Harvesting Good Vibes

by Jeanne Kuntz

I had a wonderful surprise this holiday season. Some seeds that I planted last spring produced an unexpected bounty. I am referring to the connections I made with a lovely group people who live just around the corner. They have been my neighbors for many years, and I never would have met them if it wasn’t for the Mar Vista Green Garden Showcase, which I participated in back in April. Over 100 people came through my yard, and I enjoyed meeting each one of them. But four in particular – Steve, Yuko, Ron and Ronit – have become fast friends and my husband and I have been “harvesting” the benefits ever since.

We have lived on Cabrillo Boulevard for over 30 years. Our three children were born and raised here, and when they left we had fewer opportunities to mingle with our neighbors. My involvement with the MVCC Green Committee (I am Vice- Chair, doing my best to make sure that Co-Chairs Sherri and Laura don’t get overwhelmed) was the beginning of my career as a community activist. If I had known how much fun it would be, I would have gotten involved years ago! And the new friends I have made have been an unexpected bonus. We walk our dogs together (when they behave!), do yoga, celebrate the holidays, share meals and jokes.

If you are thinking of participating in the 2010 MVCC Green Garden Showcase, you may find the 4 hour tour provides much more than just ideas about how to save water, grow food, or protect the environment. It can be the first step in experiencing a deeper, wider, more fulfilling sense of community. We are putting together our team for next year’s Showcase, so drop us a line if you want to help out. You may find some seeds of community of your own.

Jeanne Kuntz of Teaching Wellness is Vice Chair of the MVCC Green Committee and shares her amazing energy at the MVCC Green Booth every Sunday!

Green Living Workshop ...and goodies too!

We are being spoiled by the eco community! Green resources are so excited about the Green Living Workshop in January that they are contributing both give aways and discounts to reward those who are taking the course. Check out the companies that will have surprises for you....

B&B Hardware
Buy Green
Gardenerd
Gary's Greenery
Green Garmento
Green Health
Green Plumbers LLC
LA DWP
Old School Brand Laundry Soap
Rainbud
Smart Faucets
Teaching Wellness

Rain, Rain, Don't Go Away!

We went to the expert - Paula Henson of Rainbud answers your questions about our new rain barrels!

How long can I keep the water in the barrel and won’t it get algae?

The dark color of the barrels prevents algae from growing. You can keep the water for months without a problem.

What kind of hose do I need?

The important thing to remember is that this is a gravity fed system, so it’s best if your barrel is set on a stand or cinderblocks at least 18” above ground to provide some flow. If you attach a hose and have it run along the ground in the garden you should have no problems. You can deep water by section this way.

What is this “first flush” I keep hearing about?

The first rain after a long dry spell carries all the dirt, pollutants etc. off your roof and into your rain barrel. There are many devices to prevent these contaminants from getting into your barrel, however if the top is screened, you can simply clean off whatever ends up there, including leaves etc. Remember, this roof runoff used to go directly into your garden or out to the bay!

On a personal note, let me add a progress report on my own rain barrels. The water from this rain was much less murky which made me feel much better about using it for my potted plants. I did not have great success attaching a hose. There was not enough force for the curled hose that I already had and the new hose that I purchased is probably too long. So this morning I used the 'bucket brigade' method. I was thrilled when we got the info above from Paula, as it means that I don't have to be frantic about emptying my barrels right away - I can let this be the water that I use every week for my pots.

Please leave a comment if you have any tips that might help others - or questions that are still unanswered.

Thank you to Paula Henson, the owner of Rainbud - their barrels are recycled, recyclable, local, and easy to install. They are food-grade polyethylene barrels. No new plastic has been created in the manufacturing of their barrels.

Thank You, Urban Land Institute!

The Mar Vista Community was honored to be one of three finalists in the Enterprise category for the first annual LARC Awards that were presented on December 5th by the Urban Land Institute!


Read about the awards at Fast Company, where they touted Mar Vista as "possibly one of the most progressive in the city, with initiatives like Open Mar Vista, an ambitious social network and community Web site that includes information for programs like a neighborhood-wide solar roll-out."

The mission of the LARC Awards (Los Angeles Real Creativity) is to encourage and reward brave, innovative and potentially world-changing thought and to honor those who have distinguished themselves through unparalleled creative achievement. The Enterprise category recognizes an especially effective and innovative company, group, program, grass roots initiative, community organization or social movement.

Thank you, ULI for placing us in such esteemed company!
Visit the blog created for the submission here.

Christmas Trees!

Christmas Trees. There are great options for sustainable choices!

Open Mar Vista has brought a wonderful option to the Mar Vista Community - renting a living Christmas Tree! They have even taken it a step further and arranged for a 10% donation to Mar Vista schools and a bonus of a 5% discount. The trees are delivered to your door and picked up after Christmas. We got our tree from them this weekend and LOVE it but can offer some advise, having the benefit of the learning curve with what is a very busy new business. They have terrific customer support and are very responsive to phone calls and emails. Use these options to be clear on what you are ordering and make certain that the tree is delivered when you are there. When ours arrived, it technically met the minimum height we had ordered - but that is measuring from the floor of the pot to the tip of the center branch and the result was a tree that I could literally put my arms around. They immediately swapped it as they have extras on the truck and we were thrilled. Here is a note from their founder explaining the challenge -

"We understand the difficulties of viewing a tree over the internet and so it is our policy to have alternates on the truck in the event that a client is not 100% satisfied with their selection.
For very practical reasons, the height of the tree is measured from the floor. Pot sizes very in height, so you would not be able to determine true height unless it was inclusive. This is mentioned in the FAQ’s, but I hear ya and we could do a better job of explaining that.
Every tree is measured and inspected prior to being loaded on to the truck.
We tried to take as realistic pictures as possible for the website, and to if you click on the picture, three others are displayed to help you get a better feeling of shape/ texture/ and relative size"

For those of us who end up choosing a cut tree, there are a lot of options to make sure that it gets mulched and is still sustainable. If you are handy, cut it up yourself and put it in the green bin where it will become city mulch. I am not particularly handy but have usually found that my gardener had the right tools and was happy to earn a little extra for the effort. If it is too big to cut up, simply place it next to your green bin on pick up day and they will still take it. Easy! If you prefer, you can also take it to a city drop off center, but to me this seems much more challenging.

If you really want to be pampered, Recycle Trees will come in for a fee and drain the stand, remove the tree and even sweep up! They make a donation to Tree People from their proceeds and the tree is turned into mulch.

Think about purchasing LED Christmas lights! They are widely available (just Google them and price shop!). They use 20% of the electricity of conventional lights and put off absolutely no heat. Make sure you take your old conventional lights to a S.A.F.E. e waste drop off center.

Here's a thought - what about decorating without lights? Disposal of e waste is a major problem, even when we get it to the right spot. Our recycling centers are over overloaded and there isn't a market for their output - much of it is ending up in landfills anyway. And by 2012 it is predicted that our landfills will be overfilled. Anything we can do to enjoy the holidays with less 'stuff' is ultimately the best gift that we can give our kids and loved ones.

Have a wonderful, sustainable holiday!!