening as exercise recommended
by the Times article are: "Fitness the Dynamic Gardening Way"
(Balance of Nature Publishing, 1992), "Gardener's Fitness" (Taylor
Publishing, 1999) and "Shaping Up America's Green Thumb" (Bradshaw
Personal Fitness, 1998).
Many thanks to Kathy Rem for
the report below on our September meeting. Hope this is helpful,
especially for those of you who had to miss it. In the meantime, mark
your calendars for Wed Oct 18th 7 pm at the Gildea Center, 930 Miramonte Dr. in
Santa Barbara. This month's event will be on "What's Bugging You"
and will feature Ron Whitehurst of Rincon-Vitova Insectaries in Ventura who
will talk about beneficial insects and other non-toxic solutions to unwanted
pests.
November's event, which we'll
be co-sponsoring with other organizations) will be at Victoria Hall downtown on
Thurs Nov 16th at 7pm. It will feature Kent and Diane Wheatly who will talk
about the art of saving seeds and the amazing work of the Seed Savers Exchange.
No charge for either of these events.
In the meantime, happy
gardening! We've got our spinach and peas in the ground and are doing
battle with the local raccoons. So far, our motion detector hose is
helping!
October
2000 News back to top
Minutes to the September 20th
mtg
On September 20th we had our
meeting of the Santa Barbara Organic Gardening Club at the Gildea Resource
Center, 930 Miramonte Drive. Our topic was Edible Landscaping. The
Panel participants were Marshall Chrostowski and Sean Hutchinson.
Marshall started out the talk
speaking of managing living systems that come together forming their own
environments. To become an organic gardener and to create the organic
garden you need a profound knowledge of your own specific place. Sit and
observe your space, see what's going on. What natural life is already
existing in the space? Then answer the "Three F's"-
Function, Form, Features. Some questions to ask yourself are: Will we
restructure the site or restore the habitat? Are we going horizontal vs.
vertical? Will it be exotic or native? Will we have lawns or meadows? Annual or
perennial?
Some thoughts on these ideas
were: vertical is usually best. It is very important that there are messy
and/or wild parts in the area. Most gardens are planted with exotic plants as
most of our vegetables do not grow wild around our area. And annuals
require more water as perennials tend to be native and adaptable to the area,
needing less water.
Sean Hutchinson started his
talk centering on gardening being an honorable profession. He dispelled
some modern day thoughts of gardening being a lesser activity.
Sean was full of witty and
insightful one liners, one of which was "Nature abhors a
garden." He went on to
talk of some "weeds" that are edible and ones that can be used in the
landscape. He gave a wide range of edible plants to use.
Many different ideas were
offered up for conversation and a lively discussion brought us to the end of
the meeting. After our regular meeting was adjourned Linda Buzzell-Saltzman led
us in a business meeting. Volunteer positions were discussed and some were
filled. Many ideas were thrown out in a brain storming atmosphere and we
realized that there are so many topics, guest speakers, and field trips that it
will take the next few years to so all these interesting and stimulating
events. We have a multitude of resources right here in our community and
a group of organic gardeners happy to share in those resources.
Our next meeting will be
October 18th at 7 pm. The topic: What_s Bugging You. Hope to see you
there!
August
2000 Notes: back to top
We wanted everyone to hear the
exciting news about what's planned in September, our "organic edible
landscaping" month.
(Note: If you'd like to receive
an official snail mail invitation to the San Ysidro Ranch event, please e-mail us a snail mail address a.s.a.p.
)
1) On Wed. Sept. 13 we will be part of an elegant special
event in collaboration with the local Slow Food Convivium at the San Ysidro
Ranch. This event will feature Thomas Cole, organic gardener of the
hotel's kitchen garden and Stonehouse chef Jamie West, who will prepare
appetizers and will do demonstrations for us. There is a $15 per person charge
to cover costs of the appetizers and wine that will be provided. Many
thanks to Slow Food's Pamela Sheldon Johns, a prominent local food author, for
coordinating this event.
You may want to check out www.slowfood.com for more info
on the growing international Slow Food movement, which encourages us to give up
junk food, slow down and enjoy the work of local farmers and "food
artisans."
2) The following week, on Wed.
Sept. 20th, we will
have our usual meeting here at the Gildea Center where we will talk about the
nitty gritty practicalities of how to create your own edible landscape and
kitchen garden at home. That event will be free. So whether or not
you attend the San Ysidro Ranch event for inspiration, we hope you'll be at the
Wed Sept 20th get-together to share your questions and ideas about planting
"double duty" trees, shrubs, perennials, veggies and herbs that are
not only beautiful but also provide food for your family and other families in
our community.
Hope your gardens and pots are
doing great this month. Our tomatoes are really coming in now, but the
grass looks terrible! Oh well, that's August in Santa Barbara, the place
where some wag said there are four seasons: Fog (June), Fiesta (August), Fire
(we hope not, but it can happen in Sept, can't it?) and Flood (El Nino 2,
anyone?).
notes
on previous meetings:
"THE JOYS OF ORGANIC
GARDENING" Aug. 16
we had a great meeting last nite
with 33 attending. Matt of Island Seed was a featured panelist plus Ellen
McLaughlin. They were both terrific and everyone enjoyed their input.
A new local organization, the
Santa Barbara Organic Garden Club, presented a free panel discussion on
"The Joys of Organic Gardening: Practical Tips for New and Experienced
Gardeners," on Wednesday, August 16th at 7 p.m. at the Community
Environmental Council Gildea Center at 930 Miramonte Drive in Santa Barbara.
Moderated by the organization's
co-founder Larry Saltzman, a computer programmer whose hobby is growing organic
fruit and vegetables, the panel will included: Ellen McLaughlin, an organic
garden consultant who for 8 years managed a 10 acre organic protea farm; Matt
Buckmaster, partner at Goleta organic nursery Island Seed and Feed,
and a local organic landscape designer.
Among the topics the panel
discussed are: the best "bulletproof" plants that love our local
climate; easy ways to heal even seriously compromised soil; how to mix plants
to create healthy biodiversity that foils disease and unwanted pests; and
container gardening advice.
The Santa Barbara Organic Club
had its first meeting on July 12, 2000 and plans a number of local events and
activities on topics like edible landscaping, backyard wildlife habitat, the
art of composting, how to create a sacred space in your home garden, as well as
field trips to regional organic gardens and farms.
The First Annual
California Organic Festival
Volunteer with
First Annual California Organic Festival
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