Throw Your Weight Around at Better Farm's Volunteer Day May 11

Better Farm is hosting its First Annual Volunteer Day Sunday, May 11, in order to invite the public (and their moms in honor of Mother's Day) in for a behind-the-scenes look and hands-on learning experience of how Better Farm works. Get your hands dirty right alongside with us and learn a ton in the process about organic and alternative gardening methods, green building and repairs, and loving your Mother in the truest sense of the word.

Here's a rough outline of all the things we'll be up to! If you would like to attend, please email info@betterfarm.org with any particular items on this list that interest you. Lunch and refreshments will be provided!

10:30 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday, May 11

• Planting trees, seeds, and transplanting
• Tending plants in greenhouse
• Straw-bale construction for walls of new events gazebo
• Turning compost
• Shoveling mulch and compost, wheel-barreling to garden rows
• Cleaning up materials space
• Tool maintenance/tool shed organization
• Sauna construction
• Building slatted racks for bee hive
• Mulch gardening
• Rainwater catchment repairs/installation
• Outdoor shower installation 
• Pond maintenance
• Deck sanding, staining
• Shed demolition
• Chicken coop repair, deep clean

Introductory Piano Camp for Kids Slated Aug. 18-22

Image from Watertown Piano Lessons.

betterArts has scheduled an introductory piano camp for beginners Aug. 18-22 at Better Farm.

"Blast Off With Piano" is held for 45 minutes Monday through Friday at the Better Farm campus with instructor Jason Comet of Watertown Piano Lessons. Students will learn fundamentals of rhythm reading and keyboard geography, and how to play with others through board games, ensemble piano playing, and other age-appropriate activities. 

Children will be divided into three age groups:

• Ages 5-6 from 10-11 a.m.
• Ages 7-8 from 11 a.m.-12 p.m.
• Ages 9-10 from 12-1 p.m. 

There is a six-student maximum for each age group. On Saturday, Aug. 23, students are invited to perform at 12 p.m. to kick off the annual Summer Fest, an annual music festival held at Better Farm. 

Students do not need a keyboard instrument at home to practice on. The camp studio is equipped with enough keyboards for in-class use. 

Cost: $70, pre-register by at info@betterarts.org. To see our full calendar of events and workshops, visit www.betterfarm.org/upcoming-events.

Shop at AmazonSmile, Support betterArts

Shop at Amazon Smile and a portion of your purchase will support betterArts.

AmazonSmile is a new program allowing a portion of all your Amazon purchases to be donated to betterArts in order to support arts and cultural outreach in the North Country.

Here's how it works.

You visit smile.amazon.com (or simply follow this link) and plug "betterArts" in under charitable organization.  In order to browse or shop at AmazonSmile, customers must first select a charitable organization. For eligible purchases at AmazonSmile, the AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the purchase price to the customer’s selected charitable organization. AmazonSmile is the same Amazon marketplace you're used to—except a percentage of your purchase amounts will be donated to betterArts.

Each quarter, the AmazonSmile Foundation makes donations to eligible charitable organizations. To account for Product returns, a portion of the quarterly donations will be withheld until the following donation cycle.

What is the AmazonSmile Foundation?

The AmazonSmile Foundation is a 501(c)(3) private foundation created by Amazon to administer the AmazonSmile program. All donation amounts generated by the AmazonSmile program are remitted to the AmazonSmile Foundation. In turn, the AmazonSmile Foundation donates those amounts to the charitable organizations selected by our customers. Amazon pays all expenses of the AmazonSmile Foundation; they are not deducted from the donation amounts generated by purchases on AmazonSmile.

Click here to get started!

Better Radio Gets a Home at 88.5 FM!

A beautiful thing: Better Radio's call number and construction permit!

betterArts was today notified that its newest project, Better Radio, has been assigned a station number and granted a construction permit!

From this date, the non-profits arts and cultural outreach organization has 18 months to construct its tower and begin transmitting from the low-power station, 88.5 FM. In addition to broadcasting via this station, Better Radio will be shared internationally through podcasts via betterArts' website and blog posts at betterfarm.blogspot.com. In order for the tower, transmitter, and all other associated broadcast equipment to be realized for this project, betterArts is set to launch a fundraising campaign in order to acquire all necessary items and have start-up capital for broadcasting. To find out how you can support this initiative, email info@betterarts.org.

Better Radio has already created partnerships with Indian River High School, students from Sackets Central, several professional musicians living in the region, Best Buy, and volunteers throughout the North Country and beyond who are interested in sharing their time, energy, and expertise with the project. To learn more and get involved, visit www.betterarts.org/better-radio.

For the technically minded among you, here's the fine print:

Call Sign: NEW     Service: FL

Community of License: REDWOOD, NY   File Number: BNPL20131025AGS

Action: GRANTED  [04/23/2014]   Type: ORIGINAL CONSTRUCTION PERMIT

CDBS Facility ID: 193947   CDBS Application ID: 1582242

Link to Application

Additional Information

--------------------------------------------------------------

The information within this email notification is provided to friends and clients, free of charge, as a courtesy of V-Soft Communications, LLC.  FCC Activity Alerts are derived from public data made available by the Federal Communications Commission.  The data within the notifications is provided as is, with no warrantee as to correctness. V-Soft Communications, LLC disclaims any liability for the accuracy, content or other aspects of the information contained within the data provided. "FCC Activity Alert" is not a product of the Federal Communications Commission

'Garden Day' Returns to Macsherry Library May 10

Representing Better Farm at Macsherry Library's 2012 Garden Day. Photo/Justin Sorensen for Watertown Daily Times.

Better Farm will once again participate in Macsherry Library's annual Garden Day celebration from 12:30-4 p.m. Saturday, May 10, in Alexandria Bay, N.Y.


Put on by the library's Garden Day Committee, the event features several booths designed to educate and inspire backyard gardeners in the North Country. Master gardeners, egg-carton garden starts, organic beekeeping demonstrations, seed exchanges, and more are planned.

Better Farm will be on-site with a mulch gardening demonstration to show gardeners how lasagna or mulch gardening can eliminate the need for chemical fertilizers, irrigation, weeding, and tilling. Visitors can look at before-and-after pictures, as well as interact with a 3-D display showing exactly how mulch gardening can be achieved in any garden.

Macsherry Library is located at 112 Walton St., Alexandria Bay, N.Y. Call the library at (315) 482-2241 for more information.

'Better Buckets' Compost Initiative Kicks Off in Redwood

Redwood's three-tier compost bin.

Volunteers on Saturday gathered behind Redwood's Community Greenhouse to construct a three-bin compost system available for public use as part of the recently launched "Better Buckets" initative.



Better Farm has partnered with the Redwood Neighborhood Association and other local groups and individuals to kick off a new campaign that will turn natural waste into soil and help preserve and expand the natural beauty of the area.


“Better Buckets” allows individuals and families in the Redwood area to isolate food scraps from the waste stream in order to benefit their community. Better Farm will deliver five-gallon pails to those who have signed up and make regular visits to empty the buckets—or individuals can bring their full buckets to the community compost bin at anytime. Over time, the food scraps will become healthy soil perfect for fertilizing flowers and produce grown in the community greenhouse. Redwood residents are invited and encouraged to participate in the process of growing plants in the greenhouse, which is operated and overseen by members of the Redwood Neighborhood Association. Plant sales and giveaways throughout the summer months will help to nourish residents and beautify the hamlet. This program is brought to the community at no cost to participating individuals.


How the Three-Tier Compost Bin Works
 

All your dead leaves, grass clippings, twigs, hay, and kitchen food scraps get tossed into the first section of the compost bin until it's a full, big pile. When that bin is full, you shovel it all into the second bin (top-to-bottom). Then you go back to filling the first section of your compost bin. When it fills up again, you move everything from compartment 2 to 3, and from 1 to 2. Then you start over. When all three compartments are full (this should take the average household a full year or even longer), the third bin should be ready to be shoveled out into your garden.

How it works is that over time, the materials in each bin will be decomposing. The process is sped up by your twice-yearly aeration (manually shoveling the pile into the next bin), rainwater falling from overhead, and the natural aeration that will occur by oxygen reaching your pile from the nice big spaces between the wood of the pallets. Also, because you're leaving a bare earth floor, worms and other bugs have easy access to your compost heap.

If you're worried about backyard pests like raccoons or coyotes, be sure to install a hinged door on the front three sections of your compost bin. And of course, if you live in suburbs or the city, you may be subject to zoning or community board laws that would require a closed compost container such as a tumbler. For the rest of you, here's how to have your own three-tier compost bin for less than $20 to cover the cost of screws and chicken wire.

What You'll Need:

• Pallets (12 feet of pallets for back wall, four 4-foot pallets for the walls. Check with your local hardware store, contractors, big box stores, or your local transfer station. Free pallets are in abundance!)
• Galvanized Decking Screws (longer is better)
• Chicken Wire
• Optional: Three "front doors" for your compost sections with hinges (each door should measure 4x4)

Directions:

1. Screw the far left wall into the back wall with screws every six inches or so, driven from back to front.
2. Repeat with the second wall (if pallet is wide enough, screw it into both sections of back wall. If not, you may need some additional pieces of wood to create a solid back to screw into. We were fortunate enough to find a very long pallet to have one continuous back wall).

Many thanks to volunteers from the Redwood Neighborhood Association, Better Farm, and individuals living locally to make this vision a reality. To participate in the Better Buckets program, email info@betterfarm.org.

DIY Shadow Puppets

On a recent trip to a very cool toy store, I found a lovely collection of shadow puppets for sale.

I was struck at how beautiful they were in their simplicity, and another thought: Why buy them, when you can

make personalized shadow puppets of your own

?

I found this great set of instructions over at

TLC Xpress

, which did an excellent job of explaining the steps to making personalized shadow puppets for your friends and family to enjoy. I see endless applications for us to use around the farm, from quiet winter nights with friends to arts 'n' crafts projects with children at events throughout the summer. Check out the instructions below, and remember to send us photos of your finished products at info@betterarts.org.

Materials

• Cutting board
• Black card
• White pencil
• Scissors / craft knife / scalpel
• Clear tape
• Bamboo skewer 

Instructions

Design your character. When designing your character think of its overall shape and how it will look as a silhouette. Keep it simple to start with, simplify the details/features. Look at other shadow puppets on the internet or in the library for inspiration.

Draw your character out with white pencil on black card

Cut out your character with scissors or a craft knife – you can also tear edges to create a softer more organic edge

Keep in mind that when cutting out your character it needs to be one piece, so you may need to create ‘tabs’ or ‘bridges’ to hold pieces together. You can also use clear cello tape to keep pieces together

You may want to create arms, legs or hands that move. In the video (as above) Steffen demonstrates how to create joins and moving limbs for your character

You do not want to see your hands or body behind the screen so attach your character to bamboo skewers

Additional exercises

Create a theater for your shadow puppet; the equipment you will need includes a box, a screen and a light. For a screen you can use a sheet of white paper or a large sheet of tracing paper. You can go all out and create an ornate theatre to surround your screen or use something as simple as a shoebox with a hole cut out of it and a sheet of paper taped on the inside to cover the hole.

Planting in Mulch Beds

Some of Better Farm's chickens have been hard at work digging up worms and helping to aerate soil between garden rows.

One of the most common questions people ask about mulch gardening is how one should go about planting in the layered beds of compost, hay, cardboard, newspaper, and other biodegradables.

Two words: dandelion weeder.

My favorite garden tool.

By its very nature, mulch gardening creates thick layers of biodegradable mulch materials that help to fertilize your plants, block weeds, retain and regulate moisture, and provide an excellent insulator in cold and warm weather. But that can make starting seeds or transplanting appear daunting. It's not! All you have to do is take your dandelion weeder, create a hole for your seed or seedling, and plant away. I was out in the garden yesterday, finally getting peas in the ground (the stubborn ice and snowcover kept us from planting over St. Patrick's Day, as we usually do).

All I needed to do was stab the weeder into the top of the mulch and making a stirring motion with my hand to hollow out a little cavity for the pea seed.

Using my finger, I pressed the pea into the soil underneath. If you're transplanting, it can help to press in some potting or topsoil as well to anchor your plant's root system. Ditto if it's your first year mulching, as you won't have already-decomposed dirt below the surface. I like to time my planting schedule to just before I know it's about to rain—that keeps me from having to water my freshly planted seeds and seedlings.

No worries for the peas (or sprouting garlic, chives, asparagus, sage, leeks, or oregano) that tonight the weather is dropping into the teens temporarily (seriously, this is getting old) because the mulch provides natural insulation. Those of you in the North Country with anything unprotected outside, tonight will be a very important evening to bring any container plants inside, and to add mulch to any uncovered beds. If you have trees you wrapped for the winter, we recommend waiting until at least May 1 to unwrap the trunks and branches.

Direct your mulch-gardening questions and tips to info@betterfarm.org.

Eat Your Enemies: Spotlight on Invasivore

In a world of international shipping, plane travel, criss-crossing railroad tracks, and roads, invasive species have become par for the course. In any ecosystem, you're likely to find a number of species that have immigrated from elsewhere; often with detrimental effects to the native population.

Invasivore, a group of people taking advantage of this invasion, promotes the consumption of invasive species as a means of controlling those populations and essentially turning proverbial lemons into delicious lemonade.

From prehistoric times, humans have had an amazing track-record of severely reducing the populations of species we eat.  Indeed, it seems that much of the time we can’t stop ourselves.  The folks at Invasivore believe we can tap that hunger to reduce the impacts of harmful invasive species.

The mission at Invasivore is to be a one-stop guide for devouring

Invasive Species

, those organisms which have been moved around the world, damaging their new surroundings.  Think of it as reasonable revenge for the harm these species cause.  The word “invasivore” comes from combining “

Invasi

ve Species” with the latin for “devour” as in “carni

vore

”.  Thus invasivore = one who eats invasive species.

Over at the group's website, you can peruse recipes for preparing invasive species (

ahem,

burdock

), as well as exposition and commentary on related topics such as species’ profiles, histories and cultural significance, harvesting tips, interviews with Invasivores-at-large, and summaries of relevant scientific research.

Material for the Invasivore project is based upon work supported by the

National Science Foundation

under Grant # NSF-DGE-0504495 to the

GLOBES

interdisciplinary training program at the

University of Notre Dame

.

Compost Initiative Kicks Off in Redwood with Workshop, Hamlet Cleanup

In partnership with the Redwood Neighborhood Association, Better Farm's "Better Buckets" initiative kicks off at 12 p.m. Saturday, April 19, with a workshop to construct Redwood's community compost bin, seed-planting and basic maintenance in the Community Greenhouse, and a trash-pickup project in downtown Redwood.

Those interested in participating in the inaugural year of Better Buckets may also stop in that day to pick up their free compost buckets; 5-gallon pails that will be filled with an individual's or family's food scraps and picked up (or may be dropped off at the community greenhouse) on a weekly basis throughout the year. The dirt produced in the Community Greenhouse's compost bin will be available for free to the public.

Here's a little background on Better Buckets:

Composting is the process of turning food scraps into nutrient-rich soil. With up to 40 percent of all landfills comprised of otherwise biodegradable food scraps, composting is a simple way to cut a huge amount out of the waste stream while benefiting backyard gardens, homegrown produce, and increasing amounts of topsoil.

To that end, Better Farm has partnered with the Redwood Neighborhood Association and other local groups and individuals to kick off a new campaign that will turn natural waste into soil and help preserve and expand the natural beauty of the area.

“Better Buckets” allows individuals and families in the Redwood area to isolate food scraps from the waste stream in order to benefit their community. Better Farm will deliver five-gallon pails to those who have signed up and make regular visits to empty the buckets. Waste will be brought to Redwood's Community Greenhouse for processing (and overflow to Better Farm), where over time the food scraps will become healthy soil perfect for fertilizing flowers and produce grown in the community greenhouse. Redwood residents are invited and encouraged to participate in the process of growing plants in the greenhouse, which is operated and overseen by members of the Redwood Neighborhood Association. Plant sales and giveaways throughout the summer months will help to nourish residents and beautify the hamlet. This program is brought to the community at no cost to participating individuals.

A similar program kicks off in the coming weeks throughout Queens and Brooklyn in New York. Click here to read about that initiative.

If you have questions or would like to pre-register, please email info@betterfarm.org or call (315) 482-2536.

The Latest from Artist-in-Residence Mike Brown

Artist-in-Residence Mike Brown has been penning stories and writing songs at Better Farm since 2010. He's uploaded some new content to his YouTube channel you're officially invited to check out.



Here's the track "Spaceling":

 ...and here's "This is the Dream":

...and "Axes":



To learn more about the betterArts residency program, click here.

Mark Those Calendars!

Now that Spring's in full swing, the calendar is filling up fast. Here's a rundown of all the 'better' stuff we've got going on. Check back regularly on our website

for new additions being added; and follow the blog to get more information on specific events and how you can get involved.

Visit our full calendar at

www.betterfarm.org/upcoming-events

.

APRIL

10 

Kids on the Move!—

Hosted by

Fort Drum's Relocation Readiness program

, this free workshop at Fort Drum will acquaint newcomers to the area with recreational and educational programming for children.

Better Farm

and

betterArts

will be at this event to discuss upcoming workshops and events with parents.

20 

Spring Brunch—

Enjoy a farm-fresh brunch at

Better Farm

featuring ingredients grown on-site and other locally sourced items. All you can eat! Suggested donation of $10. Starts at 11 a.m. RSVP to info@betterfarm.org.

22 

Jounce at Brooklyn Bowl—

New York City-based band

Jounce

will perform an Earth Day concert April 22 at

Brooklyn Bowl

in New York City that will feature a seed exchange to benefit Better Farm. Attendees will have the opportunity to bring along or purchase organic seeds at the venue to be donated to Better Farm for use in our Sustainability Education Program and community outreach initiatives, including the Redwood Community Greenhouse.

Click here for additional information

.

MAY

1

CSA Starts!—

Click here to sign up!

9 

L.I.F.E. (Life is fun everyday!)—

Better Farm will be a presenter at the upcoming L.I.F.E. event held from 1:30-3:05 p.m. at H.T. Wiley Intermediate School in Watertown, N.Y. This is a day that all students are exposed to various professions, skills and talents in Watertown and surrounding areas. The purpose of the event is to encourage student’s interest and creativeness in areas that they may not have been exposed to before.

10 

Mustard Seed Earth Day Event—

Enjoy the

Mustard Seed Natural Market

's Annual Earth Day Event from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. in Watertown for free samples, giveaways, treats, gifts, arts 'n' crafts, and green-living demonstrations. Better Farm and betterArts will be at this event to share information about upcoming programming, do arts 'n' crafts with children, and provide educational information to the public about sustainability.

10

Macsherry Library Garden Day—

At Garden Day in Alexandria Bay from 12:30-4 p.m., the

Macsherry Library

gathers master gardeners from the North Country together for seed exchanges, informational booths, networking, and a plant sale. Better Farm will be in attendance with a booth to inform the public about upcoming events and with great gardening information.

17, 18 

Better Farm Volunteer Days—

Help the cast and crew at Better Farm ready the gardens, make chicken coop repairs, shovel mulch, build some bee houses, repair and construct rainwater catchment bins, and learn a thing or two about permaculture and organic gardening. Lunch and refreshments will be served! RSVP to info@betterfarm.org.

31

Dragonfly Festival—

The Redwood Neighborhood Association, in collaboration with the Indian River Lakes Conservancy, betterArts, and Better Farm, presents the First Annual Dragonfly Festival. Held at the public pavilion in the center of Redwood, this event will feature live music, a cook-out, arts 'n' crafts, a costume contest and parade, homemade wine tastings, and much much more.

JUNE

21 

Better Festival—

Our annual festival features live performances by local and regional bands, a gallery showcasing artwork by painters, sculptors, photographers, and more, booths featuring art and handmade items for sale, tours of the Better Farm campus, information about Better Farm and betterArts 2014 programming, arts and crafts for kids (and adults!), freshly prepared and locally sourced food, a refreshments tent, games, bouncy castle, and more!

Click here for all the information.

JULY

12 

Better Mud Run—

We're bringing a "better" mud relay course to Redwood, N.Y., in our first annual Better Mudder event at high noon Saturday, July 12, 2014. Hosted by Better Farm and featuring more than 20 obstacles, the Better Mud Run invites the fiercest  athletes and thrill-seekers to the Better Farm campus for agility obstacles, wall-climbs, scaling mountains, and—of course—getting really, really muddy.

Click here for more information.

AUGUST

2

Upcycling Workshop

—This all-ages workshop with Stephanie DeJoseph invited students to bring an old item for reviving and turning into something new. Furniture, clothing, fabric scraps, magazine clippings, or anything else you find is welcome! Crafts supplies like glue, needle and thread, embroidery floss, and others will be available. There is a suggested $5 donation for this course. Email info@betterarts.org for more information or to pre-register.

TBD

Summerfest!—

16

Redwood Field Days Parade—

23

Children's Weaving—

Children from second through fourth grade are invited to this two-hour class to learn two types of weaving. Students will acquire basic weaving knowledge, gain hands-on experience, and discuss basic weaving vocabulary. Students may additionally bring old clothes, fabric, or yarn for their projects if they like. Cost for class: $5. Email info@betterarts.org for more information or to pre-register.

23

Summerfest!

SEPTEMBER

TBD

Farm-to-Table Event

Oceans Update

As the search for missing Malaysian Airlines Flight 370 continues, one finding is being made over and over:

There is a whole lot of garbage floating around in the Earth's oceans.

The swirling ocean currents conspire to aggregate trash that doesn't biodegrade (i.e. plastic) into a giant soupy mass of environmental pain. 

This isn't exactly news, of course. It was a full 17 years ago that surfer, scientific researcher, and sea captain Charles Moore first "discovered" an enormous stretch of floating plastic debris now called the “Pacific garbage patch.” But in recent weeks, this garbage has offered false hope for friends and family whose loved ones were aboard that flight. And with each dead end, international headlines take root:

Our oceans are poisoned by the things we throw away. Marine life and birds end up eating our refuse—it's not at all unusual to dissect a dead gull or sea turtle and discover a belly filled with plastic.

It's this pollution—combined with overfishing, habitat loss, and climate change—that led an international team of ecologists and economists to conclude in a findings reported in the Nov. 3, 2013 issue of Science, that the world's oceans could be devoid of fish as early as 2048. The study was conducted by Boris Worm, PhD, of Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, with colleagues in the U.K., U.S., Sweden, and Panama.

So what can we do about it?

On a small scale, we can stop buying so much non-biodegradable, "disposable" junk. Here's a

Better Farm challenge for you: Go one week without purchasing anything disposable. Bring mesh bags for produce at the store. Juice your own fruits. Reuse cardboard egg containers at a local farm. Invest in a Zippo instead of a Bic. Compost your cardboard, newspaper, and junk mail. See if you can do it.

On a semi-small scale, keep a few garbage bags in the trunk of your car. When you see trash in a parking lot, on a sidewalk, or in the road (especially at this time of year, when snow is melting to reveal all sorts of treasures and water is washing into creeks, streams, lakes, rivers, and oceans), pick it it up!

Contributing to landfills isn't ideal, so obviously recycle what you can. But a designated landfill is still better than polluting waterways and soil.

On a large scale, petition local businesses, restaurants, and friends to take on the challenge of ditching the planned obsolescence of disposable stuff, and opting for reusable or biodegradable items. Cardboard takeout containers alone can make a big difference in harmful, non-biodegradable wastes being produced by local eateries.

Whether humans can act fast enough to prevent irreversible oceanic damage remains to be seen; but at Better Farm, we believe each tiny action spurs infinite ripples. And for each piece of garbage we can keep out of the oceans, we believe there's a turtle, gull, or fish somewhere living a little bit easier.

Got great tips for preventing (and solving) the world's garbage problem? Email us at info@betterfarm.org.