TTM UPdate October 11

Dear TTM People, What a happy sunshiny Spring day! I imagine lots of you are outside gardening or otherwise enjoying the glorious weather. For ages I've wanted to learn to scythe. At last, the opprtunity has arisen.   1. Scything Workshop.    Thursday November 19th at Te Mara Farm, 168 McBrydie Rd., Motueka. Each course is limited to six participants. We already have three for the introductory level. Please let me know if you are interested and wish to book a place. If we have enough people who register, we'll run two courses on the same day. I've included information on advanced classes and master classes just in case there were any folk wanting to learn at this level. At present we are not planning to run these higher-level classes, but could perhaps respond to interest in them. You'll see that Jo Pearsall has suggested a couple of U-tube clips of scything below. While watching, I found this one too, which I like very much because it has an accompanying song about scything! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCjySdobDfk&feature=related I know the teacher only as Christoff, I'm afraid. I'll try to find out more about him.

The Art of Scything National Tour

Each course is limited to 6 participants.

Introduction is $60 and is 3 hours so 2 classes can happen in one day.

Advanced course is $100, also limited to 6 people. This is an all day event.

For this reason we have usually allowed 2 days in each venue.

Each participant is requested to bring their own lunch.

It would be good to have morning and afternoon teas catered- just fruit and perhaps a cup of tea is nice (cakes/biscuits optional!) We can cover costs of this.

A variety of scythe blades and snaths (scythe handles) will be available for use and purchase.

Christoff may not be able to adjust scythes to the owners needs, if people bring their own non-adjustable scythes.

Master classes 3 days at $250 can run alongside the other classes, but will have longer hours and an extra day.

For the whetting (sharpening) and peening (beating) we will also have the tools available for use and purchase.

The Ecoshow website will have the details and be kept up to date with any changes.

This is a great opportunity for learning how to mow without fossil fuel, which is a part of creating resilient community. Thanks for your help.

To see what is on the Ecoshow website click here

Links for u-tube to see good scything, what we are aiming for!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVv597m848s

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gL2_chKPWjE&feature=related

 

2. Tanja Pauls and Birgit Baader have sent in this notice:

Biodynamic Workshop with Peter Proctor and Rachel Pomeroy at Riverside

Biodynamic agriculture has a basis in organic methods, but with intentional spiritual infusion.

This very practical weekend will cover the principles and practices of biodynamics: working with lunar cycles, the homeopathic preparations for the land, biodynamic-style composting, and pest and weed management.

Practical activities may be selected from the following (based on the season): making a 'cow pat pit', stirring and spreading preparations 500 (for soil structure and micro-organism regeneration) and 501 (for plant structure and photosynthesis), making a windrow style compost and inserting biodynamic compost activators, making a few of your own biodynamic preparations, 'peppering' for noxious pest and weed control, making tree paste for fungal problems on fruit trees.

  Where: Riverside Community, Lower Moutere When: 31.10. and 01.11. 2009, 9am - 5pm How much?: $100 for beneficiaries, and $150 for people with a regular income, children are free Contact: Tanja Pauls ph: 03 5267466, email: abundantnz@yahoo.co.nz

  3. Jack Santa Barbara wonders if we might put on a TTM event like this one. The focus is on the process described, not the content. Speed-greening gets around

 

It's like speed-dating, but goal is to reduce your carbon footprint

October 07, 2009

Daniel Nolan
The Hamilton Spectator
(Oct 7, 2009)

You might be green with envy if you heard Dave Braden talk about his green Freelton-area home.

For one thing, he has no hydro bills or utility bills of any kind to fret over.

The former Flamborough councillor was one of about a dozen people who took part last night in a new event called speed-greening.

The event, part of the Hamilton Climate Champions Summit, featured various people who have found ways of reducing their carbon imprint on Mother Earth.

Citizens rotated from station to station in about 15-minute intervals trying to learn all they can about a person's particular green secret. Braden's specialty was showing how to live unplugged from the utility grid.

Other stations -- designed like a speed-dating session -- saw people speak about surviving past peak oil, preparing meals with ingredients within 100 miles from Hamilton, car sharing and natural playgrounds. Inspector Scott Rastin from Hamilton police was on hand to explain how the department is focused on becoming energy efficient with his display, "Blue Goes Green."

Braden, who sat on both Flamborough and Hamilton councils for 15 years, has been building energy efficient homes for more than two decades. He told people gathered in his first speed-greening session that the key to becoming energy efficient is to essentially make your home airtight to prevent heat and air from leaking out.

"The result is, you don't need a furnace," he said. "You don't need air conditioning ... I could heat that house with a hair dryer."

He has a wind generator and solar panels to provide electricity for his two-bedroom Valens Road home.

Barbara Maccaroni, a nutritionist with the food store Goodness Me!, provided tips on being green by becoming a raw fooder -- someone who eats raw food or food cooked just above a healthy human body temperature of 37 C.

She said it is essentially a vegan diet, but uses a lot less energy.

Maccaroni noted that it takes 20 pounds of vegetables to produce one pound of meat.

For Thanksgiving, she is having "turkey" and mashed potatoes, but they will be nut- and grain-based. She wouldn't have it any other way.

dnolan@thespec.com

4. Next Meeting of TTM: WEd. Nov 4, 6.30pm, Eden Villa, 334 High St..

Warm wishes,

Joanna