the
Composter
APRIL, 2016
Volume 65 Number 8
In This Issue
UPCOMING EVENTS: APRIL MEMBERSHIP MEETING: AQUAPONICS
BOARD MEMBERSHIP
RAFFLE PRIZE WINNERS
MEMBERSHIP MEETING REVIEW
A FRONT PORCH GARDEN
A RECIPE: ALMOND ROCCA
GENERAL MEETING INFO
COMPOSTING DVD REVIEW
HOME GARDEN TOUR
CALLING OLD COMPOSTERS
GETTING KIDS INTO GARDENING
SOIL FOR SALE
UPCOMING EVENTS:
Your TOG Board
2015-2016
APRIL 19 MEMBERSHIP MEETING
SUBJECT:
Brandon MerchantPresident
The ABC's of Aquaponics: Brendan Woltman of
EcoGro Garden Center
Bridget Barber - Vice
President
We've all heard about that "other" form of
gardening, you know, the one where there is NO
soil. Well, Brendan will be on hand to demystify
the whole process and teach us how to raise
veggies in a self- sustaining system that has the
side benefit of fish for dinner.
Where:
St. Mark's Church, 3810 E. 2nd St.--northeast
corner in the Geneva Room
When: Doors open at 6:45PM
Q & A at 7:15
Speaker starts a 7:30
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------WORKSHOPS AVAILABLE AT THE
COMMUNITY FOOD BANK's GARDEN
Sustainable Design
FRI Apr 8th 9-11 am
Soil and Compost
FRI Apr 15th 9-11 am
Planting a Healthy Garden
FRI Apr 22nd 9-11 am
Building Soil Fertility, SAT Apr 9th 1-3 pm, with
Brandon Merchant from Southwest Victory
Gardens
Fruit Tree Care, SAT Apr 23 1-3 pm
Gardening with Ollas & Self Watering
Containers,
SAT May 7th 9-11 am
Rich Johnson - Editor
Mary Sabatini Treasurer
Deb Jacobson Volunteer
Coordinator
Mohyeddin
Abdulaziz Member at
large
Marilee Mansfield Secretary
Val Schaffer Education
and Outreach
Charlotte WeltjenMembership
BOARD MEETINGS
ARE HELD THE
FIRST Tuesday OF
EACH MONTH AT
6:30 P.M.
THE TOG SHOP
NEW: Walls-o-Water
3-pack
$12
Repair kit $5
NEW: Home
Composting DVD $5
Spin diggers
$6
Compost cranks $40
Price reduction!!
(Heavy-duty tool to
mix compost)
Compost Bin
$40
Planting Guides
$7
Frost cloth 12' wide
$1.00/ft
Shop by appointment or
at the monthly meetings.
BOARD MEMBERSHIP
It's that time of year again, time to seek out and find replacements for the board
members who will be retiring this spring. If you like what you get from your
membership with TOG, perhaps it is time for you to help guide the future of this
most worthy group. Without a board of volunteers there would be NO TOG. The
board is the glue that holds things together and has perpetuated what the late
Tarke Sweet started in 1971. Contact any current board member or write to
[email protected] to throw your hat in the ring for a
term on the board of directors. It's painless, often fun, and you'll feel a sense of
accomplishment for everything you contribute to the effort. Come be a part of a
45 year institution in Tucson!!
ELECTIONS WILL BE HELD AT THE APRIL MEMBERSHIP MEETING
THE WINNERS OF OUR RAFFLE AT THE SPRING FAIR!!
1. EcoGro $25 Gift Certificate: Reggie Smith.
2. EcoGro $25 Gift Certificate: Vanessa Galloway.
3. EcoGro Pot: Sandra Gaskill.
4. Scottish Tray: T. Robison.
5. Thistle Towel: Flo Jasiak.
6. Tomato Planter: Janet Gillard.
7. Fig Tree: Nancy Day.
8. Rabbit Poop: Lexie Escalante.
9. Moringa Tree: Emily Rockey.
10. Tank's Green Stuff: Peter Dooley.
11. How to DVDS (Garden Goddess): Stephanie Keenan.
12. Joy Rock (Joanna Taylor): Nancy Day.
13. 2.5 gallons Worm Castings: Morgan Goldberg.
14. Maya Renewable Energies 55 gallon Drum: Kathy S.
15. Newspaper Pot Maker: Nancy S.
16. Scrambled V'eggs: Penelope.
17. Echeverria Plant: Don Breckenfeld.
18. Compost Crank (Lotech): John Newman.
19. Desert Wallflower (Dreamflower): Paul Finney.
20. Lavender Rose Perfume (PLART): Katherine Mullaugh.
21. Compost Tea (bag): Emily Rockey.
22. Prize (Intrinsic Alchemist): Efren Martinez.
23. Westwind Seeds (4 prizes): B Kuelbs, Meg, Brenda, Melinda Daniel.
24. ARBICO Worm Castings: Mohye Abdulaziz.
MARCH MEETING REVIEW
OLLA BALLS!! WHO KNEW?
The idea that a buried clay pot (olla) filled with water could weep enough water into the
soil to keep a plant alive was a wild concept to me 2 years ago. But now that I have been
using a few 2-gallon sized ollas in my garden for 4 seasons, they have proven their
viability as an alternative watering system. Some drawbacks that I encountered include
having to manually fill the pots every few days in the summer (every 9 days in the
winter), not wicking the water very far to the side of the olla; dirt, mulch and bugs getting
into the pots, and high expense for each olla. This was turning out to be one of those
concepts that looked great on paper but wasn't panning out so well in real life.
So at the March membership meeting I was more than a little skeptical of J.C. Mathews'
claim that a 2-½" clay olla ball could sufficiently water a vegetable plant for an entire
season. Making it all the more amazing was that his system was fully automated so that I
wouldn't have to manually refill the ollas. Just plant the ball under the plant-start or seed,
connect it to a small water reservoir set a few feet above ground, regulate the level in the
tank with a float valve from a swamp cooler, connect to city water or a higher rain barrel
and walk away. It just couldn't be that easy, could it?
Now I know you're skeptical of a salesman's pitch for a new product, even one based on a
simple technology that is thousands of years old. JC knows of your skepticism so he
introduced Jim Peebles, a non-affiliated user of olla balls, to speak about his experience
with olla balls at the Food Bank's urban farm called Las Milpitas in southwest Tucson.
In an apples-to-apples comparison of growing 25 cherry tomato plants with olla balls vs.
25 of the same cherry tomato plants irrigated with drippers, the olla patch used 215
gallons of water throughout the March to October season while the drippers used 1300
gallons. That's an amazing 84% savings of water!! And as if that wasn't amazing enough,
his patch produced 50% more tomatoes than the other patch. So how about them apples?!!
In another patch with broccoli plants and olla balls, each broccoli plant did well with only
½ cup of water a day being distributed to the plant through the clay ball.
OK, enough of the golly-gee-wow numbers. What makes this thing work? The trick is in
the constant low pressure release of water into the soil directly below the plant. Keeping
the pressure between ½ and 2 pounds per square inch (psi) is the sweet spot. At this
pressure the ollas weep at a rate that keeps the ground from over saturating, the plant's
roots find the water quickly, there are no wet and dry periods, the surface soil never gets
wet so there is no evaporation at ground level, and the plant is thrilled to be getting the
water it needs at a rate it needs it. It's incredibly simple.
I'll fill in the rest of the details in a Q&A format, hopefully hitting all your burning
questions.
Q: How many ollas per plant? A: 1
Q: How deep do you put the ball? A: The bottom of the ball will be 5-8 inches below the
surface and the top will be one inch below the new plant start's roots.
Q: What about planting seeds? A: Put the olla at the 5" depth but plan to surface water for
a short time till the roots get to the olla.
Q: Do I need to surface water the new plant starts? A: Just a few times.
Q: What about mulching? A: Mulching is a great idea even if the surface dirt doesn't get
wet because mulch does so much more than reduce evaporation. Mulch reduces weeds,
breaks down and fertilizes the soil, provides great habitat for good bugs, provides a wind
break for smaller plants, and moderates the soil temperatures during our extreme weather.
Q: How high should the reservoir be above the ground to deliver the right pressure? A: 46 feet is best but slightly lower will work.
Q: How big a reservoir do I need? A: 1 gallon is enough but a 5-gallon bucket is more
common.
Q: How many balls can I have on one system? A: There is almost no limit. For example,
one system was done with 108 balls on 500' of 1/4" tubing.
Q: Doesn't the length of the tubing effect the flow of water to the ollas? A: Not really. The
flow is so slow that there is no pressure drop through the tubing.
Q: Can I use my rain barrel to supply water to the ollas? A: Yes, that is a very good use of
your rain water barrel. Just be careful that as the water level drops in the tank (assuming
you don't have city water plumbed into the barrel also) you don't lose pressure which
would happen if the barrel is sitting on the ground.
Q: What happens if my reservoir is too high? A: The higher the tank, the more pressure is
pushing out on the ollas so more water weeps through. This causes unnecessary water
consumption.
Q: What about plants in pots? A: You can run the tubing up and into a pot if the pot isn't
too high above the ground. Remember, you need pressure to make the water flow and that
means you need some elevation between your reservoir and the height of the olla.
Q: How many balls should I use for an 18" pot? A: 3
Q: What if my garden is already planted and I want to put ollas under my plants? A: It can
still be done. Drill a large hole diagonally under the plant, insert the ball and bury it. This
will disturb the roots somewhat but it will likely recover. A spin digger works beautifully
for this purpose.
Q: Can I fertilize my plants through the ollas? A: No, this is a bad idea. The fertilizer will
clog up the ollas. Do your fertilization from the top as usual.
Q: What about calcium and salt buildup that causes so much trouble with my drippers? A:
Because the ollas are underground and not exposed to the air, the minerals have little
chance to dry and crystalize. Experience has shown that any buildup will occur on the
OUTSIDE of the olla and can be washed off with water and vinegar.
Q: Won't the roots grow into the ollas and clog them up? A: No, the clay of the ollas
won't pass roots.
Q: Will the olla balls work with trees? A: It hasn't been tried yet so who knows.
Q: What about mosquitoes in my reservoir? A: Your tank will be covered so that
mosquitoes can't get in.
Q: Are there any other possible benefits to using ollas instead of more conventional
systems? A: Yes, you will have healthier plants which means you will likely have less
problems with bugs and disease. In addition, you will spend less time dealing with
irrigation and more time enjoying your garden.
Q: OK, OK, where can I get some of these ollas and what do they cost? A: There are 2
places in town to buy olla balls. One is at Eco-Gro and the other is at Native Seed/Search.
The cost is $8 per ball which includes a 12" length of 1/4" tubing, but there is a price
break as you buy more and more. For example, I bought 10 of them at the fair at the EcoGro booth for $70. And remember, TOG members get a 5% discount for everything
bought at Eco-Gro.
I ran the numbers that Mr. Peebles provided concerning the tomato plants grown at Las
Milpitas farm and found that each plant used ¾ of a cup of water per day for the 180 days
of their production. That is right in keeping with the calculation he quoted of ½ cup per
day per broccoli plants. If these numbers are right and the results accurately portrayed, I
can't see any sense in gardening any other way here in the desert Southwest.
I have since used 6 of my 10 olla balls and planted 6 zucchini starts that I bought at our
Spring Fair.
After giving them a top watering on day one, I
had to top water 2 days later and then 3 days
after that. The real test now is to see if the plants
reach down to the ollas and start taking that
water. Since the jury is still out I'll have to report
my findings in the May newsletter so stay tuned.
By Rich Johnson
My Front Porch Garden
By Mary Sabatini
This winter it finally dawned on me that my best gardening space was right
outside my front door. A south-facing concrete porch, covered but not enclosed,
it was perfectly positioned to catch the oblique rays of the winter sun. The space
was encumbered by a charming but useless porch swing, which could be easily
detached from its supporting chains and moved to the garage. (The chains in turn
could be pulled up and secured to their overhead moorings.) Now all I needed
was the right containers.
Almost by accident, I found what seemed to be the perfect solution, hidden high
on a shelf way in the back at Lowe's garden center: the Emsco Group City
Pickers Patio Garden Grow Box with casters, for about $30. I bought four of
these, nested them together, and brought them home on the bus with the aid of a
lightweight luggage carrier. So far, so good.
The boxes measure about 24" by 20" at the top, and are about 12" high, when
fully assembled.
They are made of a "food-safe high-density polyethylene" which is "chemically
inactive, BPA free and Phthalate free." The plastic is "colorized with UV Additives
(also chemically inert) to prevent long-term degradation in direct sunlight." The
key feature is the 2-gallon reservoir at bottom, which has to be fed through a
vertical water fill tube at one corner of the box. On each side of the box there is
an opening, which prevents overwatering. Inside, there is a semi-rigid screen
separating the reservoir from the growing medium. A plastic sheet is also
provided, along with a long rubber band to secure it to the top after potting
medium has been added. The rubber band goes limp quickly, however, and the
sheet must be secured in some other way. (I used inexpensive medium binder
clamps, which work even better.) The sheet mulch is very effective for moisture
retention and weed prevention.
Once the boxes are assembled, you just follow instructions and watch your
garden grow. But first the assembly, and that is where a design fault comes to
light. The casters have to be inserted into the four bottom corners, and of course
they have to fit snugly to prevent leaks. But, they don't go in easily! I had to use a
hammer, with a great deal of force, to get them in. And in the process, one of the
corners broke off almost completely, making that box unusable. Fortunately,
Lowe's gave me a full refund, no questions asked. So now I was left with three
boxes, which I filled with organic potting mix, along with organic granular fertilizer
and garden lime, as per instructions.
In the three boxes I planted Swiss chard, beets and spinach, and was rewarded
with bountiful crops, which I am still harvesting. The final outcome was excellent,
and I will probably reuse the boxes next winter. However, I wouldn't buy any more
of these planters. I would look for, or try to build, containers with a similar
watering system, but without casters. For mobility, I would prefer to place them on
dollies.
For more details, search Emsco City Pickers Patio Garden Grow Box Guide, or
use this link to see the same info: PATIO GARDEN INFO
ALMOND ROCCA--a recipe by Rich Johnson
Now, I know that this may seem a bit extreme for an organic GARDENING club
recipe but the grapevine told me that several of you veggies were interested in
my recipe for that mouth watering candy that flew off the plate at the last
membership meeting. So I am going to spill the beans here and now, but don't
blame me if you end up addicted to the stuff. And I have to tell you: there's no
known cure!!
1 lb butter
2 C sugar
1/2 C water
1 C chopped almonds
6-12 oz chocolate chips
Put the first 4 ingredients in a saucepan and use medium heat until all is melted
and mixed. Turn the heat up to medium high or a little less and stir frequently for
the first 5-7 minutes. Then, stir constantly so as not to let it burn. When it turns a
thick rich brown, drizzle a little into a cup of ice and water to chill the candy to
room temperature or below. Eat the candy. If it is crunchy then you are done. If
it's still chewy then keep cooking and keep stirring. DON'T STOP STIRRING
after that first 5-7 minutes. If you burn it, it will never taste right.
When it passes the crunch test, work quickly to accomplish the following: pour
the mixture onto a buttered cookie sheet and spread fairly evenly. Sprinkle 6-12
oz of chocolate chips on top as evenly as you can. Once the chips turn to a rich
uniform brown they are ready to be spread with a rubber spatula. Spread the
chocolate evenly. Put the whole cookie sheet in the fridge to cool it but don't
leave it there for more than a few hours. Remove when it has gotten below room
temperature, break it into bite sized pieces with your hands, bag them and chill or
freeze. If the texture is not crunchy any more it's because it absorbed too much
moisture when it was cooling. It will have the same flavor but a softer texture.
Sometimes it's crunchy and sometimes not.
I've been making this recipe for 30 years to the delight of my Christmas gift
recipients and there has never been a complaint.
GENERAL MEETING INFORMATION
We encourage all members to consider bringing
a snack to share with the group. It can be
anything from homegrown to store-bought or
anything in between. Treats are such a treat!!
Also, if you arrive a few minutes early and are
able, please lend a hand in setting up our chairs
and tables. Of course, putting things back to the
way we found them at the end of the presentation
is very much appreciated. Lastly, we encourage
donations to help pay for the rental of the church's meeting room. Without the room we
wouldn't have a meeting.
COMPOSTING DVD--a review by Rich Johnson
As most of you know, TOG is devoted to teaching organic gardening and
composting methods. To that end, some time ago we commissioned the making
of a video that walked you through ALL the steps involved in making your own
homemade compost. That video was recently transferred to DVD and is now
available for a nominal cost of $5. For those of you who have been putting off
coming to one of our composting workshops or have forgotten some of the details
about the composting process, this is your super low cost way of catching up.
And you don't even have to leave the comfort of your own Lazy-Boy to do it!!
And don't worry about whether the info presented seems a bit dated; this
composting process has been practiced for centuries with little or no change.
In this presentation our own Jim Lootens stars as the expert, both on the screen
and off, who shows you how it's done. Everything is covered from the proper
ingredients to save, to the proper ratio in combining those ingredients, to the
choices of bins to put them in, to the weekly maintenance of the pile, to the
harvesting of the pile. There is even a troubleshooting section to solve the
problems you may have created when you decided to "do it your own way."
There is no "Rocket Science" behind it but there are some key things you need
to know to do it successfully. And remember, the only kind of luck you need to be
a successful composter is.....ROTTEN LUCK!
If you haven't been composting at home but want to, this DVD shows you every
step in detail.
HOME GARDEN TOUR
The Pima County Master Gardener announces its 17th Annual Home Garden
Tour on April 16, 2016. The distinctive and beautiful home gardens of four Master
Gardeners will be featured along with practical demonstrations & talks at each
home to include such varied topics as home composting, Grow Zones for water
efficiency and plant selection, miniature succulent gardens, perennial container
gardening and more. The demonstration gardens at the Cooperative Extension
Service will also be open for touring.
Ticket sales begin March 1st and may be purchased: online @
https://extension.arizona.edu/17th-annual-home-garden-tour ; at the Cooperative
Extension Service 4210 N. Campbell Ave.; and at the following Tucson nurseries:
Bach's, EcoGro , Harlows, Mesquite Valley Growers and Rillito.
Tickets are $15 in advance or $20 on-line or the day of the tour. Tickets may also
be purchased at each home garden and at the Extension's demonstration
gardens on the day of the tour.
For more information call 626-5161
This year's four featured home gardens:
1. Terrific Terraces: Set against the dramatic backdrop of Pusch Ridge, this
terraced garden's lines and borders vanish into the ridge of this beautiful part of
the Santa Catalina range.
Talks: A. Perennial Container Gardening
B. Designing Tortoise Habitats
2. Succulents & More: This beautifully creative garden has many different trees,
bushes, vines, perennials and a large display of succulents all surrounding a
quiet patio and unique fountain.
Talks: A. Creating Miniature Gardens
B. Multiplying Succulents
3. Eclectic Creations: The Perry's began Tucson gardening with a single raised
bed garden in 2007. After a successful season of raising vegetables and herbs,
two more raised beds were added.
Talks: A. Building a Wicking Garden
B. Creating a Keyhole Garden
4. Desert Oasis: Walking through this expansive and meandering garden, one is
surprised at every turn. The Saari's have tucked all species of plants into a blend
of gardens, winding from a wildflower wonderland in their front courtyard to an
artistic display of cacti and succulents shielded under a canopy of native trees.
Talks: A. Grow Zones for efficient water management and plant selection
B. Desert Composting
5. Master Gardener Demonstration Gardens at 4210 N. Campbell Ave which
showcases a wide variety of planting themes and techniques in 13 different demo
gardens, which range from growing edibles, to low water use desert gardens.
Calling all copies of old COMPOSTER newsletters.
Have you ever wanted to look up an article in an old Composter but didn't have it
anymore? Or maybe you wish you had the pictures of some TOG event. Well,
our own Victor Gutierrez has set out to assemble as many old Composters as he
can find. There is a particularly large gap between 2002 and 2009.
Here's a note from Victor himself.
Do You Have Old Composters??
by Victor Gutierrez
We're talking about the Tucson Organic Gardeners (TOG) newsletter, not
compost bins and definitely not your aging, compost-turning husbands. TOG has
been in existence for over 40 years. During much of this time TOG has published
a newsletter, the Composter, with great information useful to southwest
gardeners. Unfortunately, for a variety of reasons our Composter archives are not
complete. We're currently working on a project to compile a complete set of old
Composters, scan them and make them available on CD to interested members
and gardeners. So, if you have old Composter copies and you're willing to lend
(or donate) them to us make a list of the issues you have and send it to Victor
Gutierrez at: [email protected] or contact a TOG Board Member at
any TOG meeting. Thanks for your help with this project.
GARDENING FOR CHILDREN
Victor, a former board member and regular host of the book-sales table at
meetings and fairs, has been recuperating from an illness but has kept his finger
on the pulse of TOG. It's hard to keep a good TOGGER down. He recently came
across a website that encourages children to get involved with gardening. It does
this by providing lesson plans to teachers who would like to show kids how to
grow their own food. Additionally, it promotes family gardening. If you know
someone who would like to get kids involved, right down to earth level, this
resource is what you need to get started.
http://www.kidsgardening.org
----------------------------------------------------------------------SOIL FOR SALE
I have Worm-casting-enriched soil for sale. Last year I added earth worms to my
3 stage compost and am currently sifting it. Some soil probably contains tiny
earth worms to enrich your soil too. I love my little worm pets. Also, bargain
coarse sifted ( just chicken wire sift) soil at cheaper prices.
Joy Holdread 628-8180
JoysHappyGarden.com
Tucson Organic Gardeners | PO Box 27763 | Tucson | AZ | 85726