Foodlums Minutes 4/8/11

Our meeting this week was mostly a work day with informal discussion of upcoming events happening during the work time. Foodlums broke into teams. One team painted the bee hives and one team started some seeds in the cold frame in the garden.

Seeds Started
- Since some seeds have been started and are in the cold frame(peppers, buttercup squash, a few different kinds of tomatoes, and radishes) we will need to water them daily.
- You can help by watering the seeds!
- The hose key is now where to be found. Does anyone know where it is? For now we can fill a clean bucket in the bathroom (there is one in our stuff pile with a spade in it). Take care not to bring dirt into the building and bathroom. When we have some water in the bucket, we can use the spade to gently water the plants.
-If you water the seeds, check off the box for the day on the piece of paper in the cold frame so others won't water also.

Bee Hives
- The hives are now painted
- The piantings are BEAUTIFUL! There are pictures of bees and dogs and flowers that our bees are sure to love.
- It was mentioned that these bees better be hippy bees otherwise they might be unhappy with the decorations on their home.
- Frames and other hive materials are HERE! WHEW!
- Bees should be arriving within the next week. HORRAY!

Other Items That Were Mentioned in Our Informal Discussions

Ken Meter
- Will be speaking Monday April 18th at 12 noon in the Cabin!
- So EXCITING! He will be speaking on sustainable food systems. A perfect beginning to earth week.
- Check out his organization, Crossroads Resource Center, to get a better idea of what he's all about http://www.crcworks.org/?submit=about

Seeds
-Seeds will be ordered this week.
-When considering seeds this year, things we are considering include edible landscaping, foods that will be used and come into season when students are back, foods that we will use, and foods that can be stored for some time.
- The list generated at our meeting included: tomatoes, bell peppers, hot peppers, buttercup squash, butternut squash, black beans (climbers), beets, sweet potatoes, regular potatoes, kale, lettuce, parsley, cilantro, lavendar, lemon balm, mint, broccoli, cucumbers.
- If you have any other requests, let us know.

Seed Sorting
- A group of people in a conservation biology class, former Foodlums vice president David Hon included, were looking for people to help sort seeds on Sunday.
- They were helping the River Country RC&D with their bulk prairie seed sale by bagging and weighing out some seed this weekend.

Earth Day on Campus Mall
- The EEC (Envrionmental Endeavors Commission) has reserved campus mall on Thursday April 21st in honor of Earth Day
- Many environmentally minded organizations will be there.
- Foodlums will also be there! 10:30-2.
- We have yet to decide what food we will be handing out.

CSAs
- It can be hard to get a share with a CSA, but some still have spaces available.
- The link near the top of the foodlums website titled "Community Supported Agriculture" has links to several CSAs in the area.
- Founding Foodlums VP, Trevor Peterson, says that Slow Crow Farm near Menomonie still has shares available and can offer student-sized shares. They even have an egg share!
- Their website is  http://www.slowcrowfarms.com/

Raised Beds
- Money has been requested for raised beds materials.
- If the money order goes through quickly, we can start work on raised beds at our next meeting! WHEE!!

Spring means time to work! Hooray!