SELVA & More- April 7, 2019

CONSERVATION DONE RIGHT

...after

SELVA International, a Venice-based environmental non-profit, has partnered with conservation biologist and landscape contractor Steven Williams to offer EcoGardens, a sustainable landscape service to help you convert your water thirsty lawn to an ecological garden.

Learn how your garden can:
• Conserve water
• Save money
• Grow native plants to attract birds and butterflies
• Reduce polluted runoff to our beaches
• Collect and use rainwater
• Support our local community

At the Green Tent, SELVA International will display before and after pictures of sustainable, "Ocean Friendly Gardens." They'll have informational handouts on SELVA's EcoGardens program and Surfrider's Ocean Friendly Gardens program. They will be distributing free LADWP water-saving devices (low-flow shower heads, sink aerators, and more!) Get your questions answered and free advice on ecological landscaping!

before...

Would you like to sign up for Selva's non-profit service to install a water saving EcoGarden at your home? Check out this service at http://www.selvainternational.org/ecogardens.htm and find out more at the Green Tent this Sunday.

Joining SELVA at the Green Tent we are lucky to have, Marla Brennan, the singing, fruit-juggling eco-chef. Catch her act from 10 a.m. to 12 noon.  Marla is also available to visit your school or play group and make the serious issue of saving the planet seem like child's play.

The Final Footprint - Green Burial March 31, 2019

Here is one unexpected way to benefit those you leave behind: 

Transition Mar Vista and Bridging Transitions present: 

Greening Your Death: Your Final Footprint.

Dedicated to sustainable living, the green movement has been slow to address how our deaths impact the environment and that impact is larger than you think. 

In the US we bury 20 million board feet of wood for caskets, 1.6 million tons of concrete and 4.3 million gallons of embalming fluids containing Formaldehyde, a known carcinogen, every year! And cremation, often thought of as a green alternative to burial, has a significant carbon footprint. 

There is a better way to go!

Join us this Sunday, March 31, at the Green Tent to learn all about Green Burial, at Sea burial, and other more earth friendly options.  You may also want to explore the Green Burial Council website.

Drop by for a chat, lots of information, resources, and play a communal game aimed at creating awareness. 

Honoring the human life cycle and honoring the earth can go hand in hand, so let's green our final footprint.

Master Gardeners - March 24, 2019

Return of the Master Gardeners!

The LA County Master Gardeners return to The Green Tent this Sunday from 9 am til 1 pm with a fun mix of free food plants — including edible flowers — and free seed packets. Stop by with your gardening questions and enrich your container, patio or backyard garden with one of these, grown expressly for the Mar Vista community.

Cilantro: love it or hate it, it’s a widely used herb that can brighten a salsa, an omelette, a dish of Indian curry or anything you want to add it to.

Kale:  Great dark green leafy veg that was once THE trendy food, but have you ever considered its nutritional value?  Loaded with vitamins, minerals and even protein! 

Scallions: yummy little sidekick or base for recipes. Itty bitty mini onions, only milder.



Peppers: a mix of bells and other varieties, both sweet, mild and hot 

Leeks:   Perfect when sautéed, grilled or roasted on their own or use them for mild onion flavoring in soups and stews



Spinach:  Just ask Popeye!

And you can eat these, too!  Calendula flowers and marigolds — but those marigolds can help your tomatoes ward off nematodes, which love their roots.

 And just because California officials declared we out of drought, doesn’t mean life will stay that way forever. It won’t. So please: BE WATER WISE !!!   

Got questions about your garden? Call or write to the Master Gardener hotline or consult these pages for articles that will help you.

Garden Tips for Los Angeles County

 Master Gardener Program Articles

And please, if you have any empty six packs (plastic, not beer!), let the MGs recycle them next month with even more plants to give away; just bring them to the booth.

SLOLA - Seed Library of Los Angeles March 17, 2019

Saving Seeds - Saving the Planet

David King, SLOLA Chair, is waiting
to teach you about seed saving!

This Sunday, March 17 at the Green Tent, representing the Seed Library of Los Angeles, David King, founding chair, will have seed samples and information on upcoming SLOLA events!

SLOLA just launched their very own blog, so click here for updates and info that you won't want to miss!


SLOLA is our local organization protecting the diversity of our food supply – come and talk to David about saving some of the remaining seeds from summer or to gear up for the coming winter harvest. You can see the seed inventory awaiting checkout at SLOLA.

How We Eat Can Save Our Planet - March 10

HOW DO YOUR EATING HABITS IMPACT THE ENVIRONMENT?

According to the well-researched Drawdown Project data, if we can shift our habits to reduce food waste and eat lower on the food chain, we will significantly reduce the release of greenhouse gasses, the cause of global warming.

Sustain our fragile planet while you enjoy healthier, less expensive meals.

  Here are some tips to get you started.  Stop by the Green Tent this Sunday and learn more or share your own suggestions.  

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

Grow your own  
Food is right outside your door. What could be more convenient? Don't have space for your own garden?  Help a friend or neighbor with their crops and share the bounty.

Buy and prepare only what you need. 

Learn how experts such as Kitchen Karate help you determine the right quantities of food to purchase and prepare for your meals.  

Save Water
Eat Lower on the Food Chain

Eat Lower on the Food Chain
Replace beef with other forms of protein to save water, money and lives.  And when you do consume animal protein, look into how it was raised.  Choose farmers who use more humane practices at all stages of meat production.

Prepare  and eat meals at home. You will burn about 250 calories for each meal you prepare.  If you have young children, include them in all phases of the process, from menu planning to cleaning up.  You will teach them a valuable skill which is empowering and a money saver.  

Mar Vista resident and Green Committee Chair Jeanne Kuntz is a certified wellness coach.  Stop by the Green Tent and get a free consultation on habit change.  Learn more at her  website, Teaching Wellness .