Jan 1, 2009
ORGANIC GROWING NEWS
Levin Branch, NZ Soil & Health Association
www.organicnz.org/page/Levin
Newsletter 256 – January 2009
Patron Fay Te Kira 364 5168 President Ian Sheen 364 3299 singa@xtra.co.nz Treasurer Liz Baucke 368 0009Minute Secretary Val Nicol 367 8320 Secretary Annmarie Coote 367 3753
Committee Emily Williams 362 6684 Barbara van der Valk 364 3244 Jill Scott 363 7567 Michael Hunt 364 8053
Ambassador at Large: Winifred Bourn, 23a Fairfield Road, Levin Fax 368 6271, ph 368 6701
The Soil & Health Association of NZ is the world’s oldest organisation dedicated to organic production. Since 1941, we have led the debate on issues surrounding health, sustainable development, safe food, pesticides, GE and organic food production. We rely on the generosity of members to continue working on your behalf.
By subscribing to the Association’s magazine, Organic NZ, you also become a member of the Association. Subscription costs $40 for one year (six issues) or $70 for two years (twelve issues). Family memberships, allowing two votes, are available for an extra $5 per year.
Send your subscription, or gift a subscription to family or friends, to Soil & Health Association of NZ, PO Box 36170, Northcote, Auckland, or via the website www.organicnz.org. You can pay by cheque, Visa, Mastercard or Amex.
A home garden visit showing clearly that you don't need a large area to grow a wide variety of food.On Sunday 25th January at 1.30pm we will be visiting the garden of Michael and Margaret Hunt at 173B Waerenga Road, Otaki. We will be joined by Transition Towns.
You can grow a lot of food on 600 sq m. Michael has been an organic gardener for over 50 years and when they arrived 15 months ago, found a section with a small plastic house, covered in stones and with only a couple of shrubs. He brought in a truck load of compost, got rid of the lawn and now is growing an abundance of fruit and vegetables including raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, tamarillo, tomatoes, potatoes (including a few varieties of Maori potatoes), Jerusalem artichokes and SO much more. There is also a variety of herbs, decorative shrubs & flowers. The property is at the SH end, opposite New World. Please park on Waerenga Road.
In Danger of Falling FoodTransition Towns Kapiti will be screening this documentary, featuring permaculture founder Bill Mollison, on Thursday 22 January at 7.30pm in the Kapiti Uniting Church, 27 Raumati Road, Raumati.
To subscribe to the Transition Towns Kapiti newsletter, email deirdre.kent@gmail.com
SOIL & HEALTH CHRISTMAS FUNCTIONSUNDAY 23 NOVEMBER
Our end-of-year function at the home and property of Patricia and Graeme Booth was an inspiring visit on a lovely spring day. Pat and Graeme first bought 7 acres about ten years ago, and the property is now 52 acres. A QE2 covenant on the regenerating wetlands will eventually grow to about 35 acres.
The house has a 9-foot stud and faces north. It is deliberately simple in design and structure, with attention given to materials and function. A wide veranda lets in the low winter sun while shading the house in the summer. A polished concrete slab floor absorbs the winter sun, and again provides cool in the summer. The floor is a rib raft design, on polystyrene boxes. A venting skylight release warm air and the blowflies as well.
Graeme, a builder by trade, said it’s very important for the house to be double-glazed. This is common practice in most of the developed world; some cold regions have triple-glazing. The house is also insulated with blown-in wool. Graeme also said the KCDC had been supportive with everything they’ve done.
Graeme and Pat are totally off the grid, producing all their own power. They use 4 to 5 kilowatt hours a day. Power companies consider “low usage” to be under 20kWh. Electricity is generated by six solar photovoltaic panels at 24V, and a wind turbine producing up to 1kW of DC power. The fridge uses about half the power, and computers are also greedy. Graeme and Pat turn everything off at the wall when not in use. Hot water is provided by a solar panel with a thermosiphon.
The Booths were unhappy with their initial compost toilet, but eventually found the Wormorator model which was one of the highlights of our visit. It uses a water flush to an enclosed outside chamber. The chamber sits on a grid, allowing liquid to run away to a drainage field. The solids are dealt to by compost worms, a 50-50 mix of tiger worms and red worms. A lever can be used to divert the effluent to one side of the chamber or the other. (Singa)
Graeme and Pat cook with gas; they have a multipurpose microwave and have not used an iron for five years! What some may consider a down-side, they noted that they can be in the middle of watching a TV programme and the power will go off! They tend to live very intentionally. If they have visitors they turn the generator on. Water is pumped from an underground well and they have a 60 gallon cylinder and above that a 400 litre cold water tank. The water is pushed around by the heat (thermosyphon).
The house is warm in the winter although sometimes in spring and autumn they do need to light the fire to heat the water.
When they bought the property there were big, old pines which shaded a lot of the land. They have slowly put this into wetland and have put this under a QE II covenant. Private landowners can put this covenant on an area of their land which means no further development can occur. They are then able to either have indigenous fauna and flora, or the land can be left as it is. Help is also given to fence the area off.
Upcoming meetings:- 22 February – Summer pruning with Kath Irvine at Winifred Bourn’s, 23a Fairfield Rd, Levin.
- 29 March – AGM at Tony Robinson’s, Ramblers’ Flowers, State Highway, Levin. (parking, opposite in Lindsay Rd).
JANUARY AND FEBRUARY IN THE ORGANIC GARDEN
from the Organic Garden Calendar by Kath Irvine
January
- Leeks, red onion and more salad greens can be planted out now.
- Be thinking of the season ahead, if you want winter/spring brassicas now is the time to be planning.
- Cut the grass under the nut trees for an easier harvest
February
- Sow parsley and coriander seeds
- Direct sow rocket and beetroot
- Begin to plan for your Autumn fruit tree planting
- Plant strawberries for next year
For detailed tasks, see the book.
MOON PLANTING GUIDE
February1, 27, 28 – transplant lettuces, leeks, silverbeet and cabbages
2, 3, 20, 21 – thin fruit trees, summer pruning
4, 5, 22 – make and apply compost, harvest root crops
7, 16 - harvest crops (except root)
8 – sow all seeds
10th – Full moon
11 –sow broccoli and cauliflower plant garlic
12-14 sow root crops
17, 18 – sow lettuces, silverbeet and cabbages
25th – New moon
Manaka Medieval Market - Saturday 14 February 2009
We need volunteers for our stall at this year’s Medieval Market, to be held at the Levin Showground. There will be three shifts of three hours each in the morning, lunchtime and afternoon. We also need six people to help set up on the Friday afternoon. Please phone Singa on 06 364 3299 or email singa@xtra.co.nz
We will be selling literature and providing information on organic home gardening, and also selling good quality fresh organic produce, potted plants and seedlings. Please let us know if you can donate anything suitable for sale on the stall.
Kapiti Sustainable Home and Garden Show - 4 and 5 April 2009
We will also be having a stall at this event, similar to our stall at the Medieval Market. Once again, please let us know if you can volunteer for the stall or donate items for sale.
KCDC sustainability newsletter – “On to it” . To subscribe email ontoit@kapiticoast.govt.nz
In January’s On to it -
- information on government subsidies for insulation and clean heating upgrades;
- calls for KCDC Heritage Fund applications. Grants are available for fencing off and protecting native bush, wetlands and streams, and managing and maintaining heritage buildings and trees, etc;
- a review of the DVD The Real Dirt on Farmer John (available as a free loan through KCDC libraries);
- January in the Organic Garden and summer lawn care with Kath Irvine, with links to further website information on brassicas, raspberries, summer-pruning stonefruit, and dealing with silver leaf and codling moth
EM (Effective Micro-organisms)
- EM 1 available in 750ml, 2 litre and 20 litre containers.- Bokashi Zing Compost Buckets and Bokashi Zing.
- Full range of EM Ceramics and EMX.
- EM Practical Workshops..... to be advised.
Contact: Dave Johnston. 39 State Highway 1, Otaki. 06 364 6101 Email lao@ihug.co.nz
A1 SHELTER BELT TRIMMERS for all your shelter belt and hedge trimming. Height reduction and decrowning now available. Competitive prices, prompt service. Phone Marty (06) 362 6737
MAWHENUA FARM - organic since 1986. Beef, hogget & lamb processed & packaged under MAF licence. Craft & knitting wools available. For price list and inquiries contact Warren and Trish Gilbert, RD 7, Dannevirke (06) 374 8281.
AGRISSENTIAL NATURALLY BETTER FERTILISERS BIOGRO certified Rok Solid and Organic 100, available from IMAGO ORGANIC ORCHARD For information phone Ann (06) 368 3858
World’s first fully certified organic SKINCARE, BODYCARE AND COSMETIC PRODUCTS.100% free of synthetic chemicals. Discount and free shipping available.
Order on-line www.organics4you.net.nz or phone Louise (06) 364 2190
