Teaching Wellness, January 4

Going Green in 2015

Green behavior changes don't just benefit the environment - they improve your health and sense of well being and that of your community as well. Guest presenter Jeanne Kuntz identifies the Simple Seven Steps to ease into a smaller carbon footprint as you create healthy habits. Special guest Lakshmi Lambert will join Jeanne from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Lakshmi, a Mar Vista herbalist, has been collected debris from Santa Monica beach once a week for over a decade - a small but meaningful step for our planet. 

Eat foods in their original form. No processing to degrade food value, no packaging to deplete the environment. 

Walk or bike instead of driving whenever possible. You may end up shopping closer to home which is good for the small businesses in your neighborhood and fosters a sense of community, a stress-reducing bonus.

Get to know your neighbors. A recent Los Angeles Times article cited research that indicates people who have good relationships with their neighbors live happier, healthier lives. And when you are preparing those home-cooked meals, it’s so much easier to borrow a cup of sugar or a lemon from a neighbor than to drive your car to the market and back. A real stress-reducer!

Choose exercise options that have the lowest environmental impact while bringing you the greatest joy. Example: Instead of getting in your car and driving to the gym for an hour, and then driving back again, why not put on some of your favorite music and dance around the house? 


Prepare meals and eat them at home. You will burn about 250 calories for each meal you prepare. If you have young children, you will teach them a valuable skill which is empowering and a money saver.  

Stay connected to your motivators. Write them somewhere and review them often! 

Take time to just sit and be...even if it's only 5 minutes a day.

Stop by the Green Tent for tips on how to experiment with these ideas and incorporate the best into your life. Mar Vista resident and Green Committee co-chair Jeanne Kuntz is a certified wellness coach; learn more at her Teaching Wellness website. 

Master Gardeners, Dec. 28

Ah RAIN! 
We’re so happy to see you! Great for the garden and if you’re one of the enlightened Mar Vistans who picked up a rain barrel, BRAVO!

The UCCE LA County Master Gardeners are back this month with FREE seeds for you to sow and plants for you to tend. This month pick up one of these delightful vegetal and herbal producers:

Sugar Ann Snap Peas — eat pod and all for a snappy treat

Summer Lettuce Bouquet — European Reds and Greens

Longstanding Cilantro — such a bright flavor

Heirloom Early Rapini (Broccoli rabe)  Eat leaves, stems and flowers!   

Italian Arugula — spicy salad greens

Correnta Hybrid Spinach — Popeye knew what was good for us!

Blue Borage — kicks it up spice-wise and OH so beautiful to look at, plus it makes other insects retreat and it’s got medicinal uses too! 

And don’t forget your kitties: We’ve planted up some mixed Greens Gourmet Cat Treat

Please recycle your plastic six packs by dropping them off with the Master Gardeners so they can continue planting seeds to give away at the Green Tent each month. 

Click here for great monthly gardening tips for Southern California. And remember, be water wise; you can get great information online at: http://bewaterwise.com.

Seed Freedom & GMO-free Zone, December 21

SAVING OUR SEEDS

A coalition of Los Angeles area seed and food garden activists launched Seed Freedom LA in 2012 to make Los Angeles a GMO Free Zone! 

Working with our Mayor and our City Council, SFLA will ensure the food grown in our school, community and home gardens remain GMO free! One of the group's founders, David King will be at the Green Tent to introduce Seed Freedom Los Angeles and talk about GMOs.

Many plants are wind pollinated. GMO plants have the GMO gene 

in every cell including their pollen so those wind-pollinated GMO plants (corn and beets are the terrible two right now) can cross with the corn and beets growing in your gardens making your plants GMO. Come by the booth and learn what you can do to prevent your plants from turning into GMO plants!

There aren't many GMO-type commercial farmers here within Los Angeles. Creating large geographic areas which are pure of genetic engineering provides greater security as we save seeds for the future, and do our part to secure our food supply.  

As seed-savers, Seed Freedom LA members understand that our city gardens are great places to preserve heirloom and heritage seed varieties, because the genes won't become tainted by agricultural mishaps. The GMO-Free Zone will create a safe zone for saving and preserving heirloom seeds -- plus growers in the area will be able to call their food "GMO-free"!  Ultimately, a GMO-Free Zone will make great strides toward having a GMO-free local food supply. 

David King is the Gardenmaster of The Learning Garden on the grounds of Venice High School, one of our neighborhood's best source for horticultural information.

Chickens and Green Garden Showcase, December 14

Cluck, cluck, cluck...

Are you interested in keeping chickens? They provide delicious eggs and great fertilizer for the garden. 

Visit the Green Tent on Sunday, December 14th to chat with chicken owners and learn how you can start keeping your own flock. Find out more about city codes, tips for healthy chickens and much more!

Our guests - including our own Christy Wilhelmi (Gardenerd) - are all members of the Los Angeles Urban Chicken Enthusiasts Meet Up Group, and live in the Los Angeles area. 

We'll also have information about the 2015 Mar Vista Green Garden Showcase. We are experiencing a long-term drought, and ustainable gardens are long term water savers. The Green Garden Showcase is dedicated to encouraging them to sprout throughout Mar Vista. 

We are currently looking for gardens to showcase; click here to see a map of the areas where we're looking. Would you like to be a garden scout? Are you interested in showing your garden in the 2015 tour? Do you have questions about converting to a drought tolerant garden? Stop by and chat.

Tree People, December 7

Rain Barrels are sold out!

If you ordered a rain barrel, pick it up Sunday, Dec. 7, 8:30a.m. - 12:30 p.m. in the Grand View School parking lot (3871 Grand View Blvd.)

The next Truckload Sale at the Mar Vista Farmers' Market is January 11, 2015

Stop by the Green Tent for ordering information or to ask the experts about rain barrels. Tree People will be on hand to tell you everything you need to know about rain barrels: installation, care, how to paint them. They'll also have lots of water saving tips. And you'll have an opportunity to see what the rain barrels look like.

Embrace nature's solution to our emerging water shortage, and explore all the opportunities that fresh, soft chemical free water offers.

Local retailers sell these rain barrels for $130-$150. Rain Barrels International and TreePeople ‘s truckload sale lets you purchase them at cost, for $85 each! MWD/DWP’s SoCalWaterSmart program offers rebates of up to $100 for up to 4 barrels, making the barrels FREE! 

These barrels are a high quality...opaque, metal parts, food grade re-purposed containers that contained no sugar...so no risk of ants. You can collect 275 gallons of rain with 4 barrels. 

Rain barrels have been used for centuries. In recent years, high water bills, global warming and water restrictions have all made the rain barrel more than a gardening tool for those with a green thumb. 

Residential irrigation can account for up to 40% of domestic water consumption. Water conservation measures such as rain barrels can reduce the demand on the municipal water system. During a storm, even a light one, it doesn’t take much time for a rain barrel to fill with enough water for your lawn and plants to thrive. And your plants love rain water!

Courageous Hearts, November 30

The Green Tent is taking the day off. We're excited to have Courageous Hearts Youth Services return to our space. They'll be selling hand made, high quality scarves, necklaces and bracelets - all made by homeless and at-risk youth. EVERYTHING IS DESIGNED AND MADE BY THEIR ARTISANS. The scarves, normally $30 each, will be on sale for $18. And they'll be unveiling their new Premium line of bracelets developed by their youth.

As a non-profit based in Los Angeles, Courageous Hearts endeavors to bring out the best in each child and teen by supporting them in realizing their own inherent value and magnificence. Since it’s inception just over a year ago, it has delivered food, supplies and uplifting resources to 100's of homeless youth living in L.A. In June, they partnered with the LAUSD’s Homeless Education Department and helped celebrate and honor 85 homeless teens graduating from high-school.

In July, they launched a project called The Courageous Youth Artisans, with the intention to make an even greater difference in the lives of these amazing, and yet challenged teens. Stop by the Green Tent space and see the results. 

Each of their employed teens are INCREDIBLE, AMAZING, and COURAGEOUS young people who have lived through and are living through some incredibly challenging and heart-wrenching times. Some have single parents or no parents around to guide and support them. Some have experienced homelessness, violence, death, and families torn apart by unfortunate circumstances. Despite these obstacles, all have endured and have dreams, wishes, and hopes for a successful future.They are Resilient, Bright, and are the future of our Community. 

Master Gardeners, November 23

This month the UCCE LA County Master Gardeners weren’t able to plant up a storm — so you’ll get a chance to do it yourself! 

Stop by the Green Tent on November 23 from 9 am to 1 pm, stick your hands in some garden soil, and learn how transplant tiny “starts” into small containers to give them a safe growing home till you are ready to put them in your own garden or containers at home.

The Master Gardeners will help you with your gardening questions, and offer information and free packets of seeds plus you’ll take home whatever you plant up!


Please recycle your plastic six packs by dropping them off with the Master Gardeners so they can continue planting seeds to give away at the Green Tent each month.

Just a reminder...click here for great monthly tips for Southern California. And remember, be water wise; you can get great information and tips online at: http://bewaterwise.com.

Skanska, November 16

The Expo is Headed West -- Got Questions?

When will the EXPO Line extension to Santa Monica be completed? Where will the stations be? Will there be parking? How do I ride the Metro? Can I use cash? What's a TAP card - and how do I get one? Is there a discounted rate for seniors - and how do I apply?

Get answers to these questions and more when a Skanska-Rados rep visits the Mar Vista Community Council Green Committee Tent November 16. As the contractor for the Expo 2 project They'll provide information related to design, current construction, impacts to traffic and schedule of activities/completion. They're bringing station rendering exhibits, informational flyers and a few giveaways.

Exposition Transit Corridor, Phase 2 will extend westward to Santa Monica from the Metro Expo Line Culver City Station and run along the old Pacific Electric Exposition right-of-way to 4th St. and Colorado Av. in downtown Santa Monica. It is expected to open for business in 2015. Click here for more Expo Line information.

Recycled Fashion/Art + Green Garden Showcase, November 9

“Fall in Mar Vista” silk blouse/eucalyptus leaves

Did you know that a plain white blouse could interact with nature and turn into a work of art? Marcela Domínguez Bensabat, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, is a textile artist who coaxes leaves into releasing their pigments and imprinting their shapes on fabric. 

Marcela finds these leaves on her daily walks and bike rides in Mar Vista, Del Rey, and Venice. Through a loving, labor-intensive process, she calls forth the power that often unnoticed plants have to release their tints onto fabric and craft wearable beauty.

In her search to reduce the carbon imprint of the clothes she designs, Marcela is currently using vintage clothing as her canvas. The materials she uses include silk, wool, linen and cotton.

“Autumn Glow” wool shawl/eucalyptus leaves

See some of the pieces Marcela has been working on at the Green Tent this Sunday, and learn how she and the leaves give vintage clothing a magical look.

A Mar Vista Green Garden Showcase  volunteer will also be at the Green Tent from 9:00 till 2:00. Sustainable gardens are long term water savers. The Green Garden Showcase is dedicated to encouraging them to sprout throughout Mar Vista. Would you like to be a garden scout? Are you interested in showing your garden in the 2015 tour? Do you have questions about converting to a drought tolerant garden? Stop by and chat.

Green Real Estate, November 2

IN REAL ESTATE, GREEN IS GOLD!

Did you know that "Green" homes often sell faster and for more money than the traditional home? 

Not only does your investment into "green" home upgrades save you money with lower utility costs and rebates, but it helps put more "green" in your pocket when it's time for you to sell. Save yourself money, "green" our community and help save the Planet, too.

Come by the Green Tent to meet local National Association of Realtors GREEN Designee Susan Klos, and get green upgrade ideas to help transform your home to be sustainable, eco-friendly and a more valuable property. Get information about DWP's FREE Home Energy Improvement Program. 

Susan has a limited number of FREE sink aerators and shower heads from DWP to give out--and a wildflower seed packet for our Green Tent guests.

Master Gardeners, October 26

Fall is a great time to get your garden growing!  And the UCCE LA County Master Gardeners are back at the Green Tent with plenty of free seedlings and seeds to help you get it growing. 

This time they’re bringing two kinds of peas and lots of other seedlings for your garden.

Oregon Sugar Pod: chunky edible pods, vigorous vines require support, disease resistant

Super Sugar Snap: improved sugar snap edible pod variety, crunchy & sweet, full of flavor fresh or cooked

Kale: Italian Lacinato (dinosaur kale), vigorous dark green to black leaves — everyone’s fave and fabulous for Kale Chips

Heirloom Broccoli Raab: an Italian favorite whose tasty and vitamin-rich shoots, buds and leaves pack a flavor punch!

Italian Arugula: easy to grow, care-free, it’ll plant itself in the future

Cilantro: a heat tolerant variety that’s slow to bolt

Dukat Leafy Dill: an especially sweet and mellow-tasting variety chosen for flavor and vigor

Baby leaf lettuce mix:  a mix of gourmet flavors, colors & textures. Quick growing and delicious
And don't forget our feline friends — there’ll be a few containers of Gourmet Cat Grass, an extra fancy blend of 4 organically grown grasses just for our beloved kitties.

Please recycle your plastic six packs by dropping them off with the Master Gardeners so they can continue planting seeds to give away at the Green Tent each month.

Just a reminder...click here for great monthly tips for Southern California. And remember, be water wise; you can get great information and tips online at: http://bewaterwise.com.