Winter has now melted into Spring (Fun Fact: 1 September is the official start of Spring in New Zealand), which means it is time to harvest our Winter garden.  While we were away in the States, all of the veges grew much larger and many of them produced.  We have already eaten four crowns of beautiful, fresh broccoli!  Currently, there is one head of cauliflower nearly ready to pick.  Also, all of the lemons on our lemon trees are bright yellow and ripe for picking!

In other news (and not unexpected given the particularly cold Autumn), all but one of the eighteen lettuce plants perished.  Also, the cabbages have not materialised like I expected; however, they are flourishing and simply might require few more weeks before harvest.  As a first-time grower of brassicas, I am not yet sure of the timing.  That being said, the weather in late-Winter has been spectacular - sunny, dry (for the most part!), in the mid-teens during the day and above-freezing at night.  Hopefully, this will be the boost the plants need to finish production before I have to pull them out - seeds for our Summer garden are already sowed inside!

All things considered, it was a good experience learning to grow (and growing new things!) in such a small space.  I am not yet sure we have broken even cost-wise on the garden setup, but I am sure we will come out ahead once we harvest the Summer garden.  Can’t wait to eat more fresh broccoli and try the fresh cauliflower!

Earlier in the week, I excitedly emailed my oldest sister (and fellow fan of sustainable living) an article about “Bike to Work Day 2009″. Little did I realise that it is an annual nationwide awareness campaign - and an excellent one!  Commuting by bicycle is a great way to reduce traffic, get exercise, and enjoy the lovely Spring weather.  However, my sister made a point regarding her participation in the campaign: it simply isn’t safe for her to commute via bicycle in downtown Richmond, Virginia.  With no bike lanes and distracted drivers (chatting on the mobile phone, putting on makeup, eating/drinking, shaving, reading the newspaper, etc.), even a cyclist with the best intentions and safest habits is at risk.

Rus and I have been car-free since the beginning of the year, commuting mainly by bicycle, and I have a confession to make:  it is easier to be car-free in Christchurch.  Nearly every road in the metro area has a dedicated bicycle lane, and at night, overhead street lights keep the paths well-lit.  Cyclists can also legally ride on the sidewalks, which is helpful on particularly busy roads when crossing multiple lanes of traffic can be difficult.  In addition, cyclists are not bound by the same traffic laws as motor vehicles; if the light is red, and the intersection is clear, the cyclist can proceed through.  It helps that the terrain in Christchurch is completely flat.

The best part about cycling in the city is that it is often faster to ride than to drive.  Most traffic congestion in Christchurch happens during a literal “rush hour” from about 4:30-5:30PM (in Auckland, apparently, their traffic situation is similar to any large American city, with congested highways and traffic jams) - and basically involves a handful of intersections that are backed up a few light cycles.  There is nothing better than smoothly riding past all of the cars waiting for the light to change to “green”.  Furthermore, it is always entertaining to see the same cars you saw in traffic pull into the same locale you arrived at just moments before.

Of course, that does not mean that it is always a breeze riding around town.  For example, drivers are unforgiving of a cushion of space when going around cyclists, and so “buzz” by at 55-70kmph (35-45mph) or more.  It took me a couple of months (once I learned how to “ride” on the left side of the road!) before getting buzzed by busses didn’t give me a near-heart attack…it has evolved into more of a cheap thrill. Also, many of the bike lanes run alongside street parking…Rus and I have had our fair share of near-misses with opening driver’s side doors.  We have noticed that eating and drinking in the car, as well as talking on the phone, are less prominent here in general; so, theoretically, drivers here are less distracted than their American counterparts.

That being said, I am a big proponent of “Safety first!”; I wear a fluorescent yellow, full-length jacket and have blinking head and tail lights when travelling at night (again, the lighted streets help a lot in this regard).  Obviously, I wear a helmet (it is illegal not to do so - and it is enforced!).  Still, my biggest safety feature is being aware of my surroundings.  Similar to defensive driving, I try to anticipate what the cars (and numerous pedestrians and other cyclists) are going to do next. It has helped, I have learned, to figure out the best routes to get from Point A to Point B - and avoid complicated intersections when possible.  We happen to live mere metres from one of the busiest intersections in Christchurch, and it’s a hassle turning onto our street during the day when traffic is heavier.  Often, I will take another road that gets me in “the back way”.  Of course, nothing teaches you faster than a near-death experience, of which I had a few month ago when I pulled out in front of a car.  I managed to get myself out of the way in time, but it gave me (and the driver of the car) a good shake-up that I do not want to repeat.

In conclusion,  I love that “Bike to Work Day” is being promoted nationwide in the United States, especially since European cities like Copenhagen and Amsterdam enjoy, respectively, 36% and 60%+ ridership!  Several U.S. cities, including Portland, OR, have fantastic bike-friendly cultures and infrastructure.  I have a friend at the Greater Philadelphia Bike Coalition who is working tirelessly to create the same there.  BikeShares in Washington, D.C. have been launched, with several other major cities implementing pilot programs.  Americans everywhere are craving an end to the stop-an-go commuting horrors, a corner-turn in the obesity epidemic, relief from the “credit crunch”, and a cure for the overall blues.  Hopefully, promotions like these will be the impetus to get more people out on their bicycles - and supporting cycling infrastructure in their cities.  This way, citizens like my sister, who want to do something good for themselves and society, can ride confidently and safely.

The Kindle DX - can it save the world?  Probably not, but it looks like a promising tool to reduce paper and toxic ink printing, litter, and energy usage associated with producing virgin paper or recycling it: Kindle DX

The Winter Garden is alive and well, although we did lose two salad plants.  There were a couple of near-frost nights that were the likely culprits.  Despite this, we have been able to harvest already several hefty salads - yummy!

A few weeks ago, we had a potato that sprouted in the pantry, as well as two red onions, so we planted them for good measure.  I have not had any luck growing them to harvest in the (distant) past, but so far they look like strong plants.

In addition, the broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower are growing well and getting big.  With this success, we have also attracted bugs that love cauliflower leaves, as they have decimated several leaves on these plants.  To remedy, I will plant marigolds nearby because the scent of these flowers masks the scent of the cauliflower (which attracts the bugs), just like tomatoes. Hopefully, this will take care of the problem.

Also on the agenda this week is a dose of organic fertiliser.  members of the Brassica family (i.e. broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower) apparently need to be fertilised often, and I have not yet done this.  Unless it comes to picking and eating what’s in it, I am abnormally lazy when it comes to gardening - all the more proof that if I can do it, anyone can!

Updates will follow after these treatments have been given!

As I have mentioned in previous posts, part of our strategy to eat healthy and fresh food, save money, and “do our part” in treading lightly on the Earth involves growing as much of our own food as possible.

We experienced the pleasure and excellent value of having a backyard garden in our last house, and we wanted to continue that here in Christchurch.  Earlier in the Summer, Rus and Christian took a pile of old bricks and made a raised-bed herb and salad garden (which we have been enjoying ever since!).  There were, however, a couple of challenges to growing a decent-sized winter garden.

First, like many urban dwellings, land for planting is scarce.  Two, since we moved in the middle of Summer, it was too late in the planting season to start a traditional Spring garden.   Conversely, there was some good news!  One, Rus and I are always up for a challenge.  Two, the ground does not freeze in Christchurch; therefore, hearty vegetables like broccoli and cabbage could still be grown despite Winter’s arrival.  Three, 20 DAH-bee has a small patch of overgrown land between the garage and the neighbor’s fence, full of yard waste, just begging to be re-purposed.

Since about half of our rubbish output is organic, we and our flatmates decided to “compost”; this consisted of throwing all of our organic waste next to the garage until we could work up a compost bin (no one was willing to buy one as they run upwards of NZ$150).  Several smelly weeks and a few feral cats later, and Rus and I asked the neighbours (landlords) for any available wood scraps to make one. We hit the jackpot!  We were given some tongue-and-groove timber and an old Formica table.  Without nails and without spending any money, Rus built a large compost bin with a lid.  We shoveled weeks of old vegetable stems, coffee grounds, and eggshells into its new home (and prayed to the Worm Gods).

Then, borrowing the neighbors’ shovels and a rake, we cleared out the area where we would put the garden.   We purchased some organic garden soil with compost mixed in, garden accessories like a hose and reel and hand trowel.  Rus and Dylan picked up about 100 used bricks at the landlords’ other property (free!) for a walkway through the garden to the compost bin.  Finally, we bought seedlings from a local home improvement warehouse: red cabbage, green cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, and lettuce.  We also bought a lemon tree and an orange tree with large fruits already on the vines.

On one of the (presumably) last warm days of Summer, we measured out the location of each plant and put the seedlings in the ground.  With a little luck, in 60-90 days, we will have more cabbage and cauliflower and broccoli - as well as plenty of fresh salad - then we know what to do with.  Hopefully, we can find some Bean-o around here somewhere too!

So we successfully planted an urban winter garden with limited space and fund - if we can do it, anyone can!

In addition, I will keep track of the return on investment (ROI).  In our summer garden in Pennsylvania, I estimate we returned 400-500% on our initial investment of about US$150 in fresh, organic vegetables.   We spent about the same equivalent in NZD on this one, so it will be interested to see how it turns out.

Stay tuned for updates!

*Reader alert: Lots of links in this one; however, if this information is new to you, I highly recommend checking them out!

I would like to offer my kudos to the President: Michelle Obama has broken ground on the much-anticipated White House Garden.

Advocates for organic farming and sustainable living have been calling for this for months, and even though I consider myself an amateur with only a few gardens under my belt, I am a huge fan of home gardens.  Name your issue:  Conventional produce not tasty?  Organics too expensive?  Concerned about salmonella and other food-bourne illnesses?  Is money tight?  Unsure about the future?  Feeling stressed out?  Start a garden!

The Obamas are setting a great example, especially since home gardens are more important than ever for the following reasons:

1. Growing food organically and close to home is healthy for you and the environment.

Obviously, replacing a lawn that needs to be watered, fertilised, and mowed into a productive food patch is better for the environment; however, many people do not fully understand the health and environmental impacts of purchasing food from a supermarket. For example, conventional produce is grown in depleted soil, requiring inputs and fertilisers to make the soil viable for planting.  Then, it is sprayed with highly toxic, cancerous pesticides (genetically-modified “RoundUp Ready” plants are actually sprayed with RoundUp!) throughout the growing process.  These chemicals eventually make their way into the water supply and contribute to harmful algal blooms (HABs), collapse of ecosystems, and ultimately ocean dead zones.  Finally, the produce is picked before ripeness to survive shipping (and is often coated in a waxy preservative!) until it arrives on your grocer’s shelf - not as tasty nor nutritious as they should be.

2. It reduces the reliance on a complex system of credit and fossil fuels to provide one of our basic human needs - food

It is estimated that it takes 10 calories of fossil fuel energy (from seed to sowing to supermarket) to produce one calorie of food for consumption! (1).  Furthermore, most farmers borrow money to plant seeds in anticipation that they will be able pay back the loans (and hopefully make a profit) when the crop is sowed.  Similarly, truckers rely on credit to fill their fuel tanks to ship food across the country, and pay off the loan (and hopefully make a profit) when they get paid for successfully delivering the shipment.  In the face of a credit crisis, Peak Oil, and climate change (droughts in food-producing areas, floods in others, etc.), this complex system is destined for disruptions that will impact Americans’ food security in the near future.

3. It relieves stress

The world news today does not exactly illicit feelings of calm and tranquility.  In fact, it can be downright scary.  Taking control of part of your food supply provides peace of mind for when disruptions occur.  Small farmers and family gardens got the United States through the last Depression.  It got the Soviets through the collapse of the U.S.S.R.  You can also avoid the risks of food-bourne illnesses associated with mass-produced food.  And what could be better than venturing out after a long day to see what vine-ripened goodies nature has provided for dinner?

4. You do not have to be a rocket scientist to do it
Remember, when you were a kid, putting a lima bean seed on a wet paper towel and watching it sprout? Plants are amazing.  A bit of water and a bit of sunlight, and plants are resilient little miracles.  Little miracles you can eat.   I do not consider myself a “green thumb” (I have killed my fair share of house plants), but gardening is easy enough for kids!

Spring is here (for my Northern Hemisphere readers), and it’s time to get planting!  No matter how big or small, I think you will be happy that you did.

1. Horrigan, Leo, Robert S. Lawrence, and Polly Walker. “How Sustainable Agriculture Can Address the Environmental and Human Health Harms of Industrial Agriculture.” Environmental Health Perspectives 110, no. 5 (May 5, 2002) (accessed March 20, 2009).

From Catherine Austin Fitts’ Solari blog:

I’m a lunatic farmer, that’s my new catch phrase. I have a Ph.D. That stands for Post Hole Digger. Today we only need to buy toilet paper and Kleenex, everything else we make here. The only reason the framers of the Bill of Rights did not include freedom of food choice along with the right to bear arms, worship and speech was that they couldn’t conceive of the day when food would have to have a USDA sticker on it.

- Joel Salatin, Polyface Farm, from www.organicconsumers.org

Hopefully, someday soon, Rus and I will reach this level of sustainability and freedom!

In my first “Bleeding Green” post, I outlined my awakening to the realities of Peak Oil/Everything, global economic collapse, and climate change.  Then, I provided examples of the modifications Rus and I made to our “happy motoring” lifestyles in order to ease into the inevitable adjustments these “Big Three” are going to force upon modern societies.  In this post, I will share some goals Rus and I made to build upon these first changes as we moved to New Zealand.  Read on…

Our decision to move to New Zealand in the first place had a lot to do with its current sustainability.  It has a small population - about 4 million people in an area the size of two Pennsylvanias.  There is plenty of fresh water, plenty of food (which is a major export), and around 70% of the country’s electricity is generated by water and geothermal activity.  It has other natural resources (coal, for example) and imports little oil.  Combined with beautiful scenery, no over-development, lack of a huge military (and consequently huge military budget), low corruption, low crime, low population growth, and friendly, (for the most part) environmentally-aware, English-speaking people, we thought it was a good place to start.  Throughout the one year we had to move, we made several goals we hoped would help us further transition into a fossil-fuel independent existence:

1.  Sell everything instead of hiring shipping our things overseas.

Not only were our household items barely worth the cost of the shipping container (sentimental value aside), but logistics were going to be tricky (especially with no car!), and we were concerned we might not have a place to put everything in our new place.  The cons far outweighed the pros for going through with shipping; therefore, we sold all of our furniture, decorations, and toys using Craigslist - whittling down our worldly possessions to six large pieces of luggage (and a large box to be sent or brought over when convenient).  This leads me into our second goal…

2.  Buy everything used, if at all.

If we chose to purchase anything in the the first place, we would purchase these items used.  This would keep things inexpensive while reducing waste and consumerism, and helping people out by taking things they no longer use.  Although Craigslist is rarely used here, there is a popular classified newspaper and a local web-based auction site called TradeMe.  There is also a site called Freecycle which would be scoured for various items (for free!).  Exceptions include personal items like bed linens, towels, underwear, etc.

3.  Live car-free.

Since we spent a lot of time running errands on foot or bike, we already practiced getting used to living without a car in Pennsylvania.  In New Zealand, we chose to move to Christchurch, the second largest city (with only 330,000 people!), which has a fantastic Metro bus system.  Combined with buses, walking, bikes, and the occasional car rental, we would be covered transport-wise.

4.  Live in a furnished house with other people.

We went back and forth on this a bit because neither of us had lived with flatmates in while (me, almost two years, and Rus, nearly eight!).   However, renting a furnished room in a furnished house alleviated the stress of having to buy furniture and kitchen items, especially since we are not sure if Christchurch is our final destination.  The added benefit is a comparatively low cost of living (more money to travel and save!) and kick-starting our social community in Christchurch.  On the flip side, we would have less privacy, have to learn to share again, and deal with a landlord and/or unruly or inconsiderate flatmates.  Again, though, the positives outweighed the drawbacks.

5. Buy locally. Find the farmers’ markets.

This includes supporting local businesses in addition to buying locally-produced products.  Continuing to buy locally grown from farmers’ markets was important to us from a health and sustainability standpoint.

6.  Start a compost and garden.

This would pose a challenge, especially on the gardening side, because we were moving in January - at the height of New Zealand’s growing season. The compost would reduce our rubbish output and give us a usable product with which to fertilise the garden.

7. Reuse anything possible.

Instead of placing everything immediately in the recycling or rubbish bin, we would examine the possibility of reusing it.  For example, we drink wine frequently - can we use the glass bottles for something?  How can we get creative with what we already have so that we do not have to buy something new?  Can someone else use this?  These were new questions to be entertained every time we were ready to dispose of something.

8. Continue to learn new skills, do research, and gather ideas for a future off-grid dwelling.

There are already billions of people around the world who already manage to do this (live without supplied power, water, etc.), with mixed results, i.e. not having access to clean drinking water.  The key for us is to find the balance between maintaining a certain quality of life without being at the mercy of a government or utility company.  We can do it by learning new skills and leaning on our local community for support.

These are the new goals we had hoped to achieve once we moved to New Zealand.   Of course, they are in addition to ones that are already part of our lifestyle, like recycling, buying biodegradable products, using reusable shopping bags, turning off the lights, etc.

In Bleeding Green Part Three, I will show how we are currently meeting these goals now that we have settled into our new home in Christchurch.  Stay tuned!

No, I am not talking about being a rabid fan of the Philadelphia Eagles (although I am a fan!).  I am talking about my continued growth in reducing my dependence on fossil fuels.

A not-so-brief history…

In early 2007, I stumbled upon several websites like Life After the Oil Crash, The Energy Bulletin, and The Oil Drum, that showed me that the age of cheap, abundant fossil fuels was coming to an end.  Combined with imminent (at the time, now reality) financial collapse and climate change, it was going to be an interesting ride!  After freaking out a bit, Rus and I came to a couple of conclusions.  One, the rest of our lives are going to be very different than what we have previously known.   Basically, a car-dependent society, big box stores, large-scale globalization, disposables, cheap electricity, and mass food production (enabled by fertilisers, pesticides, farm equipment, and shipping and distribution - all using incredible amounts of fossil fuels) are unsustainable and cannot conceivably continue.  Two, it would be a lot less stressful (and even enjoyable!) to start adapting immediately, gradually, and voluntarily as opposed to experiencing potentially violent disruptions in “business as usual”.  This meant (among other things) rethinking how we transported ourselves, where we got our food (most food is trucked an average of 1500 miles from farm to refridgerator), researching the companies we patronised and products we purchased, getting to know our neighbors, and conserving water and electricity.

We started small: using reusable bags, bundling errands into one car trip every week or every other week, halting most unnecessary purchases and buying locally, and walking and biking as much as possible.  Fortunately, the town of Macungie is fairly walkable, so we were able to get most of what we needed within a short walking distance.  In addition, we shifted our toiletries to ones made with environmentally-sustainable materials and cut back on disposables.  We were already conscious about trash and recycling and had a low trash to recycling ratio as it was, but we made an effort to reduce this even further.  Leftover water was poured on the house plants (thanks for the tip, Mom!).  Some of these were harder than others; there are not many local shops left since Walmart and the other big box stores rolled into the area.  The selection is often limited at the ones that still exist, and “buying American” is nearly impossible.  Also, Macungie, PA is not exactly bike-friendly.  There are no bike lanes and often very little shoulder on which to ride.  These were challenges to overcome.

The following Spring, we graduated into planting and harvesting our own garden.  We grew spring greens, peas, carrots, green beans, plum tomatoes, and zucchini. The first three were lessons learned (mostly, better garden planning), which we figured was much easier when you are not actually betting your livelihood on the success of your garden. The last three turned out to be our star crops; I learned to blanch and freeze several quarts of tomatoes, as well as get creative with cooking zucchini!  We traded green beans and tomatoes for peppers and cucumbers with the neighbors.  I loved going out every day or every other day to see “what was for dinner” in the garden.  To supplement, we bought the rest of our produce, meat, eggs, honey, and cheese from the fabulous local farmers’ markets in Emmaus and Macungie.  We saved our used egg cartons and gave them to the “egg man”.  Seeing familiar faces and getting to know the people who grew our food was awesome.  Rus and I love great food, and we love to cook, so cooking and eating fresh, local food was as good for our peace of mind (in knowing where it came from, that it was not genetically modified, that it was organically produced) as it was for our bellies!  Rus started to work from home, and we reduced the “fleet” to two cars, since we hardly drove any of them any way.  We shifted to biodegradable laundry and cleaning products.

We also made adjustments in our electricity use.  As most of the electricity in the United States is generated by coal, oil, and natural gas, and as these continue to diminish, electricity is going to become increasingly expensive.  This doesn’t include the cost to the environment; everyone (except the Coal Industry, apparently) knows there is no such thing as “clean coal”.  The aging grid desperately needs to be overhauled to generate power with alternative energy sources like wind and solar - a monumental task which will cost big bucks and take many years (decades?) to complete - and won’t have nearly the same output as fossil fuels. Presently, the best thing would be a mass conservation effort (perhaps the U.S. can take a page from New Zealand’s book and run some Public Service Announcements?), since it will be absolutely necessary to bridge the gap between demand and reduced output from alternative sources.  But I digress…

Anyway, our house was completely electric - cooking, heating, cooling, etc. - so we made adjustments to our electricity use.  We kept the thermostat low in the winter, and high in the summer (only turned the air conditioning on twice in August!), turned down the hot water heater temperature to 106F, ran the dishwasher full and the washing machine with cold water. Our efforts paid off; we had fantastically low utility bills to show for them!  We thought most of these adaptations were simple to make and good common sense; however, our neighbor across the street, who left all of her lights on all day, every day, showed us there was room for improvement at the macro level.

We put off adding solar panels, a laundry line, and LED lights to the house because we were moving.  I think LED lights are the way to go (CFLs save some energy, but they are extremely hazardous to dispose because they contain toxic mercury).  They currently cost a lot more, but they use a fraction of the energy of a CFL, are non-toxic, and last for up to sixty years.  We plan on using these exclusively in a future dwelling.

On the whole, I think our transition to a fossil-fuel-free existence has been successful thus far, although we have a long way to go.  It has caused us to be a lot more conscious about what we eat, what and how we purchase, and our individual impact on the environment and community.  We, of course, hope to continue this journey in New Zealand, the specifics of which I will discuss in a future post.

Stay tuned for Part Two!