Upstate NY Permaculture Network

My apologies. Correct link to article:

http://tinyurl.com/mushroomduckgrant

Steve

As mentioned in a post made last December, Work With Nature LLC applied for funding through Northeast SARE to support researching the feasibility of integrating meat duck production with cultivation of forest-grown shiitakes. We are please to announce we’ve been granted the funds to proceed with our research!

LINK to full article: http://agroforestrysolutions.blogspot.com/2012/02mushroomsduckssaregrantagroforestryperm.html

Sign up to receive updates on the project & other agroforestry developments:
“Like” us on Facebook
@agroforestryNY

cheers,
Steve

I received this reply and now feel that I understand how IPM and nutrient dense farming fit into a PDC. I hope that sharing my question and answer has helped others learn, too. I feel appreciative for the permie community that helps me continue to learn while I walk the journey toward regenerative living.

A. “You can have organic IPM strategies using neem oil and various other natural alternatives. Remember even BT is organic approved… Also nutrient dense farming is just another method that can be done totally organically, with rock dust, seaw…eed and whatever else.

The main thing is that you are not dependent on lots of inputs, with permaculture you try and minimize your inputs as much as possible, but that doesn’t mean permaculture is a strictly no input type of farming…

I hear what you are saying but I don’t think either method is against permaculture unless you were using chemicals that are either non renewable(commercial NPK fertilizers) or toxic (synthetic pesticides).

Permaculture doesn’t mean you don’t dare use an excavator on site because it’s oil powered, it’s about the development of sustainable human settlements and we need to take advantage of available technology while it’s here, if that means buying a whole heap of cow manure, rock dust, seaweed, doing some advanced composting and buying/producing on site sustainable pest control chemicals.”

Warmly,

patty love, MALS, PDC

Barefoot Edible Landscape & Permaculture – owner

patty

www.barefootpermaculture.com

RochesterPermacultureCenter – Program Director

www.rochesterpermaculturecenter.org

patty

http://www.meetup.com/RochesterPermaculture/

585.506.6505

PO Box 18212

Rochester, NY14618

Please note: I live a very full life, spending most of my time away from my computer and with my family and friends outdoors. There may be times when I don’t respond right away to your important email. If you require my immediate attention, please call 585.506.6505.

"My life’s purpose is gathering and sharing resources and information that regenerate my own and others’ abundant existence and vibrant well-being." patty love

"Discovery consists of seeing what everybody has seen and thinking what nobody has thought." ~ Albert Szent-Giorgi, Nobel Laureate

"Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?" ~ Mary Oliver

Dears Friends,

We are inspired to be holding this unique and very affordable PDC in theBuddhist pilgrimage city of Bodhygaya, India this Spring.

The intention is to not only provide a high quality, information-filled, and hands-on immersion experience for participants; but also to support the on-going efforts of sustainable development in Bodhgaya by the humble people, activists, and Buddhists monks & nuns in the local community.

Please help us spread the word about this unique and very affordable course to westerners who may be traveling through India this Spring looking for a quality course and life-changing experience at this unique setting.

More Info Below.

-The Living Mandala Team

____________________

Permaculture Design Certification Course
in the Heart of Bodhgaya, India

Sikkim House / Monastery, Bodhgaya, India

Only $175 – $525 US!

For More Information Click Here

In Association With

Sacred Earth Trust, Living Mandala, Itinerant Permaculture,

Instructor

Rico Zook & Support Staff

Course Description

Learn all about sustainability and receive your Permaculture Design Certificate in the setting of the sacred city of Bodghaya and its many monasteries, pilgrims and seekers who travel from all over the world to this place of the Buddha’s Enlightenment. Do hands-on projects, face challenging exercises, do a permaculture design, and learn about the many facets of creating a sustainable lifestyle while benefiting the local community and the efforts for sustainability in Bodhgaya. This is a full immersion experience that will change your outlook and your life forever, as you begin to build a life of resiliency.

Using a variety of learning techniques and strategies this course presents Permaculture as an integrated design approach to create sustainable human habitat. Course time will consist of traditional lectures, guest presentations, group discussions, games, exercises, hands-on projects, photos, movies and site visits. While we will focus on land systems, many discussions and examples will be explored of applications in the ‘Invisible Structures’. These are the social, cultural, political, and economic structures we create as humans that powerfully shape much of our world today. Not only will the course be about Permaculture, but it will also model it by its structure and the environment we create together during the course.

During the latter part of the course design teams will be formed and given real life design assignments that are relevant to the course venue. The course will culminate with each team giving presentations of their designs to the class and interested local people and groups. These designs will be left with venue to become valuable resources for them. Elements to whole sections of past student designs have been incorporated by many sites were this course has been hosted.

Join this course and be prepared for a life changing experience which will leave you much more prepared to respond to the global changes that are starting to happen with solutions, resiliency, and compassion.

The course will cover the soil food web, soil food web analysis, composts and compost extracts, and the use of microscopes.

Bodhgaya, India – The Place of the Buddha’s Enlightenment

Bodhgaya in northeastern India, is one of the most spiritual places in the Buddhist world and also an UNESCO WHS accredited town. Bodhgaya is the site of the Buddha’s enlightenment and the most important of four main Buddhist pilgrimage destinations. Known as Uruvela in the Buddha’s time, the city of Bodhgaya is now a town of about 30,000 permanent residents. The two major sacred sites in Bodhgaya are the Mahabodhi Temple and the Bodhi Tree, around which many other temples and monasteries of various Buddhist traditions (Japanese, Tibetan, Bhutanese and others) have been built. Every year, millions of Buddhist pilgrims flock to Bodhgaya to be inspired, dissipate negative karma and earn merit by visiting the holy site where the Buddha became the Buddha – the “Enlightened One.” There are many other sacred sites located nearby including Mahakala Cave and others. It is rich in culture and an international gateway, the busy winter season is frequented by pilgrims and visitors from all over the Himalayas and the world.

Who Should Take This Course?

This course is both for those who want a general but comprehensive introduction to sustainability and how to create it, for those wishing to get a complete and in depth introduction to permaculture, all its component elements, and the process and methodologies for creating a holistic permaculture design, and for those who people traveling through India who want to experience a truly life changing course that will give you skills and a design framework you can take with you the rest of your life to any country, continent, and ecosystem on the planet. We expect the course will be filled half with International travelers, and half with Indian Nationals. It is especially beneficial for farmers, ranchers, teachers, designers, all types of agriculturalist, architects, urban planners, engineers, resource managers, and anyone else who works with our physical world or does design work in its many forms. However, one does not need to be going into a permaculture career or a related field to benefit from this training. Many artists, medical professionals, business people, housewives, cooks, international travelers, and others have gained insights, understandings and powerful life, changing experiences that have enabled them to both increase their quality of life, as well as move all their endeavors towards creating a more sustainable world.

Supporting Sustainable Development With Local Communities in Bodhgaya

This workshop will culminate with several groups doing a real life design projects that will be relevant to the site of the workshop. Not only will the teaching be about Permaculture, but it will also model it by its structure and the environment we create together in the course. This workshop will contribute to the enrichment of its site and each of its participants. With the goal of having half international students and half local students this workshop will not only be an opportunity to learn about Permaculture, it will also offer an opportunity to understand we can create a regenerative, sustainable world together. The person attending the Permaculture Design Course will not only gain theoretical and practical knowledge on Permaculture at the end of the workshop but will be handed a Permaculture Design Course Certificate. This certificate will enable the participant to be a certified Permaculture Practitioner.

Permaculture in Developing Countries

From its inception Permaculture has quickly spread to over One hundred and twenty countries where farms and other sites are successfully applying its’ ideas, techniques and strategies. As further testament to its applicability, Permaculture is now being applied in many urban and suburban areas. In many developed countries these applications hold much promise for dealing with the many issues associated with mass populations.

What is Permaculture?

Permaculture is a design system to create regenerative, sustainable systems. Envisioned over 25 years ago by Bill Mollison and Dan Holmgren, from Australia, it has now spread to over 120 countries. Though its conception was as a land based system, its effectiveness has moved it into urban settings and to being applied in various social, political, and economic environments. Permaculture was created through the synthesis of many design systems, with the emphasis on nature as the penultimate one. Similarly, the insights and value of traditional and indigenous practices and knowledge are acknowledged along with the necessity of molding these with our current understandings and the appropriate technologies of today’s world. What Permaculture seeks to do is to create three-dimensional designs that are site specific and sustainable. By bringing together elements (orchard, water system, farmer, cow, etc.), techniques (organic framing, natural building, etc.) and strategies (microclimate, relative placement, etc.) a system is designed or altered based on regenerative relationships. It is these regenerative, beneficial relationships that give a system complexity, three dimensionality, and thus, resiliency.

About Sacred Earth Trust

Sacred Earth Trust is a not for profit organisation set up since 2009 to support and encourage the sustainable development and environmental protection of Sacred sites and UNESCO world heritage sites around the world, through working in co-operation with the local, indigenous people and international groups.

For More Information & To Register Click Here

e-mail: education

Phone: (707) 634-1461

Living Mandala

It’s not sitting well with me that IPM and nutrient dense gardening/farming are part of a PDC as I’m not seeing how those two methods fit into the ethics and principles of permaculture. Does anyone have thoughts they’d like to share that would help me understand how IPM and nutrient dense gardening/farming support the ethics and principles of permaculture? To be clear, I’m not seeking a debate on anything about those methods, only some insight as to their place within the teachings of permaculture.

Warmly,

patty love, MALS, PDC

Barefoot Edible Landscape & Permaculture – owner

patty

www.barefootpermaculture.com

RochesterPermacultureCenter – Program Director

www.rochesterpermaculturecenter.org

patty

http://www.meetup.com/RochesterPermaculture/

585.506.6505

PO Box 18212

Rochester, NY14618

Please note: I live a very full life, spending most of my time away from my computer and with my family and friends outdoors. There may be times when I don’t respond right away to your important email. If you require my immediate attention, please call 585.506.6505.

"My life’s purpose is gathering and sharing resources and information that regenerate my own and others’ abundant existence and vibrant well-being." patty love

"Discovery consists of seeing what everybody has seen and thinking what nobody has thought." ~ Albert Szent-Giorgi, Nobel Laureate

"Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?" ~ Mary Oliver

Enclosed is a corrected flyer for our Permaculture Design Course. We will be sending another soon.
CRH

Link to the full text published in this week’s Tompkins Weekly with hot links to resources, and the full PDF of the paper:

http://tinyurl.com/ForestMgmtMatters

thanks,
Steve

Hello Everyone:

This is a Permaculture Design Course Announcement. Enclosed is a flyer file made by one of the course hosts. Please pass this around to anyone who might be interested.
This will be a Comprehensive and Mind Manifesting Permaculture Design Course. Learn Permaculture skills while helping to create the initial design for the Peace – Atorium. This course is expected to fill quickly so be sure to reserve your spot. Contact: http://clearlightpermaculture.com for details. Some accomodations are available.

Hello Steve,

I am thrilled to get information from you, but I would rather that you did not use this email address (I have no idea how you got it in the first place)

Please use ew instead.

Thanks,
Elizabeth

PS. Please look for a separate email about next Friday.

On Fri, Feb 3, 2012 at 12:31 PM, Steve Gabriel <steve> wrote:

ANNOUNCING SPRING 2012 MUSHROOM CLASSES

NEWFIELD, NY — Work With Nature, LLC is pleased to announce a series of
Mushroom classes to be offered March through June in the Northeastern states
of New York, Vermont, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania.

The classes all focus on different elements of mushroom cultivation and the
link of mushrooms to healthy forests, soils, and people. Host sites for the
eleven classes include Cornell Cooperative Extension offices, permaculture
demonstration sites, and a range of local farms.

Workshops are being supported by the Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute
(http://FingerLakesPermaculture.org) and the Northeast Mushroom Growers Network
(http://mushrooms.cals.cornell.edu/).

Mushroom cultivation and wild foraging have become increasingly popular in
recent years as growing interest in the organism has led to a range of
discoveries, from the compounds in shiitake mushrooms that prevent cancer to
the potential for oyster mushrooms to comsume oil from spills to the recent
discovery by a team of Yale students that the fungus Pestalotiopsis
microspora is able to decompose plastic trash. (see website for links)

Recently, work by researchers at Cornell University has demonstrated the economic
potential for farming Shiitake, which are grown on hardwood logs and soaked to force
fruiting. Research has established the most suitable northern hardwood
species for cultivation (Oak, Sugar Maple, Beech, Ironwood), the proper
cultivation methods, and the estimated yields from a well managed operation.
A high value food and medicine crop, shittakes retail at $12 to 16 dollars a
pound if grown outside naturally on logs.

Workshops are facilitated by Steve Gabriel, who has been cultivating and
experimenting with forest grown mushrooms, maple sugaring, and other
agroforestry practices since 2006. Participants will learn several
cultivation methods for multiple species (shiitake, lions mane, oyster, and
stropharia) that are practical on both a home and small commercial scale and
appropriate for all experience levels.

For more full class descriptions and registration info visit
www.workwithnaturedesign.com or call (607) 342-2825. Visitors to the website
can also sign up for a weekly blog with mushroom stories, research, and
recipes.

Dates and locations:

INOCULATION DEMONSTRATIONS
CCE Steuben County, Bath, NY: March 24
SUNY Ulster County, Kingston, NY: April 28
CCE Hamilton County, Piseco, NY: May 19

MUSHROOMS IN PERMACULTURE SYSTEMS
Brooks Bend Farm, Montague, MA: April 21
Three Sisters Farm, Sandy Lake, PA: May 12
Rochester Permaculture Center, Rochester NY: May 13

SMALL SCALE SHIITAKE PRODUCTION
Anderson Farm, Mecklenburg, NY: May 5th & 6th

MUSHROOMS & FOREST MANAGEMENT
Little Farm of Paradise, Hampton NY: May 20
Shannon Brook Farm, Watkins Glen, NY: June 10

MUSHROOMS WILD & CULTIVATED
Shelburne Farms, Shelburne, VT: June 2
Twin Ponds Retreat, Brookfield, VT: June 3

CONTACT:
Steve Gabriel, Work With Nature LLC
www.WorkWithNatureDesign.com
steve
607.342.2825

http://www.indiegogo.com/Rahma-Free-Health-Clinic-Edible-Forest-Garden?a=373323&i=emal

Hi!

I’m writing to let you know about the ‘Rahma Free Health Clinic Edible Forest Garden’

This is an urban forest garden project in Syracuse, NY that will be located on the grounds of a new free health clinic that is opening this spring – bringing the mission of the health clinic outside it’s doors using perennial Permaculture forest garden design – we hope this will be a model for health care sites everywhere in years to come. Providing a resilient food resource in the ‘food desert’ of the Syracuse south side. And contributing to the extensive green infrastructure goals of the city.

But we need your help to make it happen. Take a moment to check it out on IndieGoGo and also share it with your friends. All the tools are there. Get perks (everything from stickers and t-shirts to polyculture seed mixes, custom tree guild designs, signed full-color prints of the garden design, and consulting services for your donation), make a contribution, or simply follow updates. If enough of us get behind it, we can make ‘Rahma Free Health Clinic Edible Forest Garden’ happen.

http://www.indiegogo.com/Rahma-Free-Health-Clinic-Edible-Forest-Garden?a=373323&i=emal

And please, share far and wide, a crowdfunding grassroots campaign such as this relies heavily on word of mouth and sharing. Thank you. ~Frank

Fruiting Trees & Shrubs Pruning Workshop
with Akiva Silver

presented by the Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute

March 3, 2012
1-4pm
at Ecovillage at Ithaca

How do you prune your fruit trees and shrubs?
Have you avoided pruning because you don’t feel confident in your pruning skills?

Well, you’re not alone! This pruning workshop, led by Akiva Silver, will initiate and deepen your skills in the art of pruning. Most of the day will entail being outside, working with backyard fruiting trees and shrubs that might look just like yours–some are old, overgrown, and need pruning to restore health and fruiting ability, some are young and need only minimal pruning. You’ll leave this class with a newfound confidence to work with your trees for better health and production.

Please dress for the weather, especially to stay warm. Wear sturdy boots. Bring gloves and good quality pruning shears, loppers and saws if you already own them.

Sliding scale fee: $15-40 per person
All proceeds cover the cost of this event, and any surplus supports other educational events organized by the Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute.

About the Instructor:
Akiva Silver’s approach to teaching stems from his work as a primitive skills mentor, his deep knowledge of our local ecology, and dedication to connecting people with their environment. Known widely as “the tree guy”, he has worked for a native plant nursery, a tree service, and on fruit orchards. He has been assisting Ecovillagers to plant and maintain tree crops on Ecovillage land.

Location:
Ecovillage at Ithaca is located 2 miles to the west of Ithaca on route 79. Please obey speed limits once you leave highway 79, and yield to pedestrians and bicyclists. Park only in the visitor’s parking lot or along the field on the north side of the road.
Meet at 100 Rachel Carson Way, Ithaca, NY, which is the Common House of the First Neighborhood.

Register at: http://FingerLakesPermaculture.org to reserve your spot in the class.

###
Earn your Permaculture Design Certificate
with the Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute
http://www.fingerlakespermaculture.org
###

From: “Liz Falk”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Join the *Cornell Garden Based Learning (CGBL)http://www.gardening.cornell.edu and Cornell Cooperative Extension of Erie and Niagara Counties *for a *Tend the Garden Training session February 22nd* at the Gloria J. Parks Community Center; 3242 Main Street; Buffalo, NY 14214. The program will begin at 10:00 am and end at 2:30 pm; lunch will be provided. Cost is $15.00.

The session is designed to assist existing youth garden programs (small or large) in developing a longer-term approach to garden-based programs in hopes of expanding existing programs that foster a commitment to yearlong food systems. *The Tend the Garden session is part of a three part professional development program offered by the CGBL called Take Root! A Training for Garden Educators (http://blogs.cornell.edu/garden/takeroot/).*

During this session, the CGBL Team will introduce a logic model as a tool to create project sustainability both on the ground, in the garden and within a program. The training session will cover building capacity, forming collaborations, extending the gardening season, building healthy soil and composting, and more. Groups with an existing school or community garden program hoping to expand and increase project sustainability are encouraged to attend.

If there is a particular topic you would like to see addressed that is not listed, please let us know at 716-652-5400 x 150.
*
Registration required by February 15th to Laurie Korb at 716-652-5400 x 130 or llk47@cornell.edu. Cost is $15.00. Class size is limited. (If the fee is an issue, please contact Laurie.)
*

###
Earn your Permaculture Design Certificate
with the Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute
http://www.fingerlakespermaculture.org
###

Corning Garden Club

presents a free public lecture

February 10, 2012 | 7:00 p.m. | 171 Cedar Arts Center, Drake House, Corning, NY

PERMACULTURE: Ecological Solutions for the backyard & Beyond

A presentation by Steve Gabriel, of Finger Lakes Permaculture
Institute and Cornell University Department of Horticulture

- Heard of permaculture and want to learn more about it?
- Want to learn more about the interface between ecology, design & gardening?

Presented in partnership with 171 Cedar Arts Center Corning’s Garden Club
DIRECTIONS: http://www.171cedararts.org/index.asp?pageid=12

Make a day of it! Cornell Cooperative Extension will host the
Locally-grown Foods Festival from 4-8pm
at the Local 1000 Union Hall, 100 Civic Center Plaza!
Meet farmers, sample local veggies, fruits, meats, cheeses, wines.
$5/person, $10/family.

ANNOUNCING SPRING 2012 MUSHROOM CLASSES

NEWFIELD, NY — Work With Nature, LLC is pleased to announce a series of
Mushroom classes to be offered March through June in the Northeastern states
of New York, Vermont, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania.

The classes all focus on different elements of mushroom cultivation and the
link of mushrooms to healthy forests, soils, and people. Host sites for the
eleven classes include Cornell Cooperative Extension offices, permaculture
demonstration sites, and a range of local farms.

Workshops are being supported by the Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute
(http://FingerLakesPermaculture.org) and the Northeast Mushroom Growers Network
(http://mushrooms.cals.cornell.edu/).

Mushroom cultivation and wild foraging have become increasingly popular in
recent years as growing interest in the organism has led to a range of
discoveries, from the compounds in shiitake mushrooms that prevent cancer to
the potential for oyster mushrooms to comsume oil from spills to the recent
discovery by a team of Yale students that the fungus Pestalotiopsis
microspora is able to decompose plastic trash. (see website for links)

Recently, work by researchers at Cornell University has demonstrated the economic
potential for farming Shiitake, which are grown on hardwood logs and soaked to force
fruiting. Research has established the most suitable northern hardwood
species for cultivation (Oak, Sugar Maple, Beech, Ironwood), the proper
cultivation methods, and the estimated yields from a well managed operation.
A high value food and medicine crop, shittakes retail at $12 to 16 dollars a
pound if grown outside naturally on logs.

Workshops are facilitated by Steve Gabriel, who has been cultivating and
experimenting with forest grown mushrooms, maple sugaring, and other
agroforestry practices since 2006. Participants will learn several
cultivation methods for multiple species (shiitake, lions mane, oyster, and
stropharia) that are practical on both a home and small commercial scale and
appropriate for all experience levels.

For more full class descriptions and registration info visit
www.workwithnaturedesign.com or call (607) 342-2825. Visitors to the website
can also sign up for a weekly blog with mushroom stories, research, and
recipes.

Dates and locations:

INOCULATION DEMONSTRATIONS
CCE Steuben County, Bath, NY: March 24
SUNY Ulster County, Kingston, NY: April 28
CCE Hamilton County, Piseco, NY: May 19

MUSHROOMS IN PERMACULTURE SYSTEMS
Brooks Bend Farm, Montague, MA: April 21
Three Sisters Farm, Sandy Lake, PA: May 12
Rochester Permaculture Center, Rochester NY: May 13

SMALL SCALE SHIITAKE PRODUCTION
Anderson Farm, Mecklenburg, NY: May 5th & 6th

MUSHROOMS & FOREST MANAGEMENT
Little Farm of Paradise, Hampton NY: May 20
Shannon Brook Farm, Watkins Glen, NY: June 10

MUSHROOMS WILD & CULTIVATED
Shelburne Farms, Shelburne, VT: June 2
Twin Ponds Retreat, Brookfield, VT: June 3

CONTACT:
Steve Gabriel, Work With Nature LLC
www.WorkWithNatureDesign.com
steve
607.342.2825

The Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute

presents:

PERMACULTURE DESIGN CERTIFICATE COURSE #10

July 27 through August 12, 2012

in the beautiful Finger Lakes Region of New York

JOIN A LEARNING COMMUNITY
Learn the permaculture design process during 15 engaging days in an off-grid learning community. Since 2005, we have been training people of all backgrounds, ages, experience and skill levels to design using natural patterns based on ecological principles. Students bring a mix of skills and experience that our teachers draw out to enrich the course for all participants. Our graduates leave ready to design and create with a new network of colleagues and friends to inspire and assist.

LEARN FROM EXPERIENCED STAFF
Steve Gabriel, Karryn Olson Ramanujan, Rafter Sass Ferguson, and Michael Burns each offer years of practical knowledge gained through work on nationally renowned projects, consulting with clients, and in their own communities. Collectively they have taught thousands of hours of permaculture design courses.

ENJOY A QUALITY CURRICULUM
Our teachers design, coordinate and innovate their teaching every year to deliver the traditional permaculture curriculum and include new ideas and strategies developed by practitioners in northeastern North America. Design skills are taught through hands-on and experiential activities developed over seven years of the Institute’s courses.

$1200 tuition includes prepared meals and camping.

Register and pay in full by May 1 and save $200.

Work trade options for reducing tuition available. See our website for details.

Class size is limited. Learn more about the course and register at:

http://FingerLakesPermaculture.org
info@fingerlakespermaculture.org
607-527-0607

###

Care about small farmers? How about healthy, sustainable food and food justice? Then please join us for the…

Fair Farm Bill Campaign Kickoff Meeting!
Wednesday, February 1st, 2012
7 – 8 pm
Albany Quaker Meeting House
727 Madison Ave
(Snacks provided)
Free parking at 747 Madison Ave

RSVP at: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dF9fVlVyT044QVpLWkFkWGw5eEU2LVE6MQ

Our food system is broken, and we need to fix it. Thousands of family farmers are pushed out of business while huge corporations like Monsanto are making record profits, and consumers also pay the price.

But it hasn’t always been this way, and it doesn’t have to be. The good news is, here in New York, we can level the playing field and make the system work for farmers, consumers and the environment. Come to help us fix our food system!

Right now, we are launching a campaign here in Albany because we have a once in 5 years opportunity to make major food system reform in New York and across the country. Senator Gillibrand is on the Agricultural Committee and we need to show her that New Yorkers want her to stand up for small farmers and consumers.

Come to Food & Water Watch’s Fair Farm Bill Campaign Kickoff Meeting to learn how you can help! All are welcome– bring your friends!

RSVP here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dF9fVlVyT044QVpLWkFkWGw5eEU2LVE6MQ

Fair Farm Bill Campaign Kickoff Meeting!
Wednesday, February 1st, 2012
7 – 8 pm
Albany Quaker Meeting House
727 Madison Ave

To learn more about how you can get involved before the meeting, please contact Mara Schechter at mara.schechter@gmail.com or 203-912-8418.

Join the facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/363023050378376/

Thank you and hope to see you there,
Mara Schechter
Food & Water Watch Field Organizer

Learn more: www.foodandwaterwatch.org/fairfarmbill

Sign the petition: http://action.foodandwaterwatch.org/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=9181

2012 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map – http://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb/

“For the first time, the map is available as an interactive GIS-based map, for which a broadband Internet connection is recommended, and as static images for those with slower Internet access. Users may also simply type in a ZIP Code and find the hardiness zone for that area.

“No posters of the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map have been printed. But state, regional, and national images of the map can be downloaded and printed in a variety of sizes and resolutions.”

And an article on the new map in the Washington Post -
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/plant-hardiness-map-revealed/2012/01/25/gIQANAxtQQ_story.html?hpid=z4:

“”The new map is generally one 5-degree Fahrenheit half zone warmer than the previous map throughout much of the United States,” said Kim Kaplan, of the Agricultural Research Service.

“She said that in spite of the zone creep, the new map is not meant to validate climate change, and that the changes are driven in part by more sophisticated and fuller data collection. Using new technology, the map makers have been able to assess the effects of elevation, prevailing winds, bodies of water and urban heat islands in a way the old map could not, she said. Viewers can now type in their ZIP codes to get zone information.”

Locally-Grown Foods Festival

Friday, February 10th
4:00-8:00 PM
Union Hall, 100 Civic Center Plaza, Corning

- Meet farmers – Taste samples – Learn about local farms – Purchase local products – Recipies & Demonstrations -

The public is cordially invited to a unique tasting experience. Sample locally produced meats, vegetables, fruits, cheeses, wines, and other farm products!

Meet dozens of Finger Lakes farmers! Learn how and where to buy fresh, healthy, local foods.

Visit and learn about more about Community Supported Agriculture (CSA).

The event will feature several different CSAs that offer a variety of shares for sale.

$5.00 per person $10.00 per family

Register at the door or in advance at:
https://secure.qgiv.com/for/cornellce/event/4188/

Cornell University
Cooperative Extension
Steuben County
Recipes and Demonstrations
Contact 607-664-2300
for more information

Cornell Cooperative Extension provides equal program and employment opportunities. CCE does not endorse or recommend any specific product or service. Please contact the Cornell Cooperative Extension office in your county if you have any special needs.

###
Earn your Permaculture Design Certificate
with the Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute
http://www.fingerlakespermaculture.org
###