[UrbanCropCircle] Lasagna Gardening & Sheet Composting

[Julianne Jaz]

Everyone, thanks again, very much, for the opportunity to come and spend a
couple of hours with all of you!  As I said to my friend, Carol, I was so
appreciative of everyone's kindness and enthusiasm - it was really a
pleasure to have been invited! (Thanks, Rhonda!)

Here are some links for more information:

For the seed catalogs:
Kitazawa Seed Co - http://www.kitazawaseed.com/
Gourmet Seed International - http://www.gourmetseed.com/
Johnny's Selected Seed - http://www.johnnyseeds.com/
Fungi Perfecti - http://www.fungi.com/
Abundant Life - http://www.abundantlifeseeds.com/stores/1/index.cfm
Territorial Seed Co - http://www.territorialseed.com/
The Cook's Garden - http://www.cooksgarden.com/

and here are two more a friend returned yesterday:
Burnt Ridge - http://www.burntridgenursery.com/
Raintree Nursery - http://www.raintreenursery.com/

All of these places are great about sending catalogs straight-away! >;-)

*Here are some additional links which may be helpful:*

Kitchen Gardeners International (Promoting the 'local-est' food of all,
globally) - http://www.kitchengardeners.org/

Dayville Supply Company (a local [Snohomish] source of straw bales;
excellent pricing on 3-string bales!)
http://www.dayvillesupply.com/doc/supplies.htm

Greenhouse MegaStore - great source for grow lights, heating pads for
seedling germination, etc. - http://www.greenhousemegastore.com/specials.asp

Southern Exposure Seed Exchange - promoting heirloom varieties
http://www.southernexposure.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=SFNT

How to Select Garden Tools & Supplies -
http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=howTo&p=LawnGarden/GardenToolBG.html#7

Portal to all the "Edible Communities" Magazines, including Edible Seattle:
http://www.ediblecommunities.com/portal/edible-publications.htm

King County Extension, Master Gardener Homepage -
http://king.wsu.edu/gardening/mastergardener.htm

What's That Bug? - http://www.whatsthatbug.com/index.html

also - The Maritime Northwest Garden Guide, Planning Calendar for Year-Round
Organic Gardening, produced by Seattle Tilth; available through Tilth, PCC,
Madison Market, et al

And, here's a recap of the list of materials that are all usable for
creating lasagna gardens:

newspaper (none with "shiny" ink, but ok otherwise)
cardboard
coffee grounds/tea bags (btw, don't compost either *bleached* coffee filters
or tea-bags)
shredded paper (do not use "NCR" paper, which is the 'self-carbon' stuff)
sawdust, wood shavings, wood chips, branches no larger than thumb width, cut
into small (2-4") pieces (do not use cedar or black walnut)
peat moss
seaweed/kelp
kitchen scraps (veggies only)
compost/worm castings
straw (do not use hay - hay = seed heads; straw = stalks without the seeds
>;-)
burlap sacks, cotton materials
hair
grass clippings
animal manures (composted horse manure, chicken or rabbit manure)
leaves (probably not leaves like laurel, or holly - they take forever to
break down!)
wood ashes
spent hops from a brewery, or rice/buckwheat hulls

Remember, you're creating something you want to compost - so you'll need a
Carbon : Nitrogen ratio of approx 3 or 4 parts (Carbon) : 1 part
(Nitrogen).  Build to a depth of 24" initially, first layers are newspapers
and cardboard (wet), and then try to alternate 3-4" carbon materials with 1"
nitrogen materials.  Wet it all down afterwards to the consistency of a damp
sponge.  You can either plant into immediately, or cover with black plastic
(weighted down with rocks or logs) for 6 weeks (or so) to give it a jump on
composting.

OK, and now for the most important part - HAVE FUN!!

I wish you all the best - send me pictures of your gardens!
>;-)
Julianne

-- 
To be hopeful in bad times is not just foolishly romantic. It is based on
the fact that human history is a history not only of cruelty but also of
compassion, sacrifice, courage, kindness. What we choose to emphasize in
this complex history will determine our lives. If we see only the worst, it
destroys our capacity to do something. If we remember those times and
places--and there are so many--where people have behaved magnificently, this
gives us the energy to act, and at least the possibility of sending this
spinning top of a world in a different direction. And if we do act, in
however small a way, we don't have to wait for some grand utopian future.
The future is an infinite succession of presents, and to live now as we
think human beings should live, in defiance of all that is bad around us, is
itself a marvelous victory.
Samir Adil
President, Iraq Freedom Congress


Live life like art.
Lacy Stockton
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