By Terry Woodward, Sustainability Alliance of SW Colorado Outreach Committee
Greetings, Friends! We recently enjoyed the second event in our Appleseed Series hosted at the Rocky Mountain Retreat in Durango and are providing the following summary of the engaging evening we experienced together. I've also included additional resources for exploring the topics in more detail.
Katrina Blair, Turtle Lake Refuge: "Growing Local Greens Year Round"
Many of you know Katrina Blair and the work she is doing in our community to raise awareness of the benefits of local wild foods through Turtle Lake Refuge. It’s amazing to discover the wealth of food that is literally at our doorsteps (if you’ve ever taken one of Katrina’s classes, you know what I mean!). Katrina was the first speaker of the evening and demonstrated to us how easy it is to grow delicious local greens year round.
As Katrina explained, eating local produce offers myriad benefits, and our health and happiness are maximized through the vitality and freshness of local organic food. She described how it's easy and economical to grow local organic produce at home with just a small amount of space and a little bit of time. The easiest way is through sprouting in jars: any grains, beans, or seeds will sprout and make a nourishing addition to a meal. Local micro-greens such as sunflower greens, buckwheat lettuce, and pea shoots make great additions to salads. These can be grown in small trays of dirt that are planted with seeds and watered; in 10 days to two weeks, they are ready to harvest!
To learn more about sprouting, growing micro-greens indoors, and other local, wild, and living food recipes, check out Katrina's recent book, Local Wild Life - Turtle Lake Refuge's Recipes for Living Deep, available at Maria's Bookshop, Durango Natural Foods, Nature's Oasis, and Turtle Lake Refuge.
Turtle Lake Refuge is also hosting a hands-on class on sprouting, growing micro-greens indoors, and other local, wild, and living food recipes on Thursday nights from 5:30–8:00pm at 848 East 3rd Ave (November 12 and 19 and December 10 and 17). Class includes dinner. Suggested donation is $33 per class or $111 for entire series. Taught by Katrina Blair. For more info, contact 970-247-8395.
Steve Kawell, Effective Microorganisms: "EM and Your Garden"
Steve Kawell has a long history of advancing sustainability practices and is an experienced proponent of green building in our community. We were delighted to hear from him as our second speaker.
Steve spoke to us about a fascinating product – Effective Microorganisms (EM) – that we can use to enhance our greens, our gardens, and our health. EM is an all-natural blend of beneficial microbes that is safe and easy to use and is listed as a fully organic product by OMRI. Horticultural biologist Dr. Teruo Higa discovered the combination of microorganisms back in the early 1980s, and EM is now being used in over 120 countries worldwide.
The microorganisms that EM contains aren't just beneficial to plants: when Steve was asked about the safety of the product, he answered by taking a swig from his demonstration squeeze bottle! The naturally occurring ingredients comprise three main genera: phototropic bacteria, lactic acid, and yeast, which work synergistically to secrete beneficial substances such as vitamins, hormones, enzymes, organic acids, bioactive minerals, and various antioxidants when in contact with organic matter. They have the capacity to restore the natural balance and diversity of the micro-ecosystem and serve as a catalyst to naturally detoxify and enrich topsoils – increasing plant growth, yield, shelf-life, and overall nutritional quality.
To find out more about EM, check out www.emamerica.com. Steve is the local rep for "Dr. Teruo Higa’s Effective Microorganisms' and can supply you with more information and EM products. He can be reached at 970-769-3904. (Or, if you order directly from the emamerica website, use the promo code "solar' for a price discount.)
Cody Nicholreimer, GrassRoots Organic Lawn and Garden Care: "Making Compost Tea, Sheet Mulching, and More"
Anyone who's lived in a city or suburb knows that the "best practice" for park and lawn care often involves spreading an array of chemicals and fertilizers to keep the grass “green and healthy” and free of pests and weeds. But the residual strength of these chemicals can make it difficult to breathe when you're walking or jogging, and it isn't hard to notice the absence of life – no insects, no bugs, no butterflies, and very few birds. Contrast this scene with a “wild” undeveloped area, which can be like entering another world: the “weeds” and grasses grow tall, the air has a sweet scent that is characteristic of healthy land anywhere, and insect sounds and birdsong are thick. Such experiences cause us to reflect on our stewardship practices: What might we be missing out on when we exterminate life around us for expediency and comfort, and what does this tell us about ourselves as stewards?
Fortunately, our community has options available to it that affirm life and contribute to the vitality of our ecosystems. Our third speaker, Cody Reinheimer with GrassRoots Organic Lawn & Garden, is active in developing organic-growing methods and outreach programs in conjunction with Turtle Lake Refuge. Turtle Lake Refuge and Grass Roots worked with the City of Durango to develop an organic care system for Brookside Park, the city's first chemical-free park. (To support Brookside Park and encourage more chemical-free parks and schools in the community, call Cathy Metz at the Durango Parks and Recreation Department at 970-375-7329 and let her know your interests and support!)
Cody offered us tips on how to make “compost tea” for our lawns and gardens as well as how to sheet mulch our gardens in preparation for Spring planting. Compost tea is a combination of finished compost, worm castings, animal manure, and effective microorganisms that is an organic and effective replacement for chemical lawn and garden care. It can be a good way to encourage the natural organisms that thrive in healthy soil, including the beneficial worms, insects, and microorganisms that can help to create energetic sustainable greens and vegetables. Cody then described a method of “sheet mulching” that layers organic matter and cardboard or newspaper in a lasagna-type sandwich, which can be an effective way to start a new garden bed in a grassy area or an area with existing vegetation without the need to disturb the soil.
Cody describes his business and activities as follows: "GrassRoots Organic Lawn & Garden is committed to promoting responsible land stewardship methods. We believe in healthy kids and happy honey bees. We do this by offering organic fertilizers that we make from our organic compost. We utilize the high volume of organic food scraps and sprouts coming from Turtle Lake Refuge, creating nutrient rich, live finished compost. Our specialty is compost tea which can be used as a natural fertilizer for lawns and gardens. We also offer organic methods of weed and pest removal, as well as consultation on gardening methods such as sheet mulching, a great fall-time activity. GrassRoots envisions a future in Durango that is chemical-free and full of thriving gardens. We believe that our community's children deserve to play in parks and schoolyards that are safe for human and pet contact, which currently is not the case. We believe that Durango could follow other communities in Colorado that have taken the leap and stopped spraying their parks. Durango could compost on a large city/regional scale to create enough compost tea to safely fertilize our parks, schools, and community gardens. The health of our children, our ecosystem, and ourselves is at stake." For more information, or to get involved, call Cody at 970-247-1773 or email codestar@soon.com
Jennifer Craig, Durango Compost Company: "Worm Composting"
To round out our discussion of healthy garden practices, Jennifer Craig with Durango Compost Company introduced us to a method we can use to produce a natural, high-potency soil amendment using worms to recycle our paper and kitchen scraps (vermaculture). Jenny has over 10 years of experience utilizing earthworm systems to create rich garden compost and has been instrumental in bringing awareness of this technique to our community. I’ve stopped by to see Jenny’s “Can-O-Worms” system at the Durango Farmers Market. It’s a circular compact tray system about waist high that’s perfect for an unused corner of your garage, basement, or laundry room. Jenny explains how the nutrient-rich worm castings could become a beneficial component in your lawn and garden amendments.
Durango Compost Company offers three main services: household composters and worms, public education, and commercial use and consulting. Their most visible presence is at the Farmers Market, where Jenny sells 35-gallon buckets of compost for $35; “compost tea,” a compost-steeped liquid used as fertilizer and to prevent plant disease; and the “Can-O-Worms” home worm composters. In addition, Jenny gives presentations at local schools, garden clubs, and "green" events and works with businesses interested in worm composting, such as Durango Coffee Company, Ska Brewing, and Cyprus Café. Both the Durango Herald ("Spread the Worm") and the Durango Telegraph ("A Big Can of Worms") have written informative articles on Jenny’s worm composting concept.
Jenny is teaching a class on "Vermaculture, making and maintaining worm bins," on November 7 and 14 and December 5 from 10:30-12:00pm through Fort Lewis College Continuing Education. A second class will be offered March 13 and 20 and April 10 from 10:30-noon. For more information, call FLC Continuing Education at 970-247-7385 or contact Jenny at durangocompost@gmail.com
We thank you for your support of the Sustainability Alliance of SW Colorado. Please visit our website http://www.sustainableswcolorado.org for other sustainability related news and events. If you would like to show your support by becoming a member, you may do so via our website.
We look forward to seeing you at our next Appleseed Series: Exploring Sustainability event. Check out our website for details.
