Monthly Archives: October 2011

Harvesting seaweed for the garden

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Okay, I’ve returned from my (awesome) 5 day trip to the Northwest Permaculture Convergence and am back into busy life mode. In the last two days, I’ve tidied up our deep beds, added new compostable layers to garden beds, mowed the lawn, joined the board of a local environmental group, participated in my first hot yoga class, tutored (my acitivity that pays the bills) and spent quality time with good people. It’s rainy out today and I’m tired so it seems like a good day to do some typing from my cozy little nest bed in the trailer.

I’m going to start getting this blog caught up by writing about the harvesting of seaweed for garden beds. I spent Tuesday adding some recently collected seaweed to the hugelkulture bed I’m working on and did the same thing with my lasagna bed last week.

It started a week and a half ago when my friend Chris and I made a trip out to Crescent Beach near White Rock to load up his truck with salty kelp for both of our respective gardens. My sister Stephanie rode her new motorbike out to meet us and lend a hand.

So, why seaweed? Seaweed is chock full of vitamins and minerals that soil loves – and it’s free! Plus, who doesn’t love an excuse to go to the beach? The nutrients found in seaweed help condition soil, making it richer and healthier, resulting in better growing environments for plants. According to some online research, seaweed improves soil fertility, adds nutritional value to fruits and vegetables, encourages more extensive root growth and helps fight off disease and pests. 

And how does one apply seaweed? Most of what I’ve read suggests rinsing seaweed or letting it get washed by rain (not a challenge here) before adding it to garden beds to reduce some of the salt content (there seems to be debate about whether this is really necessary or not). I added it directly onto my hugelkulture and lasagna beds (on top of composted horse manure), about 4 inches thick. You can also add it to your composting system or make a liquid spray fertilizer out of it. Other websites suggest laying it around pre-existing plants to help strengthen the soil they’re growing in.

If you’re going to head down to the beach to try this out, I recommend double-checking that it’s legal to do s
o (official parks, as a general rule, seem to be off limits). I highly recommend (legal) seaweed harvesting though – it’s a fun activity and your soil will thank you! 

Northwest Permaculture Convergence

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I’m heading south tomorrow for the Northwest Permaculture Convergence. It’ll be my first time at an event like this and I’m really excited to hear more about permaculture, meet other people who are involved in permaculture projects and absorb skills and ideas that I can bring back to our own Farm for a Year project. 

I’ll let you know how it is when I return next week. I’ll also catch up on overdue blog posts. Upcoming stories include:

  • greenhouse ideas (including an email & photos from a blog reader)
  • a fun connection with some young permaculture farmers in Wales
  • field trips to the Richmond Sharing Farm
  • seaweed harvesting for our veggie beds
  • and more!

Until then, have a great weekend everyone!

A visit from local high school students

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One of our dreams for this farming project is that it may serve to inspire and educate others about growing your own food, permaculture and living in harmony with nature. It’s been exciting to see our space (and our experiments) used for some educational purposes in the last year: first as a field trip destination for a permaculture class and a master organic gardener class and more recently, as a field trip destination for the grade 12 social justice class from Thomas Haney Secondary School in Maple Ridge. 

Matt and I were on hand when the students came by so we gave them a tour, spoke to them about our project and filled them in on some of the different methods we’re experimenting with on the farm. Teachers Mark and Jenny gave questions to the students in advance that they were supposed to be thinking about and asking us about while at the farm. The questions included:

Why ducks?

What is a food forest anyway?

What are those rings of plants around your fruit trees?

Benefits of composting?

Permaculture what?

Can we eat the lasagne garden?

Hugel-what?

What’s up with square foot gardening?

What do chickens need a tractor for?

Why use heritage breeds?

SUCH great questions! (The lasagne garden one was the most popular :) The visit made me wish that I could have been learning about this stuff when I was in high school. I’m pretty sure I would have gotten started with growing my own food a lot earlier if I had. I think it’s fantastic that high school students are getting exposed to issues of food justice, health and environmental protection. It makes me feel hopeful about the future.

All in all, the visit was a success (at least we think so!) and so much fun. Matt and I had a blast talking to the students, watching them eat nasturtiums and kale straight from the garden, introducing them to our baby chicks, testing their knowledge about compostable matter, and enlisting them to move our chicken tractor for us. 

To Mark, Jenny & al
l the students who came to visit us – thanks for coming! We hope you’ll come back again soon and continue to explore ways in which we can pursue healthier, happier lives that benefit each other and our environment.