In Gratitude: Recognizing Board President Marilyn Bardet’s Selfless Service to SuSol

By Sustainable Solano

In January, Marilyn Bardet will step down from the board president role she has held for the past 18 years. Sustainable Solano would not have grown into the organization it is today without her leadership, guidance, wisdom and trust. We are grateful for all she has brought to the organization.

Back in 2005 a tiny fledgling nonprofit, Benicia Community Gardens, was going through turmoil — after the death of founder Dr. Swenson, the remaining board had no vision and no capacity to continue forward. There was just one garden then, at Heritage Presbyterian Church, now carrying the name of the founder, Swenson Garden. The board put out a call for help to the community, and one of the people who stepped forward was a local artist and environmental activist, Marilyn Bardet. The board dropped the documents on her lap and left.

That’s how Marilyn started on a difficult path of being board president. There was nothing glamorous about this role — it was a hard labor of love. Together with a small group of new board volunteers, Marilyn not only saved Swenson Garden and the community that formed around it, but secured funding for the second garden in Benicia — Avant Garden, now a beloved institution on First Street. Avant Garden started with a bare patch of land. The original garden beds were made of straw and each straw bale was laid down by the hard-working volunteer board. They carried soil, spread mulch, installed irrigation, built the fence and invited the community to join in. Hard work and a steadfast commitment to the vision made it a garden that became a true Benicia town square.

The work did not stop there — the nonprofit continued to reinvent itself in response to the needs of the community and a vision for a better future for all, expanding the vision to local sustainable food, planting a community orchard, running educational programs, developing a Community Supported Agriculture hub in Benicia, and envisioning and implementing a Benicia Sustainable Backyard program: permaculture-based demonstration gardens in private homes that became the base for community education and inspiration.

Marilyn was at the heart of all these initiatives. The programs were growing, the organization was rooting. It required dedication and more hard work to secure funding, build the board, support the team and develop relationships with key stakeholders in the county. When in 2016 we took a leap of faith to become Sustainable Solano, Marilyn’s authentic leadership and support for the vision led us safely and successfully through the passage of scaling up successful Benicia programs to the county level.

Slideshow

Board President Marilyn Bardet

Marilyn, you gave so much in all these years! Countless hours at the board and team meetings; scientific research and artwork; numerous meetings with, and calls and letters to the key stakeholders; late nights with grant deadlines; long (and sometimes difficult) conversations; personal funds, and wisdom, trust and pure love given so freely and selflessly.

As you are stepping down from the board president role, we want you to remember that your selfless service has formed the very foundation of the organization you’ve been leading for 18 years!

In deep gratitude,
The board and the team of Sustainable Solano 

When Chard is Not the Only Gift

By Maggie Kolk, SuSol Board Secretary

Maggie Kolk is our board secretary, and she and her husband, Jack, oversee Avant Garden in Benicia. Maggie is currently working on her Master Gardener certification, and wrote this blog for the UCCE Master Gardeners’ Under the Solano Sun, where it was first published. We loved this story of connection at Avant Garden so much that we are republishing it here with Maggie’s permission. We join Maggie in inviting you to visit Avant Garden!

“I would love to have some of that beautiful chard” a small voice called out as I was locking the shed at Avant Garden, where I volunteer as the garden coordinator. The sun was setting over the Carquinez Strait, the infamous Benicia wind was picking up as the temperature was quickly dropping. I wanted to lock up and get home. When I looked up, I recognized a slight, elderly woman pushing her poodle in a dog stroller. I had seen her many times before and always smiled and said hello, but she never acknowledged my greeting. “I would be happy to gather some for you,” I called out as I walked toward the garden fence to talk with her. She shook her head and touched her right ear. As I got closer, she said, again pointing to her ear, “I can’t hear, I’m deaf.” Well, that explained why she never returned my greeting! Leaning over the fence, I was close enough for her to read my lips. I again offered to gather some of the garden’s chard for her. I explained that at Avant Community Garden, in addition to individually “owned” members’ raised beds, we also plant a “share plot” where we grow veggies for the Benicia community, and she was more than welcome to share in our bounty. She gladly accepted and I gathered a bunch of beautiful crisp red and yellow striped chard, bagged it, and handed it to her.

In a lovely British accent, she then proclaimed that what I had just done by giving her the chard was the highlight of her day. “You see, what is happening in Ukraine has brought back so many terrible memories.” With tears in her eyes, she went on to explain that as a child in London she lived through the Nazi bombing known as the Blitz and had spent days underground with her family trying to survive. She was about to celebrate her 89th birthday and she could not believe that she lived to see the horrors of war in Europe again. But the beautiful chard … she would go home and call her family in the UK and tell them what a wonderful gift she had just received. As she parted (yes, I had tears in my eyes now) with her little dog and bag of Swiss chard, I asked her name (Julia) and assured her that any time she saw me in the garden she was welcome to stop by for a chat, chard or any other goodie we might have growing at Avant Garden … and she does! That day, Julia herself was a gift to me. For the last five years that I have been volunteering as garden coordinator, I never know who or what gift will present itself, but I know I will be surprised and grateful.

The share plot soil has been prepared and amended, the tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, yellow squash, eggplant, and basil planted, the drip lines secured and the timer set. It won’t be long before the zucchini is ready for harvest and we can begin sharing the summer bounty with Julia and the others in our community. Avant, one of two Benicia Community Gardens, is located on First & D Streets in Benicia and welcomes visitors to stop by to enjoy our lovely garden, relax under the oak tree and chat with our neighbor’s very friendly chickens.

Growing Healthier Plants and Ecosystems Regeneratively With Biology

By Michael Wedgley, Permaculture Designer and Soil Food Web Lab Technician

We are excited to be working with Michael and Hampton Bay HOA on the designs for two pilot sites that will demonstrate how lawn in common areas can be replaced with low-water, low-maintenance sustainable landscaping that is healthy, beautiful and natural. Here, Michael shares about the importance of healthy soil biology as part of that equation.

Michael Wedgley meets with a client in a permaculture garden he designed with healthy soil biology in mind.
Photo courtesy of GMC Photography and Video

Growing with biology is a decision to strike symbiosis with the natural world and allow natural systems to support the life of your plants. We can create greener, more vibrant ecosystems that support wildlife and humans more effectively and abundantly. We eliminate the need for toxic and time-consuming applications to “feed” plants and keep disease and pests at bay. By introducing biology into systems that are lacking and nurturing their establishment we can achieve balance in a system that allows us to let go of the wheel and let nature take over. This blog is meant to give a brief introduction to the natural process in action that allow for this transition.

Learn more about the Hampton Bay HOA project and Permaculture Designer Michael Wedgley on our HOA Projects page.

Who Are the Players

Fungi – Mushrooms are the fruiting body of a group of organisms known as Fungus. There are Fungi that break down material like leaves and wood, Fungi that form beneficial relationships with plants, and Fungi that parasitize plants. Fungi is the dominant nutrient-cycler in an old growth forest.

Bacteria – There is aerobic (oxygen preferring) and anaerobic (lack of oxygen preferring) bacteria. Most beneficial soil bacteria is aerobic; most disease forming bacteria is anaerobic. Bacteria help to mine nutrients from parent material and create structure in soil.

Nematodes – Nematodes are like microscopic worms. There are 3 primary groups to be aware of; bacterial feeding, fungal feeding, and root feeding. Root feeding can cause plant disease.

Protozoa – Large single celled organisms that feed on bacteria.

Nutrient Cycling

By ensuring that soil has adequate numbers of each of our microbial populations we eliminate the need for fertilizers. All soils have the necessary nutrients for plants to thrive. The biology in the soil makes those nutrients plant available through the nutrient cycle. This semi-complex interaction starts primarily with bacteria and through predation by nematodes and protozoa, excess nutrients are released into the soil.

Diversification and Disease Prevention

By ensuring that we have high and diverse populations of beneficial microbes we ensure there is no room for disease organisms to dominate and thrive. In general, just as in the human body, disease organisms in the soil and on the surface of the foliage of plants need a weak ecosystem to establish and thrive. By creating a diverse and abundant ecosystem of microbes we create a system that is impenetrable by diseases and pests.

Fungal to Bacteria Ratio and Weed Suppression

By customizing the ratio of the amount of Fungi in the soil to the amount of Bacteria in the soil, we can actually select for which plants we want to grow and eliminate weed species. To understand this, consider an old growth forest. You’ll notice that there are ferns, there are large coniferous trees, but nowhere can you find your typical garden weeds. The reason for this is the form of nitrogen released by fungi. This form of nitrogen (ammonia) is a lower ph. This is why you hear people say “blueberries prefer acidic soil.” On the other end of the spectrum (bacterially dominated) you have early succession plants like grasses. This is because the exudates created by bacteria are more alkaline. You don’t see many trees in prairies. Applying different compost preparations that have higher fungal to bacterial ratios we can begin to affect the ratio in the soil and have healthier plants and select against weed species.

Thermophilic Compost

The process in which we create compost to ensure the highest diversification of beneficial organisms and that we are able to eliminate pest organisms is through Thermophilic Composting. Using a diverse source of material, in the right balance, while maintaining aerobic conditions we are able to raise the temperature of a pile to the point that disease and pest organisms are destroyed while beneficial ones are left to thrive given the rich and diverse foods provided. We monitor the pile’s biology by assessing it under a microscope. Once the biological numbers are at our desired numbers it is ready for a number of applications.

Applications

With a microbially dominant compost that has our desired ratio we can apply the microbes through 3 primary applications.

  1. Direct compost applications – This application is recommended if the organic matter is lacking in dirt we wish to grow in. We can either till in some compost or apply to the surface of dirt.
  2. Compost extract – In this application we actually extract the microbes out of the compost and they become suspended in water. We can then apply this as a root drench to put the biology right where the plants will use it, or at areas of compaction where the bacteria can begin to loosen it up and create aerobic conditions with improved soil structure.
  3. Compost teas – Once we have an extract, we can “brew” it by adding oxygen into the water with some foods for the microbes. We let the extract bubble with aeration for roughly 24 hours while monitoring the growth under a microscope. Given time, bacteria and other microbes are able to multiply and form glues that allow them to stick to surfaces. We then spray this compost tea on the leaves of plants giving them a protective barrier from disease-causing organisms as well as allowing for nutrient exchange on the foliage of plants.

The number of applications necessary to establish a resilient and sustainable colony of beneficial microbes in the soil varies given many variables. The best way to picture what it takes is to think of settlers settling America, according to Elaine Ingham, microbiologist and researcher who created the Soil Food Web approach. Sometimes the first to arrive didn’t survive or few survived. The next ship was better prepared, or there were some settlers previously that made conditions slightly more hospitable so more were able to survive. Every subsequent ship going forward led to increasingly successful population growths until they became sustainable and reproduced and growing. It is the same with the microbes, and varies depending how hospitable or inhospitable the soil is to begin with, and how well it is protected during colonization.

Fertilizers, Pesticides, Salts, and Chemicals in Water

In establishing and maintaining healthy plants and healthy soil in a biological method we need to ensure the health and safety of the organisms. We must become caretakers of the invisible life that populates the soil beneath our feet and the foliage up above. A critical piece of this care is to ensure that their environment is not compromised by salts or chemicals which can completely eradicate the microbial populations. Fertilizers are a form of salts. All salts will dehydrate the cells of the microbes and cause death. Pesticides are created to destroy life. Even “targeted” pesticides have unwanted casualties and can upset the balance. Lastly chlorine and chloramine in water are designed to ensure lack of microbial growth in the pipes and therefore can do the same in your soil and on your plants. It is extremely important that we understand how fragile ecosystems can be. In general, these natural systems are extremely resilient, but when humans come in with their toxic approaches we upset the balance. Nature will always find a way back towards its attempt at turning everything into an old growth forest, but that takes time. If we want to have healthy and natural environments we have to help the biology along and make sure we don’t destroy it with our products.

Winter in the Milkweed Garden

By Annina Puccio, co-founder and co-director of the Monarch Milkweed Project

Annina Puccio and Ann Whittemore started the Monarch Milkweed Project out of Benicia, CA, to increase the supply of milkweed available to Western Monarch butterflies as they make their way along their migratory path. We partnered with the Monarch Milkweed Project for an informative talk on Monarch butterflies, their population decline and how you can help! You can watch the video from the talk at the bottom of this blog post.

It has been a very successful spring and summer here in Solano County, spreading the word about how to support the Monarch butterfly population locally and spotting many of these iconic insects floating through our yards this year. Winter is the season to clean up the milkweed garden, as the last few caterpillars pupate in the fall and the final Monarch butterflies take flight for their over-wintering sites. It is also the time to begin preparing the garden bed for next year!

With shorter days, and chillier nights, native milkweed begins naturally to yellow and collapse. The roots continue to store energy for next year, so keep them watered and your plants should come back bigger and stronger than ever in the spring.

Native narrowleaf milkweed

However, if you have been growing tropical milkweed (asclepias curassavica), it is recommended that you remove it and replace it with native milkweed now. At the very least, cut the plants back almost to the ground.  This variety of milkweed remains evergreen and even may flower through the winter, which allows the protozoan parasite Ophryocystis Elektroscirrha (“OE”) to build up in the plant. This disease affects the Monarch butterflies’ overall fitness, reduces their ability to reproduce successfully, and can interfere with their migration. Instead, look for seeds of native milkweed. In our local area, showy milkweed (asclepias speciosa) and narrowleaf milkweed (asclepias fascicularis) are the recommended varieties to grow, so collect seeds to sow now or in the early spring.

When planting milkweed, the seeds need “stratification,” which is the process of breaking down the seed coating with moisture and cold temperatures. If you plant seeds directly outdoors now, the rains and winter cold will stratify the seeds naturally, and they will develop strong root systems by spring.

A very good resource for fall planting instructions can be found on the Monarch Butterfly Garden website, at https://monarchbutterflygarden.net/fall-planting-milkweed-10-steps/

Alternatively, you can store moistened seeds in the refrigerator for a few months throughout the winter (lay them out on moistened paper towels in layers in a large flat container), and then start them indoors in the spring in small pots or starter cells. Keep them warm and watered, and when they have 3-4 sets of leaves, plant them outdoors after the last frost has passed.

While you are planning your milkweed garden, do not forget about nectar plants to attract and nourish the butterflies. You can find a good list, tailored to California, by the Xerces Society at: https://xerces.org/publications/plant-lists/monarch-nectar-plants-california

While you are looking ahead to next year, a fun and educational winter activity is to visit a Monarch overwintering site. The most well-known and largest are at Natural Bridges, Pacific Grove (those are pictures of the Pacific Grove Butterfly House above), and near Pismo Beach, but they also have been spotted nearby on Mare Island and at Point Pinole. Use the map from Western Monarch Count here to find a site: https://www.westernmonarchcount.org/find-an-overwintering-site-near-you/

Thank you to everyone who has worked so hard in Benicia, Vallejo and all over Solano County to support the Monarch Butterfly. The overwintering population numbers are WAY up! A 3500% increase in Pismo Beach alone.

As the Monarchs move to their over-wintering sites, we are hopeful for other increases in population as well. Keep up the good work raising Monarchs and if you haven’t already, please consider joining our Monarch MilkWeed Project group on NextDoor: https://nextdoor.com/g/our9txeuo/

Learn more about the Monarch Milkweed Project here

Compost Happens 101

By Lori Caldwell, CompostGal

Lori Caldwell covered all the basics of successful home composting during her recent talk. In this blog, she takes the opportunity to answer some of the most common questions and some of your specific questionsYou can watch Lori’s talk in the video here and read her responses below.

Find the handouts from Lori’s talk and more soil resources here.

Connect with Lori:

Lori Caldwell

compostgal@hotmail.com

Facebook & Instagram @compostgal

Thank you so much for your attendance and participation at our last webinar about the wonders of making and using compost! As promised, here are some answers to some of your questions. I’ll be throwing in some links, etc. as well. Composting is a wonderful addition to any garden!

Can we compost weeds?

As a new rule, I’ve stopped putting weeds in my compost pile. My concern is that the seeds, stems, roots of the weed would not be killed off by the lower than needed temperatures in my compost pile.

Can you include small flooring samples?

This is one of the items on the Do Not compost list. Wood products that contain glues, waxes, resins, etc. will do harm in the bin and most likely never break down.

Are maggots bad in compost? My compost has hundreds of them. What should I do?

Maggots are not welcome in a compost pile. If maggots are seen in the pile, most likely there’s something in your pile that shouldn’t be. Items such as cooked food or meat will attract the maggot fly. Remove the item from your pile, water and aerate. Top this pile with a thick layer of browns (leaves or chipped wood).

Do you have suggestions for getting rid of beer brewing grains?

Absolutely! These will be a great addition to a compost pile. Just a heads up: They will have a lot of nitrogen and if added fresh, also hold a lot of water. You’ll need to aerate often and help absorb the moisture by adding those browns! You can also expect your pile to get hot as well! Lucky!!!

Are there special worms to get? I heard there’s worm that are not earthworms.

So, if you are talking about worm composting, yes! The red wriggler (Eisenia fetida) is the specific worm used in vermicomposting. They are the type of worm you’d see on a hike, under the leaf litter. If we are talking about basic composting, then the purchase of worms is totally unnecessary. When you place your compost pile on top of the soil, then you have a direct line to the “wormverse.” They will come and go in your pile in great numbers, enriching your compost with their castings.

Can I just bury the kitchen scraps next to the fruit tree root as compost?

Pit/trench composting as it’s usually called is a much slower way of composting in place. Digging a hole/trench at least 6-12 inches deep and burying your scraps can work, but since there’s no aeration or addition of water it breaks down much slower than basic composting. You still must make sure there’s a balance of browns and greens. Personally, I wouldn’t recommend pit trenching too close to existing plants. If the balance isn’t right, then the materials break down without the aid of oxygen (aka anaerobic). Anaerobic conditions can be problematic for adjacent plants.

Should newspapers be shredded?

When you include newspapers in your pile, hand shredding is the way to go. You want thicker pieces to help absorb excess moisture. Just be mindful when you add newspaper to the pile that it can mat quickly. More aeration will help with that.

Will the heat in the bin kill any diseased plants?

If you can get your bin to temperatures above 130 degrees and if you can maintain those temps for about three days, then yes. Getting temps that high will require some extra work on your part:

  1. Creating a pile 3’x3’x3’ or larger
  2. Utilizing high nitrogen feedstocks such as grass clippings from untreated lawns and/or fresh chicken manure

What should I do with my compost bin during cold winter months?

Winter climates doesn’t mean that composting must stop! The goal is going to be trying to keep temperatures high as possible and to keep it from getting too wet. In preparation for the snows, you should try to increase the size of your pile (3’x3’x3’ or larger). Some composters like to surround their piles with bales of straw too. I’d consider covering the pile with a tarp to keep it from getting too wet and even an old blanket or rug to help insulate from the top. Keep maintaining it as usual.

I have mushrooms growing on top of my compost pile

Completely normal!! Fungus is part of the process, so a welcome sight. Sometimes you’ll see white, cobwebby matter in the bin. Again, totally normal! Actinomycetes is present. It’s what gives compost a sweet, earthy smell. Sometimes, items germinate in your pile too. Potatoes and tomatoes are the usual suspects.

I spoke briefly about the Marin Carbon Farming Project during the talk. I’d thought you’d like to read the article. Compost rules always!

Marin Carbon Farming Project

Video: How to use compost

https://youtu.be/G87wRvVCuCg

Video: Planting Seeds with Compost

https://youtu.be/JH4Hp0o1EWg

 

If you are looking to purchase compost in bulk for your larger projects:

Marketplace | Lawn to Garden

Enjoy the talk? Take this survey to help us determine future sustainable landscaping classes.

The talk was generously funded by Republic Services and the Solano County Water Agency.

A Call to Action to Save the Monarchs

By Annina Puccio and Ann Whittemore, co-founders and co-directors of the Monarch Milkweed Project

Annina Puccio and Ann Whittemore started the Monarch Milkweed Project out of Benicia, CA, to increase the supply of milkweed available to Western Monarch butterflies as they make their way along their migratory path. Join the Monarch Milkweed Project and Sustainable Solano on Sept. 17 for an informative talk on Monarch butterflies, their population decline and how you can help! Register here

In all the animal kingdom, Monarch butterflies are unique insects: No other insect in the world migrates such a distance, over four or five generations, to places it has never been before. Did you know that a group of Monarchs is called a “Kaleidoscope of Monarchs?”

Monarchs play a crucial role in regulating our ecosystems and pollinating plants — including the crops we rely on for food. Indeed, one out of every three bites of food we eat is thanks to pollinators like the Monarch butterfly. Without pollinators, our entire food web could unravel.

After two years of record-setting lows of 30,000 and less Western Monarch butterflies (2018/19), this past year (2020) fewer than 2,000 of these orange-and-black beauties were counted in their winter groves.

The most recent population count shows a heartbreaking decline of 99.9% for Monarchs, who are dying off due to pesticides and habitat loss. Last year the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service agreed Monarchs need protection, but our government hasn’t acted yet and is saying that Monarchs won’t be put on the endangered list until 2024. That will be too late.

If we want future generations to live in a world that still has Monarchs, we have to act now.

In March and June of this year, the MONARCH Act (S.809 Monarch Action, Recovery, and Conservation of Habitat Act of 2021) and S.806 The Monarch and Pollinator Highway (MPH) Act were introduced in the Senate, but have not yet been voted on. They would provide millions of dollars a year to protect and save the Western Monarch butterfly. The MONARCH Act and the MPH Act both need to be brought to the Senate floor for a full Senate vote.

We urge you to contact Senators Diane Feinstein and Alex Padilla and ask them to make the MONARCH Act and The Monarch and Pollinator Highway Act a priority!

We also ask that you contact our Representative in the House, Mike Thompson, and ask that the Western Monarch be protected now! The two bills have also been introduced in the House: The Monarch and Pollinator Highway Act and The MONARCH Act (House Bill USHB.1983). Congressman Thompson is a co-sponsor of these bills. Call Congressman Thompson and thank him for his support, and ask that these bills be brought to the House floor for a vote.

Also contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland and urge them to put the Western Monarch on the Endangered Species list now and provide funds and protections to save these insects!

Contact information

    • Senator Diane Feinstein: (202) 224-3841
    • Senator Alex Padilla: (202) 224-3553
    • Congressman Mike Thompson: (202) 225-3311
    • Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland: (202) 208-3100
    • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: Lori Marshall – Office of Public Affairs (703) 358-2541

Please also encourage your friends and all who love the Western Monarch Butterfly to call these numbers. The more of us who call, the more likely they will take swift action.

SUGGESTED SCRIPT for Senators and Representative:

“I am calling from the San Francisco Bay Area in (your local city) as a constituent and am concerned about the Western Monarch butterfly. I thank you for co-sponsoring the two Monarch Acts that are working their way through Congress. The Western Monarch count in 2020 was less than 2,000 butterflies, and this butterfly should be put on the Endangered Species List NOW and protected. If pollinators like butterflies and bees go extinct this will severely affect our crops and our food supply not to mention that these beautiful butterflies will be missed by all. Please help bring the MONARCH Action, Recovery, and Conservation of Habitat Act of 2021 and the Monarch and Pollinator Highway Act to a floor vote NOW. This is urgent and cannot wait. Thank you for your time.”

SUGGESTED SCRIPT for U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and for Secretary Deb Haaland’s office:

“I am calling from the San Francisco Bay Area in (your local city) as a concerned citizen and am concerned about the Western Monarch butterfly. The Western Monarch count in 2020 was less than 2,000 butterflies, and this butterfly should be put on the Endangered Species List NOW and protected. If pollinators like butterflies and bees go extinct this will severely affect our crops and our food supply not to mention that these beautiful butterflies will be missed by all. Please do not wait but use your authority to save these insects now. This is urgent and cannot wait. Thank you for your time.”

Learn more about the Monarch Milkweed Project here