Organic myth 2!!!!!

[teakdesk]

I can’t understand why people are banned and some think this is a "bun fight", we are just discussing things.
FG

Me neither.... there doesn't seem to be any explanation to help us newbies understand.

Were people insulting each other? On other forums I use the mods leave a trace behind to indicate what the offenders were saying and also add a post to broadcast why posts have been editted or removed and the poster banned - this has always helped me in formulating my posts!

[Eyren]

Well, I practiced what I preach, and we spent yesterday afternoon preparing a bit of ground on the lottie (formerly overgrown with tired, non-fruiting raspberry canes) ready to build a big new compost bin from pallets and scrounged bubblewrap

I joined our local Transition group after seeing the recent "Natural World" programme on peak oil and farming - in a nutshell, we're all going to have to "go organic" within a generation at most, because artificial fertilizers are made from natural gas (amongst other things). The Transition movement is about making positive changes, because most people are understandably turned off by doom-and-gloom messages. I agree with Snohare that in all likelihood we are b***ered, but OTOH if you aren't part of the solution, you're part of the problem

[Two_Sheds]

build a big new compost bin from pallets and scrounged bubblewrap

I mis-read that as Scrounger Bubblewrap ... he wouldn't like it, you know

[Two_Sheds]

the usual substitute for peat based compost in the garden centres is coir based!

I was always a bit iffy about coir because of the air-miles issue, but it's actually shipped.
It's also very very light, so you can get a heck of a lot of it on a ship.

It is a sustainable product - the plant (coconut) regrows, and while it is growing the plant absorbs co2 from the air. Peat bogs will never regrow (having taken millions of years to form in the first place). Peat bogs don't release co2 until they are dug up.

Coir also provides work (trade not aid) for a developing country.

Coir Compost discs

It isn't the same as peat or even MP compost - it dries out quickly - but mixed in with MP I find it bulks it out and makes it go further.

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew: Information Sheets: Coir

[Eyren]

I mis-read that as Scrounger Bubblewrap ... he wouldn't like it, you know

Oops! No offence meant to Bubblewrap - I wouldn't insult a MOM!

Good point made about coir, T_S - not everything is flown, even these days! Now I feel better about my worms' bedding...

EDIT - those coir disc bags are so cute, I will have to buy some to lighten my home-made compost

[snohare]

Peat bogs don't release co2 until they are dug up.

Once upon a time, that was the accepted truth, but recently it was found that dissolved carbon is flowing out of UK peat bogs in the water, in ever increasing quantities. In essence, the carbon sink seems to have filled up 20 to 30 years ago, and now it is spilling over. The additional bad news is that this carbon is going to be a health hazard in our water supplies one day; it's toxic. It is a fair bet that this is a worldwide thing, except of course Siberia and Indonesia are giving off huge quantities of methane. Add increasingly acidic warming oceans, and you have all the carbon sinks full, and actually beginning to give out stored carbon. (270 years worth of global emissions in Siberia's Western Slope alone.)
Eyren, I would be very interested in details of this Transition movement. If we are going to be stuck on the railcrossing with the express train coming, I for one will have my seat belt off !
(Can't see yardarm...must take medication anyway...)
Yes, that coir stuffie is great for seedlings isn't it, I only wish I could get to B & Q to get it.

[Snadger]

Are Airmiles not the same as shipping miles..........they're all miles aren't they! The ship still uses fuel to get here with it.(Maybe not so much) It's doing nowt for OUR local economy though.. I don't think we should go back to pushing wheelbarrows with square wheels or living in caves (might be fun though!) but............

I was always brought up to believe charity begins at home!

Do what you can for the benefit of the earth, but also adopt a 'localist' approach using local produce, in season, and giving employment to local people..........

[Eyren]

Eyren, I would be very interested in details of this Transition movement. If we are going to be stuck on the railcrossing with the express train coming, I for one will have my seat belt off !

Main website for the UK movement is here: Transition Towns WIKI :: Main / HomePage

You might find this page particularly useful in seeking a fledgling Transition group in your area (there are a couple in Aberdeen, but they haven't officially launched yet): Transition Towns WIKI :: TransitionNetwork / Mulling

My contribution so far is to volunteer for the team who compile and send out the Cambridge weekly bulletin - I only have to do it once a month, so hardly onerous. I'd like to do more on the Food Group side, but getting my own allotment in order is taking up most of my energy at the moment!

[HeyWayne]

Orgasmic veg anyone?

I'm thinking of starting up a movement.

[womble]

Orgasmic veg anyone?

I'm thinking of starting up a movement.

Let me guess, a cucumber is going to be your emblem?

[Eyren]

Do what you can for the benefit of the earth, but also adopt a 'localist' approach using local produce, in season, and giving employment to local people..........

I agree - for my bantams' run bedding I buy Hemcore, made in Essex, rather than its French equivalent Aubiose - but OTOH we can't grow everything here in the UK. You have to balance the pros and cons and make your own decision...

[HeyWayne]

Let me guess, a cucumber is going to be your emblem?

I like to be inclusive, so I would say a ripe pair of melons, and a cucumber should cover all bases.

[womble]

You are a lucky boy if you a lovely ripe pair of melons, I can never grow them.

[snohare]

Surely a stump rooted carrot is more realistic ? After all, what would those in the North without greenhouses do !
Oops, sorry, blokey moment over. (Must take more medication...)
Thanks for the info Eyren, I will follow it up. I knew that I had not heard of anything locally, and anything that is publicised I usually know about through contacts.

[Pumpkin Becki]

...think I saw a book about the Transitionist movement in the Wiggly Wiggers spring catalogue...