As We Approach Earth Day 2009!

In this note:

-A Rant
-Bloomington Farmers Market Opens
-A Few Garden Reminders from the Organic Gardening Association
- Every Garden A Kitchen Garden - OGA
- Want to Be A Farmer? Start Here - Video and information resource link
- Reduce Your Carbon Footprint
- EPA Halts Mountaintop Removal Mining Permits
- Fair Trade News - About Cadbury
- Urban Foraging - a Rising, Sustainable Fad
- World Fair Trade Day
- E-Waste Recycle Days - free re-cycling of home appliances and computer equipment!

May you be among a supportive family, friends, and community.

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Of course most people now understand that EVERY DAY IS EARTH DAY! It is our home and needs lots of TLC. I know we have great abilities among us, and now is our time to begin where we are, working with the tools we have, along side our neighbors. We must hold close to our hearts that which we have left to work with. Let no one tell us that our rich land based heritage is lost. DO NOT let any business take control of that which we all need to live sustainability. Communities must hold together, and have (or work towards) the rights to clean water, clean air, food (open pollinated seeds, health care and good affordable housing for all citizens. When I think of bale outs, I think, what would it be like if the people who are supporting the mega corps were to be baled out? Ummm, what if the students were to be baled out? What if bale out money went to providing essential care to our citizens? It seems luney to me to provide millions to billions of dollars to failed businesses when the burden, the huge cost is placed on the backs of those who are struggling to hold on to their small businesses, homes, and in some cases feed their children.

Bloomington Farmers Market Opens Saturday, April 4th, 2009 stop by for fresh greens and lots of starter plants! Also, some CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) slots are still available!


Prune Fruit Trees - Prune fruit trees before buds swell. Sterilize pruning tools with a 10 percent solution of bleach before each cut, and dispose of branches properly. Prune out sucker growth, water sprouts and any diseased or dead branches. Remove branches that grow toward the center in order to open the crown.
Spray Dormant Oil

-Get ready to spray fruit trees with dormant oil. This will help control aphids, scales, mites and other insects. Make sure temperatures are above forty degrees with no chance of frost or rain for 24 hours. Don't spray if the day is windy.

Looking for more resources? Check out Gardening Resources at http://www.indianaholistichealth.net/gardeningresources.htm

Isn't Every Garden a Kitchen Garden?
We hear a lot these days about saving money by growing our own vegetables. This is a great thing to become involved in, and the best part is that you needn't plant five acres to have a garden. Kitchen gardens are rising in popularity and don't take... Read more »

Want to Be a New Farmer? Start Here

Small farming is on the rise. The USDA estimates there are more than 300,000 new farms in the U.S since 2002, with many being run by younger people. All those new farmers are looking for information on how to get started. Unlike academic or professional manuals, here’s a new, on-line resource book written by first time farmers on ways to be successful in farming.
The Greenhorns Guide to Beginning Farmers is written by a small, grass-roots, non-profit organization in Hudson, NY. Instead of a how-to guide for growing crop or raising animals, this book has sources of information and contact organizations that will help a beginning farmer get the knowledge they need to be successful. It includes information and resources on apprenticeships and internships, grants, loans, and innovative programs for obtaining land, pest management strategies, tools, and machinery. It includes sections on urban agriculture and even community activism.
Check out this informative resource guide free at: Greenhorns. http://thegreenhorns.net/resources/greeacres.pdf
Check out the video at - www.youtube.com/watch?v=zH7o3fxw6oE


Reduce your Carbon Footprint by Mowing Less

Many people are interested in reducing their carbon footprint in an effort to save energy and limit global warming. While driving less is one of the most obvious ways to do this, mowing your lawn less can also help.

Researchers at the Agricultural Institute of Canada in Ottawa calculated the amount of carbon emissions saved by mowing the average lawn less frequently. Researchers mowed plots of cool season grass lawns only 3 times a year and compared the carbon emissions with mowing similar plots every week. They measured the emissions from mowing a lawn at 0.4 pounds of carbon dioxide per square foot of lawn. To put this number into perspective, if you have a 2000 square foot lawn, mowing only 3 times a season will cut the carbon dioxide emissions by 600 pounds. That’s the equivalent of cutting back driving a car that gets 20 miles per gallon by 600 miles.
For a bigger picture perspective, when multiplied by the 50 million acres of lawn in the U.S., we could potentially reduce carbon emissions by more than 600 trillion pounds just by mowing less.
For more information, go to: Hort Ideas. http://users.mikrotec.com/~gwill/hi-art.htm#Article%204

EPA Halts Mountaintop Removal Mining Permits
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced last week that it is halting new permits for mountaintop removal coal mining until water quality impacts from the practice can be fully assessed.
Go to all articles - Go to this article
http://www.emagazine.com/view/?4625


Fair Trade News!
Cadbury Dairy Milk – the leading chocolate bar in the UK – has announced plans to begin using Fair Trade cocoa this summer. This is great news for cocoa farmers, which will boost Fair Trade Certified™ chocolate up to a full 15 percent of the chocolate market in England.

Please join us in celebrating this victory for Fair Trade, and at the same time, help us use this moment as an opportunity to persuade Cadbury to do better in the US.

Tell Cadbury thanks for taking this step in the UK – and ask them to expand Fair Trade in the US »


Urban Foraging - a Rising, Sustainable Fad
http://culturechange.org/go.html?374

Urban gardening will soon become as obvious a need as job generation, as
we put into perspective what it takes to survive.

In addition to creating gardens and orchards, foraging is already and will
always be vital. Foraging is part of hunter-gathering, the way we evolved
for millions of years. Following is a new report from a Portland, Oregon
weekly newspaper with handy tips and a healthy attitude for our times:

Man vs. Wild: From foraging to fermentation, how to hone your natural
instinct on a budget.
By Adrienne So, Willamette Week

You can take the man out of the wild, but you can’t take the wild out of
the man. Or, better said: you shouldn’t. The sun is coming out, the rains
are receding, and nature calls. Who cares if you don’t have the gas money
to motor out to Eagle Creek to go hiking?
...

To read the complete article, visit: http://culturechange.org/go.html?374


Be a Part of the World's Largest Coffee Break on May 9, 2009: World Fair Trade Day
May 9 - Green America is a proud sponsor of World Fair Trade Day, an international celebration of Fair Trade. The theme of this year’s World Fair Trade Day, Everything Is Better When It’s Fair, reminds us that Fair Trade is more than coffee, chocolate and handcrafts. Please join us to break last year’s record of the world’s largest Fair Trade coffee break.
http://www.fairtraderesource.org/wftd/wftd-09/fair-trade-break-action-guide/


E-Waste Recycle Days - If you are a member of the general public or an IU student, staff, or faculty member
Bloomington
Apr 30th - May 2nd, 9:00am - 2:00pm
Indiana University - Bloomington
N Dunn St & E 17th St (get directions)
Bloomington, Monroe, IN 47408

Indianapolis
Apr 30th - May 2nd, 9:00am - 2:00pm
Indiana State Fairgrounds
E 38th St & Coliseum Ave (get directions)
Indianapolis, IN 46205
http://indiana.poweron.com/p/default