Bay Area Butterfly Festival Lands May 19

Apr 30, 2024

By Annina Puccio, executive director of the Monarch Milkweed Project

The Monarch Milkweed Project and the Vallejo People’s Garden are hosting the inaugural Bay Area Butterfly Festival on May 19!

Join us and experience the beautiful view of the Carquinez Strait from the boardwalk on Mare Island while learning about the importance of protecting our pollinators. This is a family-friendly community festival!

On two stages, fantastic performers and live bands will delight you with their talents. Children’s free games and hands-on activities will entertain young ones throughout the day. Musical performances will fill the air — dancing is not required, but it is definitely recommended! Artisans and small businesses will sell their art, wares, and many fantastic sustainable goods.

On a third stage, community groups will lead pop-up workshops on a wide range of exciting topics, which will include a talk sponsored by Sustainable Solano by Heath Griffith of Grow With The Flow on how to turn your lawn into a native garden. Food vendors and food trucks will offer a variety of cuisines, including vegan and gluten-free options.

We will be hosting over 100 vendors/exhibitors from various organizations and nonprofits at the event. There will be a focus on sustainable living, clean water practices, and environmental education.

This festival is a low-to-no-waste event focusing on commemorating the historic monarch overwintering site on Mare island, as well as the importance of sustainable practices and saving our pollinators — especially the iconic monarch butterfly and our various native bee species.

Learn more about attending here

On Facebook: https://fb.me/e/3uncrnQqk

Register on Eventbrite: www.bit.ly/BABF2024

Volunteer here

All volunteers get the following: free food and drink, a volunteer festival T-shirt and two free classes at the Vallejo People’s Garden.

Sign up here: https://forms.gle/o3Bx27kFusyriu2P6

Gift of the Generations

Jul 26, 2023

By Alana Mirror, creator of This Wonderful World: a musical reality-show where love for ourselves, each other, and the Earth become one

We introduced Alana and her This Wonderful World project when she attended the Pollinator Pathway garden installation and created a series of three songs from that experience. Since then, she’s done a series of songs about the installation of Peace of Eden community garden at City Church Fairfield, and a series inspired by the Vallejo People’s Garden. This is her reflection and the last song in her spring series — it highlights community gardens through SuSol’s Solano Gardens program. We appreciate reposting it here with her permission.

I’ve never felt like I had much of a green thumb. Though I’ve always known that growing a garden is a staple of sustainable living, I never really felt capable. Growing up, we didn’t have a garden. Other than the tomatoes that my grandpa grew, or my great-grandma’s home-dried oregano, I just thought food came from the store.

It wasn’t until I found Sustainable Solano that things began changing. I remember the first time I went to one of their community events — such diversity! All ages, shapes, colors and sizes were represented. There were people who seemed super experienced in the garden, and then there were folks (like me) who found the courage to show up as amateurs.

No one embarrassed us. No one rolled their eyes. Tips were shared with kindness and patience. I felt embraced and appreciated just for showing up. There seemed to be a shared understanding: we’ve all grown up in a culture that’s been disconnected from the source, and we’re all still finding our way home.

Before the rise of industrial agriculture, participating in the cultivation of food has been a human staple. But my great-grandma’s generation tended not to pass it on. Why would she? The Great Depression was hard and the supermarkets were miraculous. All it took was one generation for that long line of ancestral wisdom to disappear.

Fortunately, it wasn’t lost completely, which is evident in the fact that there’s enormous efforts being put forth to help reestablish our most basic connection with Earth: food. For non-home owners (like me — and 44% of California), just having a place to practice gardening is a gift. But when you add education and community to that, the roots really start to grow back. Recently the Surgeon General, Vivek Murthy, declared loneliness an epidemic where 60% of us feel a desperate hunger for belonging. His solution: social connection.

The garden not only offers a place to connect, but a way to connect. Metaphors of the earth remind us of our shared human condition where we all know what it’s like to be vulnerable when we sprout and withered when we’re spent. We all know the frustration from pesky weeds and the exhilaration of fruit that’s sweetening. The garden gives us language to connect in where we all belong, through the seasons, in the bird song. Here we are reminded that it’s OK to need each other. Witnessing the bees pollinating, the fungi decomposing, the compost nourishing, we are reassured that everything needs each other, and everything has something to give. We are reminded of the abundance that comes when we work together — how precious the fruit is when our love has nurtured it.

It may sound a bit woo-woo, but it’s true: there’s a vibration that’s inherent. As one of the program managers for Solano Gardens, Jazzmin Ballou, confidently confirmed: “all I need to do is touch the Earth to tune in, and quiet my mind, to give me a glorious sense of sacred belonging.”

It’s truly a gift. As someone who has struggled with my fair share of loneliness, I hardly recognize myself after spending these last few months in community gardening. As much as self-help strategies have served me, there’s been no greater cure than serving. Of course I’m still learning a lot, but I’m not as embarrassed about it anymore. The confidence and connection that comes from growing together has sent ripples through my whole life. It’s an overflow that’s yearning to be shared, a gift begging to be given, a joy to pass on (as our ancestors did not so long ago) to a world that, every day, is rediscovering our beauty.

Thank you for reminding me.

This Wonderful World is the latest production from Alana’s greater work, called The Living Mirror Project, a creative practice that generates peace by seeing ourselves in everything.

Learn more about This Wonderful World here
Watch the whole series here
Sign up for Alana’s newsletter here
Contact Alana at thelivingmirrorproject@gmail.com if there are any service events that you think should be celebrated in this series, or for more info on booking a live musical show.

Pure Black Gold: A Love Song to Compost

Apr 21, 2023

By Alana Mirror, creator of This Wonderful World: a musical reality-show where love for ourselves, each other, and the Earth become one
We introduced Alana and her This Wonderful World project when she attended the Pollinator Pathway garden installation and created a series of three songs from that experience. Since then, she’s done a series of songs about the installation of Peace of Eden community garden at City Church Fairfield, and a series inspired by the Vallejo People’s Garden. This blog comes from her reflections from one of her songs inspired by the composting going on at Vallejo People’s Garden. We appreciate reposting it here with her permission.

No doubt something magical happens to life when we embrace the process of turning “what has been” into “what will become.” This is the mirror of composting.

Making this important soil amendment can be a smelly, dirty and all together gross process, but only when it’s out of balance. Healthy compost plies, in fact, don’t smell much at all. The microbes who break down the compost into soil need a balanced diet, just like the rest of us. You gotta work with it. If it starts getting smelly, there’s probably too much nitrogen-rich material (like kitchen scraps). But it’s an easy fix: all you gotta to is add some carbon-rich material (like dried leaves). If there’s too many insects, it probably just needs to be mixed a little better. If it’s taking too long to break down, it might benefit from a little more moisture. With attention and care, the transformational process of turning “what has been” into “what will become” doesn’t have to be gross. But, if it is, there’s always a way to correct it.

At the Vallejo People’s Garden, Ravi Shankar has been the head composter for 14 years. Trained as a “master composter,” I’ve never met anyone more enthusiastic about roly polies, worms, and microbes! Every week Ravi spends a few hours tending the compost, and he’s all in, literally! In his 60s, he jumps right into the compost bin as he uses his pitch fork to mix and turn it all up. He assesses what it needs to be balanced by gathering materials from the garden and by organizing the larger community’s contributions (such as shredded paper from a local office, coffee grounds from a local coffee shop, grass clippings from the neighborhood lawns, and even some folks’ kitchen scraps.) He absolutely loves it and swears that the work he does with the compost is the secret to what’s keeping him so fit, and so happy.

But he’s not the only one that benefits from his compost magic: the garden loves it! In fact, the compost is one of the Vallejo People’s Garden’s main tricks to growing so much good food for their community. It’s such magical stuff they sell this “Black Gold” to other gardeners.

It’s a reassuring metaphor for me as someone who’s going through my own personal transformation. In our rapidly changing world, it seems like every day I’m realizing parts of my life that aren’t serving the same purpose that they were meant to anymore. But, to have such a joyful metaphor of composting helps me to remember that change can be a process that enlivens and enriches life. Ravi’s enthusiastic leadership helps me to jump right into the transformational process where stinky and buggy doesn’t mean failure, it’s just a call to adjust. Everything that we’ve done in our lives (even the bits that we regret ) can serve a larger purpose when we embrace the messy process of change with the same vigor that Ravi takes to his beloved compost. No doubt change can hurt sometimes, but at least there’s hope in what can come of it.

May we all find the gifts in our discarded bits.

Follow the Vallejo People’s Garden on Instagram here and on Facebook here

This Wonderful World is the latest production from Alana’s greater work, called The Living Mirror Project, a creative practice that generates peace by seeing ourselves in everything.

Learn more about This Wonderful World here
Watch the whole series here
Sign up for Alana’s newsletter here
Contact Alana at thelivingmirrorproject@gmail.com if there are any service events that you think should be celebrated in this series, or for more info on booking a live musical show.

The Joy of Making ‘This Wonderful World’ Together: Musical Media to Share the Love Our Community

Mar 6, 2023

By Alana Mirror, creator of This Wonderful World: a musical reality-show where love for ourselves, each other, and the Earth become one

We enjoyed having Alana attend the Pollinator Pathway garden installation on Mare Island, which was through our Solano Sustainable Backyards program supported by the Solano County Water Agency and in partnership with several organizational partners. When Alana shared the music videos she created out of her experience from those two days, we were moved by the way she captured the sense of community and connection with the earth and each other that we treasure at SuSol events. Here, she shares a bit about that experience and her This Wonderful World project.

Alana Mirror, left, plants alongside other workshop participants at the Pollinator Pathway garden on Mare Island

Hi Sustainable Solano community! My name is Alana and I’m here to support this community with my media and music project called This Wonderful World, a living musical to celebrate all the wonderful things folks do to love Earth. I’m currently working on the spring season of this project, which largely features the Sustainable Solano community. In this season, I’ve been writing songs, making videos, and telling stories based on what I’ve witnessed in Sustainable Solano volunteer days — and you may be featured! These songs and stories are shared on YouTube as well as in a live performance.

Since I began participating in this community, I’ve been deeply inspired by the love, dedication, and warm welcome that has been demonstrated in the events that I’ve attended. I began this project because I was overwhelmed and anxious on so many levels. I needed something to help me keep my head up as we’re all called to create a world that thrives as a whole. It’s big work, but I’ve been so supported by the positivity and encouragement that has been shown to me that I want to pass it on. I hope this series can be light for you as you have been a light for me.

Pollinator Pathway Playlist

Sustainable Solano will be sharing this series in the newsletter, so keep any eye out for the links! As a native of Solano County, I am so proud of all the ways we are meeting the challenges of our time with love, inclusion, and great dedication to our environment. 

I also invite you to participate in the creation of This Wonderful World by sharing your story of finding hope and inspiration in this community. Here’s what to do:

Share a link to your favorite video/mini-series from This Wonderful World on your media channel of choice (including private email and texts) with your own tale of seeing This Wonderful World come to life in this community. If you’re on social media, make sure you tag  #thiswonderfulworld @sustainablesolano and @alanamirror so that you can see and support each other’s stories of making This Wonderful World together. By the end of the season, I would love to see a collection of stories from this community that can continue to inspire us as we move forward, together!

In your description, tell your friends and family: How did the wisdom of the earth and/or the love in this community support you in your life? What about your experience do you want to pass on to others, and why?

This invitation is open to both folks who participated in the events shown in the videos, as well as those who weren’t there, but who recognize what’s happening from other experiences you’ve had with Sustainable Solano, or other community efforts that love Earth. 

Thank you so much for being part of bringing This Wonderful World to life! It is a true joy to celebrate and serve with you. Hope to see you out there!

This Wonderful World is the latest production from Alana’s greater work, called The Living Mirror Project, a creative practice that generates peace by seeing ourselves in everything.

Learn more about This Wonderful World here
Watch the whole series here
Follow Alana on Instagram @alanamirror
Sign up for Alana’s newsletter here
Contact Alana at thelivingmirrorproject@gmail.com if there are any service events that you think should be celebrated in this series, or for more info on booking a live musical show.

A Call to Action to Save the Monarchs

Aug 9, 2021

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

Businesses Partner to Provide Plants

Mar 27, 2020

By Harmony Organics

There has never has been a time quite like this where much of what we hold dear has changed and over which we have little control, at least for now. It’s definitely a time for nurturing ourselves and those dear to us. For many, home gardens can be a place where we find tranquility, healing and a place revitalize and reenergize — all things that can help us in unsettling times.

With that in mind, Harmony Organics would like to bring a little sunshine into your homes and gardens. As a local supplier of premium organic soil blends and amendments, we can help nurture your gardens and help them thrive, especially now as we are all spending more time in our homes.

And as a commitment to our motto, “Grow Together,” we have teamed with Biota Gardens Nursery to provide the highest quality seed starts for your spring/summer grows. We are fortunate to have been the soil provider for Biota Gardens the past few years and are excited to give everyone the opportunity purchase their plants locally. We will still have our soil and amendments available so that you can pair our soil with wonderful organic heirloom seed starts.

About the Blog

Harmony Organics, located in Benicia, shares how they are partnering with Biota Gardens Nursery as a distribution site for plants.

Many local nurseries have changed their hours and how they are doing business to remain open during this time. See what your local nursery is doing here and check directly with the nursery for the latest information.

We’re always looking for insight from our locally owned small businesses. Want to share what you’re doing? Contact us at allison@sustainablesolano.org

Biota Gardens offers 1 Quart Organic Starts for $4.50/plant with discounts based on the number of plants purchased. As of the first week in April, they will have available a wide variety of tomatoes, peppers, squash and cucumbers with select varieties of eggplants, melons, herbs and flowers. To meet our customers’ needs, we will be practicing the social distancing mandates that are in place to help minimize the spread the COVID-19 so that everyone remains safe and healthy. All plants that are ordered will be available for pickup at our office/warehouse at 4271 Park Road in Benicia (curbside drop off may be available as well based on location).

Please visit biotagardens.com to view the available plants to help jump start your garden this spring. You will be able to place an order directly with Biota Gardens and make sure to mention Harmony Organics in the Questions/Special Instructions section. If you need assistance ordering plants or need other soil/amendments please call us at 707-747-5051 or email info@harmony-organics.com

During these strange and difficult times, we want us all to be able to find joy in playing in the dirt, seeing our work bloom and eating homegrown veggies and fruits. Labor of love or just garden fun. Remember, gardening is for everyone! Hope everyone is safe and enjoying the fruits of their labor!