June Anouncements05/29/2013 Aloha Members, Volunteers, & Supporters! Let's Party! Open House and Summer Party Our annual summer party is scheduled for Saturday, June 22 from 2 - 6 pm (open house from 2 - 4pm). Our plot manager also has a birthday to celebrate! So mark your calendars and plan to get your family and friends and come on down for food and fun! It will be potluck style, so bring a food or beverage to share. We'll provide plates, cups, and forks. Like coordinating and planning parties? We'd love to have you jump in and take on as much as you're comfortable with! Welcome to Our New Worm Whisperer We'd like to welcome Jhonatan as our new Worm Whisperer. He will coordinate the feeding of the worms and the brewing of the tea, a great addition to the garden! Daisy Chain Arrangement on the MLP Gate A 3rd lock has recently been added to the MLP gate. This is MLP's lock. Since we now have 3 locks on the chain, there has been some confusion that has resulted in MLP and our neighboring tenant being accidentally locked out. The set-up in use is known as a "daisy chain", meaning each lock is like a link on the chain, thus the locks are all "connected" to one another. The locks must all be linked to one another so that any one lock can be opened to open the chain and gate. Our lock goes in the middle of the other two locks, thus should never be directly attached to the chain, which make it easy to remember how to do. Essentially, our lock connects the other two locks together by securing it over the shackles of the other two locks. If we were to bypass a lock and connect directly to the chain instead, that other tenant's lock would be useless and they would be unable to open the gate. There's a unique blog post that explains how daisy chains work at http://www.spurgeonworld.com/blog/archives/2006/12/daisy_chains.html. We learn something new every day at the garden! Speakers Wanted Would you or someone you know make a good speaker for an educational class at the garden? We are now seeking speakers for summer and fall workshops. Send your ideas or inquire with the garden council for more information. Fencing Available HCG purchased a 50' roll of economy fencing for the Goodwill Garden and only used 25' of it. Let us know if you would like to split the fencing and cost with HCG. First come, first served. Grow Your Own Food and Submit a Yummy Recipe! We're still collecting your printed recipes for the Hali'imaile Community Garden cookbook fundraiser. Please include a photo of your delicious dish for the cookbook. The deadline for recipe submissions is June 30th. Fundraising Committee Meeting Tuesday, June 11th @ 5pm The fundraising committee will be resuming meetings on Tuesday, June 11th @ 5 pm and continuing on the second Tuesday of each month at 5pm at the garden. The cookbook has been designed and drafted and is ready for committee review and editing. We're welcoming new committee members who have ideas and connections to help raise funds for the garden. Satisfactorily serving on the committee fills all volunteerism dues for the year. Contact a councilmember if interested or just show up on the 11th with your ideas! Goodwill Garden & Member Donation Day Every Thursday Pinky, the Hale Kau Kau coordinator, was very happy with our recent food donations! We were able to meet some of people who came to eat the free dinner HKK provides nightly. It was super cool to converse with them as they were very friendly and talked about how grateful they are and how much they appreciate what HKK does. Wow! So great to know that HKK is there for anyone who needs a hot meal, no questions asked! Several of you have asked if there is a regular day for donating extra produce from your plots to HKK. Lori is available to take Goodwill Garden and member produce donations to HKK every Thursday @ 5pm. If you have anything you would like to donate from your plot, please leave it in the shed Thursday morning or give it to Lori on Thursday afternoon prior to 5pm. In order to make it to HKK before they close the kitchen for the night, Lori needs to leave the garden promptly at 5pm. No pressure or judgment at all here... we need to eat too, so this is purely optional. Pinky, the coordinator over at HKK says they are in need of lots of lettuce. So we're looking for any extra lettuce harvest, lettuce starts, or lettuce seeds that can be donated to planted and grow lettuce for them using succession planting for a continuous supply. Garden Gnomes Evaluate Gas Costs of Driving to the Garden This month the gnomes are expanding on the idea of being food self-sufficient with succession planting and will be exploring the benefits and cost savings of growing vs. buying produce. The most common challenges to being present and food self-sufficient at a community garden that the gnomes overhear is lack of time and gas expense. So, let’s do a brief gas cost/benefit analysis this month. Next month, we’ll take a look at ways to maximize and enjoy time spent in the garden. Let's say a gardener travels 20 miles from Wailea to get to the garden once a week. The average fuel economy is now around 24.5 miles per gallon. When this was written, gas prices were listed at $4.59 per gallon. Thus, it would cost this gardener roughly $7.50 round trip once a week to come to garden, hang out, enjoy the sun and fresh air, socialize, and harvest food for the week. To be fair, let’s add $2.50 for wear and tear and assume a total cost of $10. Bear in mind that this example is probably a worst case scenario as the furthest any current gardener is known to live is Maalaea or Kihei and most are much closer in the Upcountry area. Assume that during a weekly visit to tend and harvest, this gardener takes home a head of lettuce, bunch of chard, and a couple of tomatoes. Chances are the cost for the trip would break even when compared to the cost to buy these items in a grocery store. The reality, though, is that an intensively grown garden will provide much more than that! North Carolina University describes an intensively grown garden as being intended to harvest the most produce possible from a given space. True, the yield will vary greatly depending on what you are growing. However, most sources agree that 200 square feet (a standard 10’x20’ plot at HCG) will provide enough fresh produce to feed a single person. Chard, kale, lettuce, arugula, radish, daikon, carrots, beets, and potatoes produce readily and can be harvested in large quantities and grown quickly using succession planting so that there is a continuous and abundant supply each week. Add to that anything else you might grow and the seasonal fruits and herbs from the garden’s community areas and it is quite reasonable to be harvesting and eating $50 - $100 retail value of produce each week. It is very possible to achieve harvesting more organic food out of the garden that we can afford to purchase on our grocery budget. So much more that our friends, family, and neighbors often benefit from our surplus. We can juice regularly and make recipes that require large amounts of produce at next to nothing in cost. A small cup of fresh pesto would require roughly 15 - 20 bunches of basil typically sold at retail for $5 a piece. That's $100 worth of basil for a tiny cup of pesto! It's cheaper to buy the store bought pre-made version than to buy the raw ingredients. Yet, basil grows so abundantly that it's possible to enjoy many varieties of fresh, homemade pesto regularly. Even after considering cost of gas, seeds, and soil amendments, growing your own is most affordable! In fact, the gnomes saw a Facebook post going around saying that growing your own food is like finding money in the ground... and isn't that the truth! However, is gas really an issue to begin with? Would we think twice about dropping $10 on a lunch, a new shirt, the latest smart phone technology, or a drink after work when we can just as well pack a lunch from home, wear the clothes we have and, do without a drink or more technology? Putting things in even more perspective, it costs gas money to drive to the grocery store and Costco too! On the weekends when there are great gatherings and/or we're heading to the beach for some relaxation, do we let gas cost stop our fun? Of course not! Additional benefits of gardening include improved health, creativity, physical exercise, weight control, involvement with the natural environment, stress reduction, and meditation. With a little initial planning, it's also a great way to spend time with the kids in a wholesome and educational family activity. It's also good for the environment, builds the soil, reduces our carbon footprint, provides freshly picked produce that has not been in transit to the store for 1 - 2 weeks, reduces greenhouse gas emissions from transporting food, and reduces waste from spoilage that in turn increases food prices. So after some deliberation, the garden gnomes have reached a verdict. An intensively grown garden is far more of a cost savings than an expense, and provides a continuous supply of fresh and nutritious foods! Let's get planting! And next month, we’ll take a look at maximizing time in the garden so that it is both productive and enjoyable for gardeners, kids, and family alike. Water: Our Most Precious Resource! Aside from the beautiful land we have to grow on, our most precious resource at Hali'imaile Community Garden is water. We have been using more water during the recent two months due to the unusually early summer high heat and drought conditions. As a reminder, excessive water use could be financially devastating for the garden! Please help us conserve as much as possible! Watering is limited to 30 minutes per day by hand or on a timer. This is not cumulative, so if you skip a day or two, it's still only 30 minutes the next time you come. This is a most generous amount of water for most growing needs. Over-watering plants can be just as harmful as under-watering them. Years of history at the garden have shown the following amounts to work well for most gardeners: Individual Style Plots: Most established individual style plots do well with 5 minutes 2x a day, both spray and 1/2 inch drip line. During the wet months, 5 minutes per day is sufficient. Polynesian Style Plots: Members with Polynesian style plots loaded with trees know that trees drink a lot more water than vegetable gardens and this is where the 30 minutes per day allotment is often needed during the dry months. During the wet months, 15 minutes per day is sufficient. Please test your personal hoses and irrigation systems to be sure they are not over spraying your plot, leaking where they connect to the hose bib, etc. There is Teflon tape in the shed that can be used to wrap around the threads of the male end of the connectors to seal them so they don't leak. Any hoses that are leaking should be replaced. Please kokua and use only what is absolutely necessary and report any wasteful activity to the garden council. If you find any leaks around the garden or see excess water and/or moisture collecting somewhere, please notify us via email or call Kevin or Lori (our numbers are listed on the bulletin board outside the shed). Plots for New Members Now Available Know someone who wants to garden? A limited number of individual and Polynesian style plots are available for new members interested in producing their own organic food and joining a community keen on working together to make the garden a beautiful, productive place. Experience or a "green thumb" not required; just a desire to be more self-sufficient, work collectively with other gardeners and an appreciation for the pleasures of turning hands to the soil. Let's build up our community! Tell your friends! Position of Importance to Fill Haliimaile Community Garden is looking for individuals to help fill a position of importance as Compost Czar at the garden! Please contact the Garden Council if you are interested! This is a great way to become more involved at the garden and to get to know your fellow gardeners better! The compost manager is responsible for tracking compost maintenance and coordinating turning/covering/manuring compost to help provide a rich source of nutrient-rich compost for the use of the garden community. Satisfactorily serving in this position would meet all annual community work participation requirements, and would be a great way to learn more about compost management and help others learn as well. Gathering Dates in June Last chance this month! Members who have not completed two group projects by June 30th will be subject to a $50 additional dues assessment payable by July 31st. We'd really rather have your participation in shaping the garden and comradeship than your money though, so come on down and join us on one or both of the dates below: Group Project Party - Saturday, June 8th 9 am - 12 pm Please join Kevin to work on the community herb and papaya garden. We'll be adding compost to the herb garden, trimming, and (if available) adding mulch to the papaya garden. Bring paper towel and toilet paper donations and a snack or lunch to share afterwards. Group Project Party - Tuesday, June 18th, 1pm - 4 pm Please join Lori to weed and trim the orchard. We'll be pruning trees, trimming, and removing weeds to widen the circle around each tree. Bring paper towel and toilet paper donations and a snack or lunch to share afterwards. If you are unable to attend group projects, it is your responsibility to ask a council member for an alternate assignment. Alternate assignments provide a meaningful contribution to the garden and depending on your talents may include website content, grant writing, fundraising, and/or repairs/maintenance around the garden. Individual Volunteer Projects Projects that we need help with around the garden this month include:
A Few Important Reminders! Drive Slowly - Please drive especially slow, no more than 5mph as you move from the street through the gates and into the garden parking lot. Rocks - Please keep rocks out of the common areas, plots, and pathways and take any found to the rock pile by the green house. Common Areas & Pathways - Please keep all personal materials within the boundaries of your assigned plot. HCG Gate - Remember to lock up no matter the time of day if you are last vehicle to leaving the garden. MLP Gate - Remember to lock the MLP gate behind you every time you pass through it. It must remain locked at all times. Water - Please kokua and use only what is absolutely necessary and report any wasteful activity to the garden council. Much Mahalo! Garden Council Because the garden is large and has a diverse membership, it is the responsibility of the garden council to establish routines and oversee the garden plan. However, we're often tied up with administrative tasks. You are the source of valuable ideas and visions for things to add and/or improve at the garden! Members are always encouraged to provide feedback, share concerns, ideas, suggestions, and visions for the garden. We're always looking for leaders who are interested in leading project days or have interest in overseeing special projects. In addition, an annual general membership meeting is held each January and special meetings of the general membership may be called when issues arise which affect and require the input and feedback of the general membership. The council wants to hear from you and is always available for your questions, concerns, ideas, visions for the garden, and suggestions at haliimailegarden@gmail.com. Kevin, Lori, and Volkan all receive and read the incoming mails at this address. We do our best to respond quickly. "Like" us on Facebook to keep in touch with other gardeners and announcements at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Haliimaile-Community-Garden/178716682162809 Mahalos!
Power Tools User Workshop05/03/2013  When: Thursday, May 9th from 10am-12 Where: Hali'imaile Community Garden If you are a member and would like access to the garden's power tools, please come to the User Workshop this Thursday, May 9th from 10 am to Noon. The workshop will cover: 1) Experience levels. 2) Safety tips 3) Description of equipment and basic operation. 4) Fuel/oil/air filter basics. 5) Basic maintenance and cleaning. 6) Direct reporting of condition and concerns. 7) Responsibility of security, usage, and procedures. Equipment user agreements will be available to sign after the workshop. Completion of the workshop and signing the agreement will entitle attending members to the combination to access to the power tools. There is no charge for the workshop, so come on down and check it out! About the Instructor: Garden member Mercer has lots to share about using and maintaining the power tools. His workshop last year was most informative! Our own plot manager knew almost nothing about power tools 2 years ago and now not only uses them, but does routine maintenance and simple repairs. She says, "The knowledge gained is useful anywhere, from learning new job skills to do-it-yourself home yard maintenance! It was well worth attending!" See you there! Hali'imaile Community Garden Open House05/03/2013  Hali'imaile Community Garden is holding it's annual open house and community potluck social and party! The event is free and open to the entire community of Maui. Bring along friends, family, keiki, co-workers, and others to share in the fun and get a free tour of the garden! When: Saturday,June 22, 2:00pm - 4:00pm Where: Hali'imaile Community Garden Directions: http://www.haliimailegarden.com/directions.html Website: http://www.haliimailegarden.com/ For more information, use this contact form: http://www.haliimailegarden.com/contact.html HCG May Announcements05/01/2013 Aloha Members, Volunteers, & Supporters! Gathering Dates in May Group Project Party - Saturday, May 11, 2013 9 am - 12 pm Please join Kevin to work on the community herb and papaya garden. We'll be adding compost to the herb garden, trimming, and adding mulch to the papaya garden. Bring paper towel and toilet paper donations and a snack or lunch to share afterwards. Group Project Party - Tuesday, May 28, 2013 1 pm – 4 pm Please join Volkan to weed and trim the community areas of the garden. This may include the orchard, herb garden, native beds, bamboo circle, and/or the Goodwill Gardens. Bring paper towel and toilet paper donations and a snack or lunch to share afterwards. If you are unable to attend group projects, it is your responsibility to ask a council member for an alternate assignment. Alternate assignments provide a meaningful contribution to the garden and depending on your talents may include website content, grant writing, cookbook design, and/or repairs/maintenance around the garden. Members who have not completed two group projects by June 30th will be subject to a $50 additional dues assessment payable by July 31st. We'd really rather have your participation in shaping the garden and comradeship than your money though, so come on down and join us! Individual Volunteer Projects Projects that we need help with around the garden this month include:
Let's Party! Open House and Summer Member Party Our annual summer party is scheduled for Saturday, June 22 from 2 - 6 pm and we will hold open house from 2pm - 4pm. Our plot manager also has a birthday to celebrate! So mark your calendars and plan to get your family and friends and come on down for food and fun! It will be potluck style, so bring a food or beverage to share. We'll provide plates, cups, and forks. Like coordinating and planning parties? We'd love to have you jump in and take on as much as you're comfortable with! Hali'imaile Community Garden's Project Goodwill Garden Sowing It Forward to Feed Maui's Hungry Special thanks to those who turned out and lent a hand! We're thankful for our garden! And we're sowing it forward to give back to the less fortunate in the greater Maui Community! Two garden plots have been designated for growing fresh produce for donations to Maui non-profit programs that feed the hungry. Hale Kau Kau serves a hot meal nightly to those in need and the Maui Food Bank distributes food to various programs that help to feed people. Gardener's gathered On April 2nd to till and prepare a plot for sweet potato planting and a plot for chayote squash. The sweet potato will be a welcome treat, while the chayote will be sufficient to provide an ongoing supply of food! We even received an anonymous donation of $300 to cover the supplies and plot fees (water use and CAM) for these plots! It's amazing how this project went from idea to reality in less than 2 weeks! Many mahalos! Here are some photo's of the plot preparation on April 2nd for sowing it forward to feed the hungry! https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.551800798187727.1073741826.178716682162809& And pictures of the planting and new sign on April 9. https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.554468324587641.1073741827.178716682162809& And some recent donations to the food bank on April 11th. Wow! https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.555167734517700.1073741828.178716682162809& Then a busy member donated the use of his plot for a 3rd Goodwill Garden and it was planted on April 23rd. Now that's a lot of Goodwill! https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.559963254038148.1073741830.178716682162809& Future Members Looking for Rental Home We're moving to Maui late May. We are still looking for a temp place to stay, preferably in the upcountry area, but open to all places. Need a one or two bedroom, it can be small as we are outside a bunch. If anyone from your community garden knows someone who has any insights, please let me know. We have excellent references and we are honest, happy, non smokers! We are also open for work trade. Thank you in advance and we look forward to being part of the community garden soon! Deborah dmcreative.word@gmail.com or phone at: 727 458 9839 Speakers Wanted Would you or someone you know make a good speaker for an educational class at the garden? We are now seeking speakers for summer and fall workshops. Send your ideas or inquire with the garden council for more information. Fencing Available HCG purchased a 50' roll of economy fencing for the Goodwill Garden and only used 25' of it. Let us know if you would like to split the fencing and cost with HCG. First come, first served. Grow Your Own Food and Submit a Yummy Recipe! We're still collecting your printed recipes for the Hali'imaile Community Garden cookbook fundraiser. Please include a photo of your delicious dish and a photo of yourself/family for the cookbook. Fundraising Committee The fundraising committee will be reconvening meetings very soon! Our general excise tax exemption was just approved and we should have the last needed documents in place by the end of this month. Stay tuned for more information. When we reconvene, the fundraising committee will be welcoming new members who have ideas and connections to help raise funds for the garden. Satisfactorily serving on this committee fills all volunteerism dues for the year. Contact a councilmember if interested. Traffic Jams A few weeks ago, some of you may have encountered vehicles from a party parked in front of the MLP gate blocking access. If you get stuck inside, the only solution is to go to the party neighbor's house and politely ask them to move the vehicles as they are blocking the gate. If you are trying to get in and don't want to bother the neighbors during the party or park in that area, our neighbors just down the road at 108 Leie Street (2 story house) are really cool and you can park outside in the street and walk down their driveway (county fire access easement) on the left of their home towards the metal drums at the rear to access the fire lane that leads past the water meter into the orchard. For occasional special situations this access road can be driven all the way in to the Fredie's horse stable next to the orchard for unloading. Our landscaper parks there when servicing the garden. Please let us know if there are any problems accessing the MLP gate, and remember, a picture is worth a thousand words! Giant Green Garden Gnome Grinds Weeds One of the most frustrating parts of gardening for many new gardeners is coming to find weeds have overtaken the garden. It can happen in as little as two weeks. And when crops compete with weeds for soil nutrients and water, they do poorly. Once the weeds get big, they are hard to pull and require hours of hard work, which is counterproductive. However, weeding need not be frustrating or labor intensive. In fact, it's super easy! A whole plot can be weeded in as little as 5 minutes a week, giving the garden a beautiful, professional look and ensuring that all soil nutrients and water are available to the crops you are growing so that you have a high yield of healthy plants. Here's a short video clip with a giant green garden gnome explaining this easy organic gardening technique: http://haliimailegarden.weebly.com/1/post/2013/05/organic-garden-weeding-made-easy.html Tree Plots Now Available Remember when it took years to get a tree plot? Well, things are changing! We now have several Polynesian (tree style) plots available. Members in good standing may hold one individual style plot and one tree plot. If you are interested in taking on a tree plot, please contact the plot manager (Lori). Plots for New Members Now Available Know someone who wants to garden? A limited number of individual and Polynesian style plots are available for new members interested in producing their own organic food and joining a community keen on working together to make the garden a beautiful, productive place. Experience or a "green thumb" not required; just a desire to be more self-sufficient, work collectively with other gardeners and an appreciation for the pleasures of turning hands to the soil. Let's build up our community! Tell your friends! Positions of Importance to Fill Haliimaile Community Garden is looking for individuals to help fill two positions of importance at the garden! Please contact the Garden Council if you are interested! Both of these opportunities are great ways to become more involved at the garden and to get to know your fellow gardeners better! 1) Compost Czar: The compost manager is responsible for tracking compost maintenance and coordinating turning/covering/manuring compost to help provide a rich source of nutrient-rich compost for the use of the garden community. Satisfactorily serving in this position would meet all annual community work participation requirements, and would be a great way to learn more about compost management and help others learn as well. 2)Worm Whisperer: A person who can coordinate the feeding of the worms and the brewing of the tea, a great addition to the garden! The worm manager would track and manage all aspects of management of the worm hotel, as well as coordinating distribution of the tea to interested garden members. This job satisfies all community work requirements as well. Garden Gnomes Go Food Self-Sufficient The mission of Hali’imaile Community Garden is to build community around food self-sufficiency. While most of us identify with community building and know how to go about it, food self sufficiency is a bit more evasive. Last month the gnomes talked about what being food-self sufficient means and shared a few generalized tips. This month, the gnomes will look in depth at succession planting for a continuous food supply. Succession planting is an agricultural term for a planting method that increases crop availability and makes use of space through efficient timing. Let’s say you like to eat salad every night. How many heads of lettuce do you need to eat the sized salad you want for each member of your family. Take a look at your grocery purchases and determine what you usually buy each week. Chances are you buy less than you’d really like due to the high cost of food. What do you really need? Once you’ve determined the number of heads of lettuce you need, take a look at the seed packet to determine how long the crop needs to grow to reach maturity. Most lettuces require 4 – 8 weeks to reach maturity. So you picked a variety that matures in 6 weeks and you use 6 heads of lettuce a week. To ensure a continuous supply of lettuce for your family, you would want to plant a row of 6 heads of lettuce now, and 6 more heads every week. In 6 weeks, you will harvest the first row. As long as you plant a row of 6 heads of lettuce each week, you will have 6 heads to harvest each week. It’s that simple. At first, working out the spacing may leave empty rows. Once you harvest the first row, if you immediately plant another row where you harvested the last one you will have a total of 6 rows of lettuce planted at all times that provide you with weekly lettuce. But, remember to rotate the location of crops from time to time also. What else do you want to eat? How much of it do you need each week? Now lay out a map of your garden and plan space for each of theses items so you can begin succession planting. Keep in mind some crops may be harvested less frequently. Carrots, for example, hold in the fridge for several weeks, so you might plan your succession planting so that there is a harvest of a months supply of carrots once each month. This will cut down on the weekly labor to plant, harvest, and wash your food. Are there other variables? Of course! One variable is Maui’s colder winters and warmer summers. Lettuce matures faster in the summer, so you might only need 4 rows. Yet in the winter it takes longer to mature, so you might increase the number of rows. If you find that you have extra or run out, make a note so you can adjust as you go and plan better the following season. Another variable is unexpected damage from pests, wind, heavy rains, or irrigation problems. While it seems easy to plant and leave things to grow, frequent monitoring is essential to avoiding pest damage and irrigation problems. Checking on the garden twice a week is usually sufficient to spot and take action to correct these problems. A good rule of thumb is to always plant more than you really need. The gardener in the above example might plant 8 – 10 heads of lettuce a week, rather than the 6 they need to put food on the table. This way when the potato bugs chew at the root of a few heads of lettuce, there will be enough other heads of lettuce to keep salad on your table. And if all grows well, you’ll just have extra to share with neighbors, coworkers, and friends. The food bank is always looking for fresh produce as well. As you can see, food self-sufficient growing requires your presence at least once a week, not only to harvest your groceries for the week, but also to plant the next set of seeds and starts, weed, and check for irrigation and pests. For a standard sized plot at Hali’imaile Community Garden, this can be done easily in 2 – 4 hours a week once everything is established. Stay tuned! Next month the gnomes are going to share about the benefits and cost savings of growing vs. buying produce. A Few Important Reminders! Rocks - Please keep rocks out of the common areas, plots, and pathways and take any found to the rock pile by the green house. Common Areas & Pathways - Please keep all personal materials within the boundaries of your assigned plot. HCG Gate - Remember to lock up no matter the time of day if you are last vehicle to leaving the garden. MLP Gate - Remember to lock the MLP gate behind you every time you pass through it. It must remain locked at all times. Water - Please kokua and use only what is absolutely necessary and report any wasteful activity to the garden council. Much Mahalo! Garden Council Because the garden is large and has a diverse membership, it is the responsibility of the garden council to establish routines and oversee the garden plan. However, you are the source of valuable ideas and visions for things to add and/or improve at the garden! Members are always encouraged to provide feedback, share concerns, ideas, suggestions, and visions for the garden. We're always looking for leaders who are interested in leading project days or have interest in overseeing special projects. In addition, an annual general membership meeting is held each January and special meetings of the general membership may be called when issues arise which affect and require the input and feedback of the general membership. The council wants to hear from you and is always available for your questions, concerns, ideas, visions for the garden, and suggestions at haliimailegarden@gmail.com. Kevin, Lori, and Volkan all receive and read the incoming mails at this address. We do our best to respond quickly. Facebook "Like" us on Facebook to keep in touch with other gardeners and announcements at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Haliimaile-Community-Garden/178716682162809 Mahalos!
See you at the garden! HCG April Announcements03/29/2013 Aloha Members, Volunteers, & Supporters! Gathering Dates in April Group Project Party - Saturday, April 13, 2013 9 am - 12 pm Please join Kevin to add a 3 - 4" layer of compost to the herb garden. Bring paper towel and toilet paper donations and a snack or lunch to share afterwards. Group Project Party - Thursday, April 25, 2013 10 am – 1 pm Please join Volkan to clean up the area behind the wood pile and replace the compost bin wall on the far right with new pallets. Bring paper towel and toilet paper donations and a snack or lunch to share afterwards. Plates and forks will be provided. If you missed attending a group project in the first quarter, please plan on attending at least two projects prior to the end of the second quarter. If you are unable to attend group projects, it is your responsibility to ask a council member for an alternate assignment. Alternate assignments provide a meaningful contribution to the garden and depending on your talents may include website content, grant writing, cookbook design, and/or repairs/maintenance around the garden. Members who have not completed two group projects by June 30th will be subject to a $50 additional dues assessment payable by July 31st. We'd really rather have your participation in shaping the garden and comradeship than your money though, so come on down and join us! Feeding the Hungry of Maui Community Two plots have been aside for growing things for fundraisers and donations to Hale Kau Kau and/or the Food Bank. One is scheduled for sweet potato planting and the other chayote and/or carrots as these items do not require much water and will transport well and hold. We will use these plots for this purpose as long as they are vacant. Join Lori, who is planning to start adding compost, tilling, and designing the first plot next week Tuesday, April 2nd, at 11 am if you are interested in joining this worthwhile project! If time permits, sweet potato starts will be planted. Want to help hand water until the starts take after they are planted? Contact Lori to coordinate watering. Individual Volunteer Projects Projects that we need help with around the garden this month include:
Grand Award Kitchen Gardeners International awarded a Sow It Forward Grant to Hali'imaile Community Garden. KGI is a nonprofit community of 29,000 people who are growing some of our own food and helping others to do the same. Our grant proposal faced tough competition. The Sow It Forward program received over 920 applications from 48 states and 11 countries for only 80 available grants. Hali'imaile Community Garden is honored to be one of the 80! For a complete list of grant recipients, see: http://kgi.org/garden-grants-2013 In Memory of Kancyano Paul Kancyano Paul passed away at home in Pohnpei at age 63. He was an integral part of our garden community, dedicating many hours to his plots and maintaining the community areas of the garden. We will miss him very much!  Grow Your Own Food and Submit a Yummy Recipe! We're still collecting your printed recipes for the Hali'imaile Community Garden cookbook fundraiser. Please include a photo of your delicious dish and a photo of yourself/family for the cookbook. Plots Now Available Know someone who wants to garden? A limited number of individual and Polynesian style plots are available for new members interested in producing their own organic food and joining a community keen on working together to make the garden a beautiful, productive place. Experience or a "green thumb" not required; just a desire to be more self-sufficient, work collectively with other gardeners and an appreciation for the pleasures of turning hands to the soil. Let's build up our community! Tell your friends!  Garden Gnomes Go Food Self-Sufficient The mission of Hali’imaile Community Garden is to build community around food self-sufficiency. While most of us identify with community building and know how to go about it, food self sufficiency is a bit more evasive. Being food self-sufficient means being able to supply food for your own and/or your families own needs without external assistance from grocery stores, farmers markets, and other food distributors and retailers. Most gardeners plant a crop and when it’s time to harvest, they have more of one or two things than they know what to do with and little variety. In between, there is nothing and food must be bought at the store. With careful planning, it is possible to reduce and/or eliminate your fruit and vegetable purchase while eating a wide abundance of fresh, organic fruits and vegetables that would escape possibility with even the most generous food budget. While being food self-sufficient is a big undertaking, it need not be difficult. In fact, with some practice and experience it becomes an automatic routine that is an enjoyable part of life where hands are turned to the soil and nourishing plants are cared for and lovingly tended in a relaxing and nurturing space. Fortunately, we can grow all year in Hawaii, so we don’t have to think about the complexities of canning and storing sufficient supplies for the winter. We only have to figure out what we would like to eat each week, figure out how much space is required, plant enough to provide the right amount of food for our needs, and plant routinely to ensure a continuous supply. One standard 10’ x 20’ plot at Hali’imaile Community Garden is sufficient to provide a continuous supply of most vegetables for one person, while community herbs and fruit trees supplement remaining produce needs. Here are a few simple steps to get started: Plant What You Eat – It’s fun to look at heirloom seeds, and try different gardening principals, but when it comes down it to feeding yourself what really matters is maximizing production in your space. If you like to experiment and try rare plants, consider dedicating one small area of the garden for this while you produce routinely consumed food in the remainder. Plant Continuously – If you want to harvest and eat every week, you will need to plant regularly. Many crops that are quickly harvested and needed weekly can be planted in succession, planting a row or bed every 2-3 weeks so that a new crop is continually available. These crops include things like lettuce, radish, and spinach. Some longer lasting plants like chard and kale allow you to remove outer leaves while the inner leaves grow in, thus can be planted every 2 to 3 months. The new crop should be planted in another bed or row of the garden early enough so that when the last crop is finished, the new one is ready. Other crops can be grown periodically and harvested and stored several weeks or months while the next crop is growing; these include beets, carrots, onion, and potato. Grow with the Season - While we have mild winters in Hali’imaile, we definitely have crops that flourish either in winter or summer. While a summer crop of tomato may produce more tomato than your family can consume, the same crop planted in the winter may produce little to nothing. Consider planting heat loving crops like tomatoes, peppers, summer squash, and corn in May for a nice summer crop and turning to colder weather vegetables such as spinach, cabbage, and cauliflower in the winter. Be Adaptable – Sometimes things are out of our control. An aphid infestation may ruin a crop before it can be saved. Succession planting keeps favorite vegetables coming in regularly. Consider floating row covers to ward off pests and limit excess summer sun with shade cloth. Check plants weekly for signs of pests and stress. Be Consistent – Consistency is key when gardening for food self-sufficiency. Commit to spending at least half a day in the garden every week. Let’s face it; if you’re not in your garden to harvest at least once a week, you can’t be eating in a self-sufficient manner from it. We all have other obligations to meet, so reserve a regular gardening time on your personal schedule every week to weed, trim, plant, and harvest. Keep Records – It may seem overbearing, but keeping track of what was planted when and whether you ran out or had excess can be immensely helpful when determining when to seed the next planting. There is no tried and true method as we all eat differently amounts and types of food based on our personal dietary habits, time dedicated to food preparation, and preferences. Keeping a journal can not only help with quantity, but also with determining which variety of seeds does best or is most enjoyed by the family. A Few Important Reminders! Rocks - Please keep rocks out of the common areas, plots, and pathways and take any found to the rock pile by the green house. Common Areas & Pathways - Please keep all personal materials within the boundaries of your assigned plot. HCG Gate - Remember to lock up no matter the time of day if you are last vehicle to leaving the garden. MLP Gate - Remember to lock the MLP gate behind you every time you pass through it. It must remain locked at all times. Water - Please kokua and use only what is absolutely necessary and report any wasteful activity to the garden council. Much Mahalo! Garden Council Because the garden is large and has a diverse membership, it is the responsibility of the garden council to establish routines and oversee the garden plan. But, you are the source of valuable ideas and visions for things to add and/or improve at the garden! Members are always encouraged to provide feedback, share concerns, ideas, suggestions, and visions for the garden. In addition, an annual general membership meeting is held each January and special meetings of the general membership may be called when issues arise which affect and require the input and feedback of the general membership. The council wants to hear from you! The garden council is always available for your questions, concerns, ideas, visions for the garden, and suggestions at haliimailegarden@gmail.com. Kevin, Lori, and Volkan all receive and read the incoming mails at this address. We do our best to respond quickly. "Like" us on Facebook to keep in touch with other gardeners and announcements at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Haliimaile-Community-Garden/178716682162809 Mahalos!
Garden Gnomes Go Food Self-Sufficient03/29/2013 The mission of Hali’imaile Community Garden is to build community around food self-sufficiency. While most of us identify with community building and know how to go about it, food self sufficiency is a bit more evasive. Being food self-sufficient means being able to supply food for your own and/or your families own needs without external assistance from grocery stores, farmers markets, and other food distributors and retailers. Most gardeners plant a crop and when it’s time to harvest, they have more of one or two things than they know what to do with and little variety. In between, there is nothing and food must be bought at the store. With careful planning, it is possible to reduce and/or eliminate your fruit and vegetable purchase while eating a wide abundance of fresh, organic fruits and vegetables that would escape possibility with even the most generous food budget. While being food self-sufficient is a big undertaking, it need not be difficult. In fact, with some practice and experience it becomes an automatic routine that is an enjoyable part of life where hands are turned to the soil and nourishing plants are cared for and lovingly tended in a relaxing and nurturing space. Fortunately, we can grow all year in Hawaii, so we don’t have to think about the complexities of canning and storing sufficient supplies for the winter. We only have to figure out what we would like to eat each week, figure out how much space is required, plant enough to provide the right amount of food for our needs, and plant routinely to ensure a continuous supply. One standard 10’ x 20’ plot at Hali’imaile Community Garden is sufficient to provide a continuous supply of most vegetables for one person, while community herbs and fruit trees supplement remaining produce needs. Here are a few simple steps to get started: Plant What You Eat – It’s fun to look at heirloom seeds, and try different gardening principals, but when it comes down it to feeding yourself what really matters is maximizing production in your space. If you like to experiment and try rare plants, consider dedicating one small area of the garden for this while you produce routinely consumed food in the remainder. Plant Continuously – If you want to harvest and eat every week, you will need to plant regularly. Many crops that are quickly harvested and needed weekly can be planted in succession, planting a row or bed every 2-3 weeks so that a new crop is continually available. These crops include things like lettuce, radish, and spinach. Some longer lasting plants like chard and kale allow you to remove outer leaves while the inner leaves grow in, thus can be planted every 2 to 3 months. The new crop should be planted in another bed or row of the garden early enough so that when the last crop is finished, the new one is ready. Other crops can be grown periodically and harvested and stored several weeks or months while the next crop is growing; these include beets, carrots, onion, and potato. Grow with the Season - While we have mild winters in Hali’imaile, we definitely have crops that flourish either in winter or summer. While a summer crop of tomato may produce more tomato than your family can consume, the same crop planted in the winter may produce little to nothing. Consider planting heat loving crops like tomatoes, peppers, summer squash, and corn in May for a nice summer crop and turning to colder weather vegetables such as spinach, cabbage, and cauliflower in the winter. Be Adaptable – Sometimes things are out of our control. An aphid infestation may ruin a crop before it can be saved. Succession planting keeps favorite vegetables coming in regularly. Consider floating row covers to ward off pests and limit excess summer sun with shade cloth. Check plants weekly for signs of pests and stress. Be Consistent – Consistency is key when gardening for food self-sufficiency. Commit to spending at least half a day in the garden every week. Let’s face it; if you’re not in your garden to harvest at least once a week, you can’t be eating in a self-sufficient manner from it. We all have other obligations to meet, so reserve a regular gardening time on your personal schedule every week to weed, trim, plant, and harvest. Keep Records – It may seem overbearing, but keeping track of what was planted when and whether you ran out or had excess can be immensely helpful when determining when to seed the next planting. There is no tried and true method as we all eat differently amounts and types of food based on our personal dietary habits, time dedicated to food preparation, and preferences. Keeping a journal can not only help with quantity, but also with determining which variety of seeds does best or is most enjoyed by the family. |  ArchivesMay 2013 CategoriesAll |
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