Woo Hoo!! School’s out!

For me anyway. I finished everything for this semester at 7:30 last night. Now for a few weeks of R&R in my garden and back to summer school. I didn’t want to do it that way, but if I plan to finish by December, I need to.

Anyway, the produce is being sourced closer and closer. Sorry for the asparagus from Mexico the other week. My sales rep didn’t flag me on that which she usually does. We will be starting with Karley again this summer. It looks like the week of June 14th or 21st. Please get me your summer vacation schedules when you get them!

We will be changing over the website to one that is a little more automated this summer. You will each be able to manage your own accounts with what baskets you choose and even pay safely through the site. This will be my summer project, getting this up and running. I like to make it so people don’t have to change a thing if they don’t want to. 

Recycling Efforts

We like to use paper that has been used on one side for the invoices and NewsLetters. If any of you have some, please help out and just leave it in the garage when you pick up. We have had a few sources, but are finding we could use more these days. Thanks to all who supply us!

I hope you are all enjoying your spring. I like that the weather is getting into the 70’s these days. It’s my favorite temperature zone.

Enjoy! Marnie

Stop Plan for Monsanto & Biotech Industry to Police Itself!

Genetically modified organisms, planted on 165 millions acres of US farmland, have increased the use of toxic pesticides and chemical fertilizers, destroyed soil fertility and carbon-sequestering capacity, spawned super-weeds, contaminated organic & non-GMO crops, and are less nutritious and more likely to trigger allergies, in general making plants, animals and human beings weaker and disease-prone. GMO corn for ethanol has decreased grain supplies, raised food prices, and increased world hunger; while generating the same greenhouse gas pollution as conventional gasoline. Genetically engineered trees, fish, and farm animals pose similar hazards to human and environmental health.

The Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has aided Monsanto and the biotech lobby by failing to accurately assess the impacts of GMOs, as they have failed to properly assess the monumental damage of chemical agriculture. APHIS, using the excuse of efficiency and cutting costs, wants to turn over the job of conducting assessments to biotech companies like Monsanto that have vested interests in deregulation.

This is a very dangerous game to play. Tell APHIS to halt their pilot program and instead put their resources towards more vigorous review of the potential harms of GMO crops and animals.

Take Action: http://www.capwiz.com/grassrootsnetroots/issues/alert/?alertid=43706521&type=AN

Enjoy! Marnie

The Beginnings of Co-operatives

Co-operatives as we know them first appeared in England during the class struggles of the early 1800’s. Robert Owen, known for his attempts to save the poor from squalor and reforming the child labor laws, wrote “Report on The Poor” addressing the social and economic structures of England. Though the House of Commons rejected his report, the idea of “Villages of Co-operation,” based on the Shaker communities in the United States, caught on. William Thompson furthered the concept of co-operatives, and Socialism as well, through his writing, specifically his paper in 1824, “An enquiry into the principals of Distribution of Wealth Most Conducive to Human Happiness.” Both men strongly believed human nature was basically good; happiness came from human interactions; and that man is demoralized by the inhumane environments created by the economic system. This connection between happiness, social relations, co-operation and democratic methods established the moral and methodological foundation of co-operatives as a humane alternative to the problems of capitalism. The academic ideals didn’t translate into reality very well. with over 250 failed attempts at co-opting communities before 1844, when William King produced the first successful co-operative. Starting small, he thought to first co-op a business that everyone uses, a grocery store.

Enjoy! Marnie

Rain rain rain!

It’s time to hook up the rain barrels and capture some of that blue gold for your garden! I have three rain barrels and have only needed to use my municipal water (tap water) a handful of times in August last two years. The plants, especially the young ones don’t like tap water because of the chlorine. It’s actually very toxic to them. If you use tap water to water plants, let it sit for an hour in the watering can first, to let the chlorine dissipate. Last year I went to Rutgers and took a How to Make a Rain Barrel Instructor’s course. I have been holding classes in making rainbarrels and selling them ever since. If any of you would like me to come do a class for your town organization or club, please contact me. I also have rain barrels available for $75, with instructions for set up produced by Rutgers University. 

It’s time to get out in the garden, and start planting the broccoli, peas, beans and lettuces! Plant the warm weather seeds inside, to be transplanted come Mother’s Day. Please make a conserted effort to buy organic seeds. Seeds of Change is a great company. Burpee is as bad as you can get.

The forsythia are blooming so that means its time to put down the corn gluten on your lawn as a weed inhibitor. It lets the weed seeds sprout, but inhibits root growth, so the weed eventually dies. Grass that is already established won’t be harmed. Weeds that are established will need to be pulled. Its a little more expensive than synthetic herbicides, but it keeps your soil alive and working organically. I’ll have more on this in future articles.

Enjoy! Marnie

Spring Produce

The flowers are blooming. The birds are out. But this is the absolute worst time of year for produce. There is nothing local. Florida only has citrus left. Everything else has to come from California, or has been sitting in a nitrogen room so it doesn’t rot. This is why at this time of year, we have more things like coconuts, and kiwis that certainly would never grow here. All is not lost. We get to try strange fruits like cumquots. The asparagus is just starting. The berries are ripening closer every day and lettuce does well in greenhouses year round. We can begin our anticipation of the summer tastes! It’s just around the corner. 

Fresh Foods for Spring Holiday Menus- Healthy Foods Prep Class

Thursday, April 14, 2011 - 12:00 PM

As spring comes so do new beginnings. The same holds true of our food choices. This is a great time to experiment with something new and fresh that you may have not thought to prepare before. This Easter or Passover meal is a great place to start. Join me as I demonstrate some fresh spring inspired appetizers that you can serve at your holiday table. We will prepare dips, spring rolls, and stuffed vegetables as well as other easy but colorful dishes that your guests will love. 

Phyllis is a certified Holistic Health Counselor with over 20 years practicing in the field of nutrition. She is a coach, educator, and chef skilled in multiple food disciplines. Certified by the Institute for Food Studies and The National Gourmet Institute.

Learn about a different type of healthy food preparation each month – raw foods, foods that are good for your heart, gluten free grains. We’ll prepare seasonal produce, can summer fruits, make tomato sauce, and even learn how to detox in the winter. join us each month for a pleasant afternoon social, and learn about delicious and healthy food preparation.

Come to one class or come to all...
Each MLOC class is $25 individually, or a four class package is $75.

RSVP today to reserve a spot. For more information contact Marnie at FruitLady@MountainLakesOrganic.com or 973-335-4469.

Enjoy! Marnie

Your home vegetable garden - Get ready for Spring!

Sunday, April 10, 2011 – 2:00 to 4:00 pm

Where: Mountain Lakes Organic Co-op

Start your garden the organic way. Learn about garden preparation, sourcing organic seeds and soil amendments, heirloom tomatoes and herbs, and planting diversity in vegetables, herbs, and flowers to attract beneficial insects and as natural pest deterrents. Map out your succession planting schedule to ensure continuous harvests. Develop integrated pest management (IPM) skills and harvesting practices, for squash, cucumbers, peppers, and other summer crops. Learn about drip irrigation systems and rain barrels and how to keep your plants strong and healthy with consistent water in the summer heat.

Wanda Knapik, a certified Permaculture Instructor, installs vegetable gardens for institutions and residents through her company - My Local Garden, LLC.

Come to one class or come to all...
Each MLOC class is $25 individually, or a four class package is $75.

RSVP today to reserve a spot. For more information contact Marnie at FruitLady@MountainLakesOrganic.com or 973-335-4469.

Enjoy! Marnie

WestHaven Organic Farm

West Haven is the farm up at the EcoVillage in Ithaca. They follows permaculture principals in their farming methods. A main Permaculture principal is that your actions should have many different benefits. Crop rotation does this. One type of plant may deplete the soil of particular nutrients and leave other nutrients that another type of plant can use. The most noted example is peas and beans capture nitrogen from air and fix it in soil, which benefits other plants like tomatoes which can be planted in the plot the next growing season. Crop rotation also discourages pest growth. A fly that feeds on carrots may get established in the soil one year, but if the carrots are planted in a plot 150 feet away the next year, it’s too far for the fly to travel, find and flourish. Flowers too are not only beautiful, but can act as pest deterrents. The smell of marigolds are very good for keeping bugs away. Row covers also have multiple benefits. They keep bugs away like the flea beetle on arugula. They also extend the season, by keeping frost off the plants as temperatures begin to dip below freezing. 

Planting certain vegetables with each other also has many benefits. Plants like to grow in biodiverse clusters because they benefit from each other in different ways. Various plants can deter pests, add needed nutrients to the soil, provide needed shade, provide stalks to climb and transpirate needed moisture. An old Iroquois combination is the three sisters –  corn, beans and squash. Some believe plants that taste good together often grow well together like, tomatoes, onions and rosemary. But you would want to keep the dill, parsnips and radishes away from this cluster. 

Which brings us to the next topic, the fertilizer, or the refuse. It can also be thought of as the link that turns something from the linear cradle to grave into the circle of life – composting. West Haven fertilizes their fields with their own compost – made from the left over plant material and chicken poop, the compost from a nearby dairy, and with cover crops. Cover crops are plants like winter oats, hairy vetch, and peas that are very good at replenishing the nutrients in the soil. When the farm was bought, the farm manager planted consecutive years of cover-crops to invigorate the soil. Each year of organic farming improves the soil more. The microbes are left to establish their own equilibrium, which also keeps the pests in check.