Let’s Grow Together
Follow up chat and links from our TSS event June 9th 2021
(Sincere apologies but the video recording of this event has disappeared into the ethers. The questions below give a good summary of the topics covered.)
Thank you to all for your participation in this incredibly informative event on Growing together for Climate Resilience. Thank you to Linda Gilkenson, Brandon Bauer and Jane Squier for the wealth of information and your commitment to achieving our climate resilient goals for food growing on Salt Spring Island.
COVID has seen the interest in gardening and food security skyrocket. And for a good reason. Supply chains have shown us that they’re not too big to fail. Hear from the island’s best and brightest green thumbs to help us all grow more food in ways that are good for the body, soul, pocketbook, and planet.
Join island gardening specialists: Linda Gilkeson, as she explores the means to garden in small spaces, Brandon Bauer, deepening our understanding and techniques for permaculture gardening for community resilience, and Jane Squier exemplifying how to grow healthy tropical crops like citrus on SSI. With host Bryan Young, TSS Chair, who will draw on the key food and agriculture recommendations from the Salt Spring Climate Action Plan.
Linda Gilkeson is a regular instructor in the Master Gardener programs in BC and is busy year-round giving pest management and organic gardening workshops. She served as President of the Entomological Society of Canada, the Professional Pest Management Association of BC, the Entomological Society of BC, and the Salt Spring Island Garden Club. Linda was awarded a Queen’s Jubilee medal in 2003 and an outstanding achievement award from the Professional Pest Management Association of BC in 2005. For details on Linda’s incredible books, including “Backyard Bounty: The Complete Guide to year-Round Organic Gardening in the Pacific Northwest” visit http://www.lindagilkeson.ca/bio.html
Brandon Bauer is a permaculture designer and educator with over 25 years of experience designing and implementing permaculture projects on Salt Spring Island, in Africa, Brazil, and Haiti. Brandon is currently teaching a diploma program in Permaculture Design and Resilient Ecosystems at the Pacific Rim College. He has taught several Permaculture Design courses, including at O.U.R. Ecovillage, The Bullock’s Permaculture Homestead, UBC, and at Seven Raven’s and The Blue Raven Farm. He is a naturalist, organic farmer, biodiversity specialist, seed saver, herbalist, and soil scientist. Brandon sees permaculture as one of the most inspiring and action-focused ways to live. He continues to practice what he teaches, farming on Salt Spring Island, supporting local food production, and regenerative forestry. For an example of one of Brandon’s permaculture tours, visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2enyKqiivY.
Jane Squier has over 40 years of hands-on experience operating successful small-and-medium-sized greenhouse businesses and market gardens. She has used organic and hydroponic systems in tropical, Mediterranean, and cold (Zone 3) climates. Jane is constantly working to refine the choice of plant material, growing methods, and technologies to create an efficient, sustainable, and economically viable lifestyle business. Jane’s involvement in community development is extensive, with local governance in land use, water supply, organic waste management, and transportation councils. She was the technical partner in the design and establishment of the award-winning GISS Farm-to-Cafeteria Program. Jane studied horticulture and agro-ecology at Olds College and UBC, and has recently attended courses on Aquaponics at UVI and MSU’s Managing Hoophouse and High Tunnels. Her greenhouse on Salt Spring Island, known as The Garden, contains many varieties of citrus, avocados, and other tropical crops and is the envy of many. For more information, go to https://www.thegardensaltspring.com/.
Chat questions and answers from the Let’s Grow Together Event
Questions:
From Ryan Gibson: You mentioned that approx. 6% of food consumption on SSI is grown locally. How is the percentage of salt spring’s food production measured, and how is home food garden production included in this measurement? And how has this percentage trended over time?
From Myna Lee Johnstone: What % of islanders buy from local farmers? How much? How often? And same for local processed food?
Answer from Erinanne Harper: Answers to these questions and background data can be found in the Salt Spring Climate Action Plan here:https://transitionsaltspring.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/1.-CAP-2.0-COMPLETE-WEB.pdf
Linda’s Presentation (http://www.lindagilkeson.ca/)
Questions:
From Erinanne Harper- TSS to Everyone: If not in the compost, is there a good place to use wood ash in the garden?
From Marie-Pierre/refarmers.org to Everyone : What about wood ash for bokashi composting?
Answer from Linda (More detail in video): Ash can be used in the garden directly in the spring to avoid leaching of nutrients. In the compost, both ash and lime both cause alkaline conditions. The microbes that thrive in higher pH release the nitrogen from the organic material in a gaseous form that is released to the atmosphere. You lose the nitrogen for the garden and increase release of
GHGs.
From Ruth W to Everyone : Thank you Linda – how can we minimize soil disturbance when we are growing in areas where couch grass is extensive and widely distributed? Is raised beds the solution?
Answer from Linda: Smothering couch grass under an opaque cover, such as tarps or cardboard works well if you have the time to do it. The areas should be covered for at least 3 months, 6 months is better with a light excluding cover. After you remove the cover, you are ready to add amendments and garden because the tops and roots of the grass have been killed and decomposed, leaving organi
c matter in the soil where you want it. Brandon added a suggestion to lay down some straw before covering the area to increase the amount of organic matter that will be composting on the spot.
From Elisa to Everyone : what are some good ways for gardeners here to collaborate for greater resilience? you mentioned sharing seeds and information.
Answer From Erinanne Harper: Join Island Natural Growers ING@EcoReality.org or the Garden Clubhttps://ssigardenclub.ca/, which has an Incredible Edible interest group led by LInda Gilkeson gilkeson@shaw.ca and a Permaculture interest group, led by Moe Wendt (wendts@telus.net) More resources on the TSS websitewww.transitionsaltspring.com
From Darlene Gage to Everyone : Another great resource from TSS, a recording about increasing food resilience with lots of great ideas for promoting food growing on the island:https://transitionsaltspring.com/lets-
beef-up-our-food-security-building-healthy-abundant-food-systems/
Brandon’s Presentation
Questions:
From Gail Morton to Everyone : What are your recommendations for the areas around fruit trees—alternatives which are good for the fruit trees and eliminate the “need” for the mower. Thank you.
Answer from Brandon: See video
From Ruth W to Everyone : Brandon, how can swales be incorporated into small yards and gardens to help retain water (I am in the sand belt)?
Answer from Brandon: See video
Answer from Erinanne Harper: Great resource for Permaculture: Toby Hemenway’s book Gaia’s Garden – A guide to home scale permaculture
. Link herehttps://tobyhemenway.com/book/gaias-garden/
Comment
From Jill to Everyone : IF only we could apply these brilliant permaculture principles within our community as a whole because it sure sounds wonderful yet I know that most people are trying to create their own mini systems, but rarely have heard of many examples of people working their properties together as you speak of…. what a wonderful and helpful system that would be for our island. Any suggestions for building permaculture principles into our community as a whole?
From Erinanne Harper- TSS to Everyone : Great Question Jill, There have been some attempts in the past to do that but this might be the perfect moment to give it another go! Let’s start a TSS Permaculture group.
From Jill to Everyone : Sounds like a good idea Erinanne, I would love to see how some more community minded principles could be implemented as opposed to everything needing to be so individual which in turn limits what one person would be able to do creating a lot more cost and everyone trying to just take care of themselves as opposed to the beautiful idea of us caring for us all. And Elisa I have seen these models in other places such as lending land for goats, pigs, sheep and such and I have seen some of it here but again there still seems to be a what can I get out of this deal as opposed to the more ideal idea of caring for us all. May sound naive but I have seen m
odels in small community set ups and have to believe it could be beneficial on larger scales and could happen even here!
From Bryan Young to Everyone : Jill – All of that is very inspiring and where we need to go. California’s days as a bread basket may be limited. If you have a great POD it’s a great place to start. If your POD is dormant, there’s a good way to start too! 🙂
From Elisa to Everyone : have you seen community livestock systems in action, and is that something we could have a workshop on? for example village gathering…
From Darlene Gage to Everyone : Talk to Bryan Young sometime about the neighbourhood garden where he lives
From Erinanne Harper- TSS to Everyone : Bryan can we all come for a tour sometime?
From Bryan Young to Everyone : We would be honoured to provide a tour. We did a couple last year. And it’s funny, it’s partly about the veggies, and partly about process, like between humans. If folks are interested in that, send a note to info@transitionsaltspring.com.
Jane’s Presentation (https://www.thegardensaltspring.com/)
Questions:
From Ruth W to Everyone : Jane, how do you manage pests, and what kind of issues have come up for you in your greenhouse? Especially with the exotic plants you are growing?
Answer from Jane: Most of the young trees come with insects, often hidden. If the tree is infested I clean it off with drug store quality peroxide and cotton swabs. I’ve been using IPM (integrated pest management) in the greenhouse for years so until 2 years ago I would bring in predators. Cryptolaemus for mealybugs, Persimilis for mites… Now that the plants are established I rely on native beneficial
s which include wasps, birds and my squishing fingers. I don’t use any sprays, they upset the balance and their smell keeps beneficials away.
From Bryan Young to Everyone : How do you replicate the heat sinks you have in a small greenhouse? The one I am doing is 11×17 and I am thinking of doing a ‘climate battery’ but not sure if I will be able to pull it off.
Answer from Jane: I would consider installing thermal mass on the north wall, and perhaps pony walls on the east and west. Some kind of insulation should be used on the outside so the heat isn’t just transferred out. If you’re considering a climate battery, cost out the project first, it can add up! Also make sure your water table is low enough to not interfere with its effectiveness. And there ar
e other factors to consider…
From Sabina Lautensach to Everyone : FYI:https://www.solvivagreenlight.com/the-solviva-greenhouse-and-farm
Answer from Jane: Yes, Solviva’s system is worth looking into.
From Jill to Everyone : Does anyone know if anyone is producing/selling EM (effective microorganisms) on the island these days? Just thought to ask as Jane is talking about increasing beneficial microorganisms and Linda was speaking of minimally disturbing the soil which EM would be helpful for supporting both these things….could also help with minimizing pests
Answer from Jane: I have a few Johnson-Su bioreactors that are specifically designed for growing fungal dominated compost chock-a-block full of EM. You can find lots of info online about these easy to create composters. We should all have at least one!
From Sabina Lautensach to Everyone : do you have any experience with grey water for irrigation?
From Ruth W to Everyone : Green, living vegetation of all kinds also reduces the spread of fire!
From Bryan Young to Everyone :https://regenerationinternational.org/bioreactor/
Johnson Su Bioreactor link
From Judy McPhee to Everyone : Where do you get fabric cover for small greenhouses?
Answer from Jane: You can look online for different greenhouse fabrics for different purposes. Shade cloth – I use 35% in the summer. The ‘energy curtain’ that is installed inside the greenhouse would need to be a woven fabric so that the moisture passes through and condensates on the roof instead which reduces damage from dripping. I use Svennson products.
From myna lee Johnstone to Everyone : So could we do what Jane has done on a larger community scale way?
Answer from Jane: I don’t know that we have any old empty greenhouses on the island but I love the idea of a community reclaiming an old commercial greenhouse, remediating the soil and recreating a dynamic orchard like this one.
From Darlene Gage to Everyone : If you’re able to support Transition Salt Spring in our ongoing climate action work, please become a monthly donor or make a one time donation here:https://transitionsaltspring.com/donate/
From Ruth W to Everyone: Check out our other Webinars:https://transitionsaltspring.com/videos/