Green Gardeners Cooperative

Under the nurturing of Commissioner Paula Daniels of the LA Department of Public Works, IDEPSCA has developed a Green Gardeners Cooperative. After almost 8 months of meetings, trainings and developing a curriculum, today 23 day laborers became the first group to earn certification in Green Gardeners skills and methods. CONTACT: RAUL ANORVE (213) 252-2952. EMAIL: ranorve@idepsca.org to utilize their services. This is a great opportunity if you are interested in removing turf and converting to drought resistant landscaping!

In order to practice their skills and develop our Green Gardeners Cooperative, they offer the following:

1. A team of two “Maestros” and 4 apprentices Green Gardeners will assess your garden. This consists in testing the soil with a moisture probe, evaluate irrigation scheduling for plant type, soil type, terrain slope, and hydrozone, analyzing the water pressure, and your existing irrigation system.
2. In this process we will seek your garden needs and how you can save water while still developing and maintaining a drought tolerant beautiful garden.
3. After this assessment, the team will write down specific tasks on a Service Agreement contract and present it to you so both, you and us, will have the same expectations. If there are any materials needed, the homeowner will purchase them, and we will do the labor.
4. Based on this Agreement, we will write down an estimated cost, and we will then ask you for a minimum of 25% donation of the total cost due at the end of the job.

Here are some ideas you should think about as you look at your existing garden and how you may want to change it and manage it:
Water Monitoring & Irrigation:
Reprogram my automatic irrigation controller every two weeks or monthly based on actual or historical evapo-transpiration data. Check soil with moisture probe and evaluate irrigation scheduling for plant type, soil type, terrain slope, and hydrozone (ongoing).
Evaluate and adjust my irrigation hardware monthly, including delivery pressure, sprinkler heads, emitters, etc.
Monitor for runoff at completion of full irrigation cycles.
Retrofit my irrigation system for maximum efficiency. Inform me of any new rebate opportunities.
Soil Management and Fertility:
Use compost in my landscape whenever possible.
Cover bare soil with mulch to prevent weeds and conserve soil moisture.
Utilize mulch materials on site first, e.g. leaves and trimmings.
Use mulch materials produced from local sources.
Use slow-release organic fertilizer on my landscape if needed (studies show that significant amounts of quick release fertilizers are lost in air or water runoff).
Apply any soil amendment or fertilizer based on the most recent soil sample results
Cut grass with a mulching mower.
Plug (aerate) any grass areas (turf) on my property frequently as suited to conditions.
Follow plugging with a top-dressing of sand/compost mix.
Plant Selection:
Review new plants according to needs including space required for mature plant size, light, soil, water,
fertilizer and pruning.
Choose drought resistant plants with modest water requirements to conserve water.
Place plants in my landscape requiring little or no pruning to maximize natural shape and colors and reduce green waste, labor and pollution.
Pest Management:
Use pest control methods other than chemicals in my landscape such as Integrated Pest Management.
Establish/maintain pollen and nectar sources in my landscape to attract beneficial insects (helping insects that prey on garden pest insects).
When needed, only use pesticides rated least harmful to human health, the environment, and water quality.
Notify me prior to application of any pesticide to obtain my prior consent.
Pruning:
Restore plants that have been boxed or topped to natural pruning where possible.
Prune based on personal safety, property safety and plant health considerations.
Reuse trimmings for mulch material as appropriate.
Compost all materials on-site that are neither mulched nor disposed of in yard waste.
Establish a compost bin on site for other trimmings.
Air Quality:
If possible, use only manual labor on my landscape to limit noise and air pollution.
Use electric equipment on my landscape first. Only use gas -powered equipment when necessary.
Ensure gas-powered motorized equipment complies with US E.P.A. PH1 and 2000 California
Sustainable Design:
Choose local, sustainably produced materials, and lower risk products. e.g. ultra-low VOC paints, salvaged lumber, or post-consumer recycled content or materials for any landscaping modifications.
Educate me about the potential for reusing and recycling resources in landscape construction projects.

Learn About the Grand View Elementary School Learning Garden

Are your kids having this much fun at school?

Melissa Davis runs a school garden at Grand View, where all students are welcome to learn hands-on. They will be our guests at the Green Booth on March 7th.

Classrooms are assigned a raised bed and the children plant the seeds, cultivate the plants, and ultimately, harvest and eat the vegetables. They are learning about respecting nature and insects, trying new foods, the usefulness of herbs, composting, and vermicomposting. Melissa and several of her students will be our guests at the Green Booth and will bring their own worm composter and the calendula salve that they are making with the fourth grade students.

Bring your kids! Talk to Melissa about how she got involved - maybe it will inspire a program that you can participate in!

3362 Cabrillo Boulevard (Map 5 - L)

New Garden on the 2010 tour! Click here to see the gardens that will open for the tour.

This is truly exciting as this garden was inspired by last year’s tour!

The homeowner wanted to be a contributor to water conservation while producing his own fruit. The result? A garden of river pebble stones with fruit trees – all done with his own two hands over the course of the last nine months. Watering is done by hand – once a month in the winter and twice a month in the summer. Thinking creatively, he’s been collecting rain water in his pool cover and then uses that to water his plants.

3208 Stoner Avenue (map 3 - G)

This garden makes the point that water conservation is not an all or nothing proposition. They still have some lawn area, but it accomplishes a lot to reduce the amount of lawn and they water that reduced area judiciously.

They were inspired by Sunset magazine. They wanted to showcase California natives (mostly purchased from the Theodore Payne Foundation in Sun Valley) and do something a little different from the traditional green lawn. In 2003, few neighbors had experimented with drought-resistant landscapes, and they’re happy to see now that more and more of the community is gardening with these beautiful plants.

With a dog and three children, the gardens are as much function as form, and are by no means perfect- more like a well-worn living room. They’ve combined what was there when they moved in with other drought-resistant plants they planted in 2003. They just added a small vegetable garden. They did a lot of experimentation - decomposed granite walkways didn’t work for their lifestyle. They tried a pebble walkway- also a mess, especially with the dog poop in the back. Ultimately they went back to grass in the back with pavers, but kept an area around the garage and in the back with decomposed granite and permeable pavers to minimize run-off.

They estimate their lawn uses about 20% less water than a traditional all-turf lawn. They find that they can leave the sprinklers off in between rains. This year they installed a rain barrel from the city’s free program.

Check out the Australian tea tree plant in front of the house – it’s showy and beautiful. The rosemary by the gate always attracts passers-by. They have tons of sage, ceanothus, lavender, and wooly blue-curls as well.

Ask them about their compost bins and solar panels as well!

3412 Keeshen Drive (Map 3 - K)

New Garden on the 2010 tour! Click here to see the gardens that will open for the tour.

This is an important stop for those who want a lawn while being fair to the planet.

These homeowners wanted colorful, environmentally friendly, sustainable living with low maintenance. They turned to Heather Trilling of Trilling Landscape and Design and in December of 2009 they got exactly what they wanted! Heather included them in the planning and designing – they love their new garden and could not be happier.

The landscape is designed to adhere to water conservation. The plant types have very low water needs. The grass is called Ecolawn which is a low water fescue, shade tolerant, no-mow if desired, and thrives without any type of fertilizers.

The front yard has drought tolerant plants and edibles including pomegranate, apple, peach, and citrus trees. There are succulents, grasses, and natives as well. The backyard has raised vegetable garden. It is watered using drip and high efficiency nozzle/body combinations.

Learn about the Ecolawn seed installation, soil testing and everything they did to make their soil suitable for planting. Heather Trilling will be on hand to answer questions as well.

Do You Know If Your Cosmetics Are Safe?

Drop by the Green Booth to learn about The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. This is a coalition effort launched in 2004 to protect the health of consumers and workers by securing the corporate, regulatory and legislative reforms necessary to eliminate dangerous chemicals from cosmetics and personal care products. This is a great chance to pick their brain about the choices that your family makes and what you have in your home.

They're working with more than 100 endorsing organizations, thousands of grassroots supporters and over 1,300 companies that have signed the Compact for Safe Cosmetics. They're advocating for a new green economy that respects life and the environment.

Key nonprofit coalition partners in the Campaign include the Alliance for a Healthy Tomorrow (represented by Clean Water Action and Massachusetts Breast Cancer Coalition), the Breast Cancer Fund, Commonweal, Environmental Working Group, Friends of the Earth and Women’s Voices for the Earth. The Breast Cancer Fund, a national 501(c)(3) organization focused preventing breast cancer by identifying and eliminating the environmental links to the disease, serves as the national coordinator for the Campaign.

3267 Corinth Avenue (Map 4 - K)

This is a great stop to learn about landscaping with grasses! Grasses are amazingly healthy, easy to grow, and have wonderfully diverse range of colors, forms, and textures.

Nine years ago John Greenlee planned the garden design introducing this homeowner to grasses and bamboo which they combined them with their bromeliads and tillandsias. They wanted to create an environment reminiscent of places they had been and that have made them happy, as well as being drought resistant and aesthetically pleasing with room for art. The garden had to be low maintenance and require minimal irrigation.

They’ve modified the garden over the years and have enjoyed watching it mature. The rear garden has planters that demand low water along with a traditional grass area. The lawn is in the shade and requires low maintenance watering. They water once a week in the summer, the balance of the time it is watered as needed.

Look for Buddha’s Belly and Alphonse Carr bamboo, a variety of grasses, citrus trees, lavender, rosemary and bromeliads as well as succulents in containers on the patio.

3951 Grand View Boulevard (Map 1 - D)

New Garden on the 2010 tour! Click here to see the gardens that will open for the tour.

How incredible would it have been to go to school and get our hands in the dirt? To feel the pride of taking food home that we had grown ourselves? This is the experience that kids get at the Grandview School Learning Garden.

This is a school garden, with a focus on edibles and California natives. They have various fruit trees and flowering vines bordering the garden.

Melissa Davis adopted the garden when she moved here four years ago. Wait until you see what she has done with limited space and sunlight. Check out the Meyer lemon tree and the volunteer cilantro and fennel from previous plantings.

The garden attracts lots of birds, bees, and ladybugs - which the kids adore. They try to take them home sometimes.

They have a broken irrigation system that gives her plenty of headaches in the summer. They have tried to improvise with water timers - mostly, they water by hand about twice a week.

There are several composters in the garden. Vermicomposter, old cone style, open composter, and a fancy closed version.

Isn’t this what school should be about?

13200 Dewey Street (Map 5 - U)

This drought resistant garden is only a month old - what a great opportunity to learn 'how to' from someone who has just recently tackled a conversion. The landscaping was inspired by 'a green loving daughter' - how perfect is that? It is watered by underground drip irrigation, once every two weeks. There is a rain barrel as well.

100% Clean Electricity in Mar Vista - have we done our part?

Week three of the Green Living Workshop and we still had a full house. The most exciting part was seeing the show of hands from people who already converted to 100% clean electricity by signing up for Green Power with the LADWP! And 4 others who are already getting surveyed to add solar panels to their homes. I left with such a sense of pride. We can do this - we can set an example for the city and achieve 100% clean electricity by 2018!

The DWP has asked me to come down for next Thursday for a meeting to discuss our Green Garden Showcase. We can use this as an opportunity to let them know that we are serious about reaching this goal. We need your help. If you have signed up for their green power, please post a comment on this blog. If you haven't signed up yet - do it now! It costs so little and makes such a huge difference. This is the way we send a message to support the development of more renewable sources for electricity. Once you sign up, add a comment to this post.

If you have solar panels - add a comment to this post. If you are in the process of getting solar panels - add a comment. If you have information that you can share so others can make a good choice - add a comment.

Let's turn this post into something that we can use to show the DWP and our community that we are serious - that this is more than just good intentions. Mar Vista will make this happen!

Time for Electric Cars!

Join us to meet Zan Dubin Scott and Paul Scott of Plug in America and check out their all electric car.

Plug In America drives change. They accelerate the shift to plug-in vehicles powered by clean, affordable, domestic electricity to reduce our nation's dependence on petroleum and improve the global environment. You may remember seeing them featured in the film Who Killed the Electric Car?

Zan and Paul have been driving their all-electric RAV4 EV since 2002 and for more than 78,000 miles. They charge the car with electricity generated by the solar panels on their home—driving carbon and guilt free. They drive on sunshine! Zero emission, well-to-wheels.

Plug In America is a coalition of RAV4-EV drivers, former lessees of Honda EV+, GM EV1, Ford Ranger and Ford Th!nk City electric cars, and advocates of clean air and energy independence. Prior to 2008, they functioned as a loose network of individuals organized around websites of various names (like dontcrush.com and saveEV1.com) and then coalesced as a chapter of the Electric Auto Association. On January 2, 2008 Plug In America became a separate California Non-Profit Corporation. On August 18, 2008, they received their determination from the IRS, and we became an official 501(c)(3) public charity!

Being Bolder - Living Greener

One unexpected benefit of the Sustainable Works Living Green Workshop…it made me braver.

I have been doing my “environmental thing” since the 60’s, quietly trying to make a difference. A few years ago I realized should not be SO QUIET! I began to disseminate information at the MV Farmer’s Market, asking families to take the “Veggie Pledge” and do more walking and less driving. A year later I discovered the nascent MVCC Green Committee and unwittingly signed on to be Vice Chair. (“How hard could it be?” was my naïve thinking.)

I recently decided to participate in the Living Green workshops, not realizing that my commitment was going to take another small but meaningful jump. As the quote from our workbook forewarned, “Knowledge is power and enthusiasm pulls the switch.”

During last night’s class, the second in a series of 6, I saw slides and heard facts about the real devastation being caused RIGHT NOW as a result of our… MY… overconsumption. I vowed that I would be bolder and braver in my efforts to use only my fair share of the Earth’s resources. I started that evening by letting my husband know that turning off the lights whenever we leave a room really was important for the survival of the planet. He balked and strong words followed. (Thankfully, we were able to avoid tears.) Ultimately we reached a compromise and even enjoyed the rest of the evening. This may not sound so amazing, but it represents a significant change for me. A year ago, even 2 weeks ago, I would have backed off from introducing a subject that was bound to be unpopular. Why ruffle feathers? Now, buoyed by the enthusiasm and support from my classmates at Green Living Workshop, I am willing to be bolder, braver and more consistent in my efforts to reduce my carbon footprint and educate others.

It’s supremely ironic. None of us would think of going to a dinner party and eating 4 or 5 extra helpings of the main course, leaving some guests with less or nothing. Yet, we are doing essentially that on a daily basis through actions that we consider intrinsic to our daily life. Thank you to Nancy Barba, Sherri Akers, and my Living Green classmates for providing the knowledge and the enthusiasm to be bolder, braver, greener.

Jeanne Kuntz
310 391 2815
Vice Chair MVCC Green Committee
Founder of Teaching Wellness

New MVCC Web Site!

We have exciting news – the Mar Vista Community Council just launched an AWESOME new website – check it out! There are tons of new features and it is a great interactive tool for our community.

Important notice! If you have been on our email list for weekly updates about what's happening at the MVCC Green Committee and the garden tour, you will need to re-subscribe!

Click through, sign up for general announcements and make sure you select the Green Committee when you register! Don't miss hearing about our events and guests at the booth.

3417 Wade Street (Map 5 - J)

This drought tolerant garden was designed using plants from South Africa, Australia and the Mediterranean region as well as California native.

The plants themselves inspired the garden as the homeowners had used them in a similar garden at a previous house and wanted to do their part to use less water.

They did everything themselves four years ago - from removing the lawn, building the stairway and paths, choosing the plants, and setting up the new watering system. They had a little help from a landscape architect friend in thinking about how to lay everything out.

This is a great visit for anyone interested in doing their garden themselves!