G is for Garden: Humbly cultivating life

G is for Garden: Humbly cultivating life06/20/2011

 

I have good news friends, I am in love. Yes you heard it here first, I am madly and utterly in love with my garden. In these short two months a hungry ambition has phased into the garden of eden (might be a bit of an overstatement) right before my eyes. My roommates and I have been busy turning, digging, planting, weeding, creating, observing, sweating, and smiling. What was once a drab area of grass is quickly becoming my date for many meals to come. Our menu has gradually grown and morphed from our original outlook and let me tell you, my tastes buds are anxious. Currently in our ground is:

s=seed
t=transplant
(not in any specific order)

brussel sprouts-t
broccoli-t
celery-t
scarlet nantes carrots-s
jalapenos-t
parsley-t
chamomile-t
leeks-t
bloomsdale spinach-s
mixed lettuce-t
buttercrunch lettuce-t
rainbow chard-s
cilantro-t
6 tomato varieties (roma, early girl, sungold, sweet million, oregon spring, green grape)-t
amish snap peas-s
sugar ann peas-t
beer friend edamama-t,
blue lake pole beans-s
detriot dark red beets-s
zucchini-t
crookneck summer squash-s
chives-potted by previous tenant
lavender-potted by previous tenant
nasturtiums-s and t
sunflowers-s

Along with these delectable life forms we also have a zoo of critters and bugs. I never comprehended how much goes on above, on top, and below the dirt. Some, like the spiders, bees, birds, and worms are helpful and doing their best to keep things in check. Others like the caterpillars, earwigs, beetles, moths, and so on are hungry savages. I can hear Elton John now...It's the Ciiiircle of Liiiiife! Adding to that circle my roommates and I are on damage control and as peacefully as possible retire the necessary bugs. Our main competitor seems to be a hungry hungry caterpillar (ironically my favorite childhood book). He just loves our broccoli. The clever little guys have evolved into the exact same color as the leaves. Oh nature you are so amazing. Some organic ways of dealing with them and others are a home-made vinegar spray, picking them, introducing other animals and birds that snack on them, and companion planting. Many vegetables, fruits, and herbs help each other out and produce better results when planted next to one another. There are many online resources and books to guide you on the right companion planting path. Here's one, http://garden.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Which_Vegetables_Grow_Well_Together. We, however, were too excited and planted away before planning out this technique. Lucky for us we get to do this every year!

Other tips:
-Weed, weed, and weed some more.
-Allow the appropriate space for each plant to grow by thinning out the sprouted seeds and planting transplants consciously.
-Some plants, like jalapenos, are used to warmer climates and do not so well elsewhere. You can make a mini green house for them with an empty water jug. Just cut off the bottom and place over each plant and you got yourself a warmer climate.
-Add even more of your personal touch with some art and a hand-made trellis. We did and hope to have more to come.

the progress...

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My lovely roommate Eliza made the trellis and I sculpted the bust in art class.

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Chives

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Crookneck summer squash

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Sugar Ann snap peas

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With almost everything in the ground I am getting quite excited to harvest, cook, consume, and can! Chamomile tea anyone?

With love and dirt,
Amanda


Oh yeah and if you care about humanity and this lovely planet that lets us live here then I recommend watching the documentary Queen of the Sun http://www.queenofthesun.com/about/trailer/

DreemKitchen Newsletter

DreemKitchen Newsletter (Archive 6.18.11)06/18/2011

 

Welcome (Almost) Home!

It's official - the Location has been selected and directions posted. This will be the last newsletter before we head in, so it will focus on the following topics:

I. Location and Directions
II. Weather and Prep
III. Early Bird Meet up
IV. Final Supply List
V. Ride Share

I. Location and Directions
Spring Council, which decides the final location for the Gathering, met on June 12th in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest of Washington. Yesterday, June 17th, they chose the location to be at Skookum Meadow. The nearest town is Cougar, Washington - about an hour and a half North-East of Portland, Oregon.

Below are the official directions, posted on the frequently updated "Washington Rainbow Gathering" blog:

From Portland, take I-5 North 30 miles to Woodland, Washington, Take exit 21, and go east on Road 503 which becomes Forest Service Road 90.  Continue on FS90 (when it come to the intersection of hwy 25 and rd.90 stay to the right and continue on 90). Turn right right on Curly Creek Rd. Drive 5 miles.  (Curly Creek may become Forest Service Road 51). Turn left on Wind River Road and drive 2.5 miles. Turn left at Forest Service Road 32 and drive 1/4 mile to Road 3211 and parking. Here's a google map.

If you're coming from points east - Take I-84 to Hood River Oregon. Go north on the Hood River Bridge (Hwy 20) to Hwy 14 in the state of Washington. Go west on Hwy 14 to Carson, Washington. Take Wind River Road north 26 miles to Lone Butte Snow Park. Turn left on Forest Service Road 32. Drive 1/4 mile to Road 3211 and parking. Here's a google map.
There is a lot of other great information on that blog - I would recommend checking it out. One of the recent blogs discussed the 7 day weather forecast....SNOW!

II. Weather and Prep
Weather. Depending on when you plan to arrive, it will be especially important to be aware of the chilly and wet weather this year. Presently, as of June 17, there is still a good deal of snow on the ground - even requiring snow plows to open the roads! Of course, we're not sure how long this will last, and perhaps by July 1 it will be all melted by increasingly warm weather. I would recommend checking up on the weather report every couple of days to make sure you are prepared.

Forcast.Weather.gov 

This is a VERY impressive 7-day forecast weather page that is frequently updated and specific to the area of the Gathering. (Compare it to the google map to see what I mean). The projection for Friday, June 24 is "Mostly cloudy in the morning...then partly sunny. A slight chance of showers. Snow level 8000 feet."

Prep. Again, I'm not sure if the weather will continue to be wet and chilly into late June and July - but since we are personally hiking in on June 23rd - we are planning for wet and wintery camping. In order to prepare for this, here are some resources for you to check out:

Winter Weather Camping:

• Backpacking.net
• Princeton.edu
• REI

Wet Weather Camping:

• CampingExpert
• Mushhan Falls Blog
• Richard Gears Tips

Info on using Tarps:

• AngelFire.com

Let's all try to be prepared as possible for a comfortable, dry, and warm Gathering! And please bring extra warmth, if you can, to share with Family that forgot how cold snow can be.Some ideas of warmth to share: lots of socks, blankets, hats, gloves, scarfs, jackets, sleeping pads, long johns, socks, and socks. Thank you!

III. Early Bird Meet Up
DreemKitchen plans to hike in and break camp on June 23rd - snow permitting. There are 7-11 people included in this "Early Bird" group, and more to come within the following days. There should be a significant number of other people, not directly associated with DreemKitchen, hiking in as well. So there will be some good hands around to help build the foundation of the Kitchen.

We invite anyone that is interested to meet with us in Portland, Oregon on the evening of June 22nd (next Wed) to drive the rest of the way  and hike in on June 23rd. If you are interested in this, and would like more information please email Dani at Danielle@DreemReality.org.

IV. Final Supply List
The Running Supply List has been impressively filled, with only a few pieces still missing. We plan on having the essential Kitchen and Camp building gear obtained by June 22nd. If you would like to know what to bring, according to when you plan to arrive - please see the "Supply by Arrival Date" page. But generally:

• First Wave (June 20 - 25): Bring Food and Supplies
• Second Wave (June 25 - July 2): Bring Food and Running Supplies
• Third Wave (July 2 - July 5): Bring Food
• Fourth Wave - Departure (July 5 - July 10): Hike out Supplies 

*Bring as much fresh produce as you can!*

Also, if you would like some suggestions on what you should bring in personally - please check out our recommend"Personal Supply List"  (Making sure to adjust for chilly and wet weather!). You can even print out the PDF if you want.

If ever the links to the website are broken, just go towww.DreemReality.org. Then scroll over "Projects" and "DreemKitchen" - there you will find the above mentioned resources.

V. Rideshare
This has already been discussed in a previous newsletter (see the archives), so I will keep this short and simple. Here are some ride sharing resources for you to explore:

• DreemKitchen Ride-share Google Group
• eRideShare.com - for Rainbow specifically
• WelcomeHere.org - unofficial Rainbow site's forum
• Dreadlocks.com - Rainbow rideshare topic forum

And, of course, please always use caution with getting rides from or giving rides to people you have not met before. But, I'm confident it will be a beautiful experience.

With that, I want to thank you all for following along, interacting with, and contributing to this newsletter and the creation ofDreemKitchen! It has been a pleasure sharing with you, and I am looking forward to seeing you soon - either in the woods, somewhere else, or in my dreams!

Love to you all,

Dani

PS - We'll tune back in sometime around July 15th.

The Rainbow Gathering Nears!

The Rainbow Gathering Nears!06/09/2011

 

Hello everyone!

So, the time for the Rainbow Gathering and our Kitchen-slash-Village is drawing excitingly near. It's thrilling how the past few months of planning are coming to an end, and the momentum is carrying through for the Kitchen to create itself.

Through newsletters, emails, various meeting at different locations, and countless hours of enthusiastic brainstorming, great progress has been made in collecting food and supplies for the Kitchen (See the developingFood and Kitchen supplies list here). We now have almost everything we need for, at least, a basic kitchen! There are still some more pieces of equipment that would be helpful, and we're sure they will turn up in the perfect amount of time. You can view what is still needed on the supply list as well.

Additionally, based on the survey results - we have an idea of the trend of arrivals at the Kitchen. There are basically three "waves" of arrivals, and then the wave of departure. Each "wave" can contribute by bringing in food or supplies, based on their arrival date. (Check out the graph above, as well as the page that describes the details of this)

Once we have the foundation of the Kitchen and Village established, then we can explore the educational and expressive goals of the Kitchen as well. Some great brainstorming was done yesterday, with Shiree, as to what kind of events we can facilitate. Here are some of those ideas:

• Discussion groups: permaculture, alternative energies, knowledge sharing through generations, healthful living techniques
• Kid focus activities: puppet shows, play days, cooking lessons
• Movement motivation: yoga, self-defense, dance, mud-wrestling
• Health and nutrition: various healing techniques (sound, crystal, dental, counseling and mediation)
• Live spiral herb garden: brought in from local nursery to share with all kitchens and individuals

We also have organized the official "Early Birds" meet up date to be the evening of June 22nd in order to hike in onJune 23rd. This will be in Portland, Oregon - as the word, so far, has pointed to the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. Though, this is not an official word yet. The Spring Counsel to discuss the location will be meeting June 12th, and hopefully will announce the location soon after that.

If anyone is interested in joining the Early Birds to hike in, please email me at Danielle@DreemReality.org and we can make plans. 

We're very excited, and hope to see you there!

~Dani