Archive for August, 2009
Daffodil Day Addendum
You may remember that last week I posted about Daffodil Day. I was wondering where the flowers are grown – are they local? I sent off an email to the Queensland Cancer Council to find out, and received the following reply:
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Dear my real name,
Thank you for your interest in Daffodil Day.
The fresh daffodils are grown in Melbourne and shipped to QLD for us to sell. If you could please let me know where you are located I will direct you to your nearest site.
If you would like any further information please do not hesitate to contact us on 1300 65 65 85.
Kind Regards,
name removed
name removed
job title removed
Cancer Council Queensland
T: (07) 3634 5235 F: (07) 3259 8524
553 Gregory Terrace, Fortitude Valley QLD 4006
www.cancerqld.org.au
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So it sounds like the daffodils are grown as locally as they can be (it’s too hot in Queensland to grow them, as my co-workers pointed out). It also means they’re not grown in the flower industry’s equivalent of sweat shops, like the ones in South East Asia, South America and the US. Hopefully the chemicals used to grow them (I’m sure there are still some) are within safe(r) levels.
Dying daffodils - biodegradation is good!
I think that’s the best we can hope for, regarding daffodils. At least they’re biodegradable, unlike the pins and bears and pens and other merchandise people were buying yesterday.
Newsflash: Avaaz prioritises climate change
I’m a bit of an online activist. As far as environmentalism goes, I keep up with the latest things Get Up!, Avaaz, change.org and The Wilderness Society are doing via email. I’m a bit of a petition signer. Sometimes I write letters and fill in surveys. Occasionally I rally. I never donate because I can’t afford it, unfortunately.
The latest petition from Avaaz is an important one, I think. Avaaz works to help globally in lots of different ways (attempting to overthrow regimes in Iran and Burma, victims of natural disasters, calling for action on climate change and so on). Avaaz is global, so they have a wide reach. The petition is asking whether they should make climate change activism the priority coming up to the UN climate summit in September and the big event in Copenhagen in December. We really need to get world leaders off their arses, so I think the answer has got to be a resounding YES.
Sign Avaaz's 'Tck Tck Tck' petition to call for action on climate change.
Here’s the scripted email Avaaz is encouraging us to send around.
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Hi,
I’ve just signed a petition urging world leaders to support an ambitious, fair, and binding global climate treaty. Please sign the petition here, and the campaigners at Avaaz will deliver it to leaders at key moments in the build up to December’s vital UN climate negotiations in Copenhagen.
Thanks!
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So dudes, go sign.
Recycle: Polystyrene
I bet you thought you couldn’t recycle polystyrene. I know I thought that!
You can recycle this kind of polystyrene, but not the little 'packing peanuts' or the kind used for food packaging (I think).
Today in my Freecycle Cafe daily digest email, though, I got the following message:
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Just thought I’d let people know that it is apparently possible to recycle polystyrene in Brisbane. The details are at link A and link B but basically you can take polystyrene produce boxes for free recycling at the address listed in Acacia Ridge. They apparently charge for recycling other packaging types of polystyrene and I’m not sure of the details.
As I often see these boxes advertised on freecycle I thought I’d let people know what to do with them if they don’t get any takers. You can also post it to:
REPSA
PO Box 211
Richmond Vic 3121
if you’re feeling super green that day!
happy recycling!
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(Someone also mentioned that you can use the polystyrene boxes to grow herbs and veges in, which my mum already does.)
Super awesome, huh? The Brisbane EPS recycling place is in Acacia Ridge, so that’s definitely local. Thanks Freecycle Cafe lady!
DIY Scanner
Check this out!
Camera... or scanner?
Matt Embrey from Green Upgrader made it. I like it. I don’t own a scanner or a printer – this looks like a cool idea. I print/scan at work. I only ever print maybe once every six months, for personal reasons. I think I limit it to about once a month for work reasons, and then it’s only one or two pages (double-sided of course).
Multi-purpose devices, that’s what it’s all about.
Meanwhile: Bug-free Gardening
What am I going to do about the bugs in my container garden?
They are these weird little flying critters that look a bit like fruit flies. I think they are the same ones that killed my herbs last time I tried to grow them. They hang around, looking innocuous and blending their little black bodies into the soil. Then they suck all the moisture out of the plants… like those creepy prehistoric bugs sucked the moisture out of people on The X Files! And there’s nothing you can do about it.
Or is there? Does anyone know how to get rid of these bugs? My basil is just a tiny bud, and my parsley and oregano aren’t even up yet!
Tiny baby basil.
And they’re lurking around my shallots (spring onions).
Little shallots, all in a row.
Strangely, they’re not bothering my onions and spinach.
No bugs by the spinach.
Maybe it’s because they’re out the back and the herbs and shallots are on the front verandah. The herbs were out the front last time too, but I made sure to scrub the pots and use different soil and I grew from seed rather than buy seedlings… and still there are the bugs!
I don’t really have room to plant companion plants (I already have nasturtiums, in a hanging basket), but I will find room if that’s the wayto fix it.
Nasturtium seedling.
Anyone, ideas?
Spotlight: Wind Power
So often when we think of renewable energy, we think of solar. But what about wind?
Wind turbines.
There are plenty of advantages, such as:
- Wind is free and doesn’t create pollution. Any greenhouses gases created in the production of the wind turbines is negated within the first few months of energy production.
- Wind turbines take up much less land thank solar panels, so the surrounding land can be used for things like agriculture.
- Some people think the turbines are unsightly. I think they’re pretty! They’re like a symbol of the climate revolution for me.
There are some potential set-backs when considering wind power though.
- Wind turbines do create noise pollution. Commercial wind turbines sound like a small jet engine, so they can only be installed in remote areas, away from towns. Considering Australia’s small population as compared to land area, I don’t think this would be a problem though.
- Sometimes birds and bats are found dead around the base of the turbines. That’s a big one for me – I don’t like the idea of hurting the wildlife. I’m not sure how to get around this.
- You need to locate the wind turbines in areas where you get a lot of wind, otherwise the energy produced is too sporadic. Again, this isn’t a problem for Australia. We have plenty of big, open, windy spaces. You can even locate the turbines in the ocean! (I wonder what impact that would have on the ocean-life though.)
Wind is becoming more and more popular, and more commercially viable. Recently, in north-western America, over 2000 megawatts of energy were created by wind in just one hour!
For home production though, I think solar is better, since it’s silent, cheaper, easily installed on rooves and produced energy more reliably in most areas. For commercial energy, however, I think wind is a great way to go… except for the impact on wildlife. Any ideas on how to combat that?
Meanwhile… Daffodil Day
Yankee Elv is sick at the moment. Yesterday when I stopped off at the shops to get her some icy poles and ginger ale, since she can’t keep anything else down, I saw some fresh daffodils for sale. I bought some to cheer her up, and she really liked them. They’re in a vase in our bedroom right now, so she can see and smell them (they have a really strong, lovely smell).
Daffodils for Yankee Elv
Daffodils aren’t usually just sitting around in the supermarket, it’s just that Daffodil Day is coming up next Friday, so merchandise is everywhere. I don’t like to buy random stuff that I probably won’t use again (like badges or teddy bears), even if it is for a good cause. I’d rather just donate. However, the flowers won’t hang around in landfill for all time and there was a very good reason for purchasing them – to make Yankee Elv feel better!
It did get me thinking, on the bus home though. Where are the daffodils grown? Are they grown sustainably? And, big picture – are cut flowers bad for the environment?
I know that the flower industry in the US and South East Asia is really bad – lots of chemicals that leach into the ground and affect the workers, illegal workers who are taken advantage of, sometimes slavery is involved… but I thought that it couldn’t be that bad in Australia. I can’t find much on the importation of flowers to Australia (although Australia does make up about 1% of the world market in the cut flower industry, mostly exporting Australian and South African natives). Apparently we do import roses (and snow peas) from Zimbabwe, which is pretty bad considering we’re thus giving tacit support to Mugabe’s reign. I think the for the most part, Australia must grow it’s own flowers – apparently about 90% of flowers grown here are sold on the domestic market. If we imported more, then I think there would be some record on the net.
However, to be sure, I’ve emailed the Queensland Cancer Council, asking where the fresh daffodils sold for Daffodil Day are grown. I’m definitely going to be interested in the answer…
Friday Feast: Roasted Vegetable Tart
This recipe comes from The Complete Vegetarian Cookbook, from bay books (apparently there is no author or editor). Yankee Elv and I got it for Christmas one year, and like so many of our cookbooks, have only tried a few different meals from it. We tend to find something we like and eat it lots. Plus, time is at a premium and some days you just want to cook easy things.
This dish, whilst easy, is a bit time-consuming. It is super tasty though, and there’s enough that you’ll definitely have leftovers. I recommend giving it a try! Cooking this meal is also a great opportunity to roast some extra veges and just eat them by themselves… maybe with a bit of salt, or on pizza. Roasted butternut pumpkin (squash) with shallots (green onions) on pizza is awesome – especially when the pumpkin is squishy and soft!
Roasted Vegetable Tart
Roasted Vegetable Tart, ready to go in the oven.
Ingredients
Filling
2 Lebanese eggplants, cut into thick slices (halved if they’re fat eggplants)
350g pumpkin, chopped
2 zucchini, halved and cut into thick slices
1 to 2 tabs olive oil
1 large red capsicum, chopped
1 tsp olive oil, extra
1 red onion, cut into thin wedges
1 tab korma curry paste (we make our own using the sauce base, sans coconut milk, from our Chana Masala recipe)
Pastry
1.5 cups plain flour
125g butter, chopped
2/3 cup (100g) roasted cashews, finely chopped
1 tsp cumin seeds (or ground cumin)
2 – 3 tabs chilled water
Method
1. Preheat oven to 200°C (400°F).
2. Brush eggplant, zucchini and pumpkin with oil and bake in a tray for 30 mins. Turn, add capsicum, and bake for another 30 mins. Cool.
3. Meanwhile, heat the extra oil in a pan and cook the onion for 2 to 3 mins, or til soft.
4. Add curry paste and cook (stirring), for 1 min or until fragrant and well mixed. Cool.
5. Reduce the oven to 180°C (350°F).
6. Make the pastry:
- Sift flour into a large bowl.
- Rub in butter until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.
- Stir in cashews and cumin seeds.
- Make a well in centre and add water.
- Mix with a knife, using a cutting action, til mixture comes together in beads.
- Gather dough together and place on a sheet of baking paper.
- Flatten into a disc, then roll out to a 35cm (14″) circle.
7. Place pastry on a tray and spread onion mixture over it, leaving a wide border.
8. Add other veges over the onion, piling them higher in the centre.
9. Work your way around, folding the edges of the pastry up over the outer veges.
Work your way around, folding the pastry over the outer veges.
10. Bake for 45 mins, or until pastry is golden.
11. Serve immediately (but it’s also good reheated the next day).
Roasted Vegetable Tart, ready to eat. Yum!
Spotlight: Window Farming
Check out these pics! They’re photos of window farms in NYC.
Britta and Rebecca with the first window farm, May 2009. Photo by Julia Makarova.
Window farming came about because some folks (Britta Riley and Rebecca Bray) didn’t want to wait around for a new style of urban planning that would bring farms to the city. They decided to join forces with whoever else wanted to be involved and come up with their own DIY version. Thus, Window Farms.
Gabriel Willow's Window Farm, July 2009. Photo by Gabriel Willow.
I really like how cool it looks, that you can grow heaps in a small space, and that so many of the things you use are simple, cheap and/or ‘rubbish’.
The first window farm, Brooklyn, May 2009.
They’ve even had a feature window farm at an art gallery, Eyebeam.
Detail of big window farm at Eyebeam, July 2009. Photo by Sydney Shen.
We have perfect windows at work for this, but I don’t know if work is quite ready for it. The company does rent potted plants, but edible plants is probably a foreign notion. I might start small – a pot of spinach maybe. I have plenty of seedlings! I can put it on the window sill – I scored a window seat when we moved offices. That bit of sunshine makes it so much easier to get through the day. If I worked in NYC, I think I could arrange for the Window Farm girls to commission a window farm for work, but coming to Australia might be a bit much.
Detail of big window farm at Eyebeam, July 2009. Photo by Sydney Shen.
It looks so cool though…
Detail of big window farm at Eyebeam, July 2009. Photo by Sydney Shen.
Check out this video to learn more:
Reduce: The Impact of Aeroplanes
You know how birds fly in formation?
Geese flying in formation.
Imagine planes flying in formation.
Planes flying in formation.
It would reduce the amount of fuel required bit quite a significant margin. The planes at the back could coast, to a degree, in the first plane’s ‘updraft’. As someone who flies a couple of times a year for work, this is pretty cool news! I hope the airlines start implementing this soon.
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