One more gardening thing, and then it is time for lunch...
When planning your vegetable and flower gardens do not forget to check out the Free Seed Cabinets at Cooperative Extension this time of year! I am sure I blogged about this before, I love the program! This program is until supplies run out, in addition to the previously blogged Community Seed Swap coming weekend.
http://ccetompkins.org/garden/help-gardeners/free-seed-cabinets#sthash.to5Rgm2A.dpuf
the Free Seed Cabinets
Each year, staff in our Home Horticulture program write to various seed companies to request donations of seeds that are leftover from the previous year, but still viable. CCE-Tompkins receives many generous seed donations in response to this appeal (including many organic seeds) from vendors that have included Ithaca Agway, Seed Savers Exchange, FEDCO, Burpee, Heirloom Seeds, Seed Saver Exchange, Select Seeds, Harris Seeds, and Southern Exposure Seed Exchange, for example. There is a cabinet for flowers, and another cabinet for vegetables and herbs.
How It Works
Seed packets are organized in 2 cabinets, one for flowers, another for vegetables and herbs. Everyone is welcome to come and take some seeds for free, but to keep the system fair, we've had to put these GUIDELINES into place which seed-takers must follow: ONLY 1 VISIT PER MONTH and a LIMIT OF 10 SEED PACKETS PER VISIT.
So that we can track the success of the free seed program, we ask those taking seeds to write down their name, email and number of seeds they have taken. Seeds generally are available starting in late January until the supply is gone.
We ALSO invite gardeners to contribute accurately identified and dated seed (date of seed collection) to the Seed Cabinet for others to share. We have small envelopes here, or you may use your own, but be sure to put the year of seed collection on the envelope, as well as the name of the plant. NOTE: all donated seeds should be given to Pat Curran, our Horticulture Educator, for review before we make them available to the public.
The Seed Cabinets are located in our Agriculture/Environment office and may be visited weekdays from 8:30am-4:30pm. Tompkins County Cornell Cooperative Extension is located at 615 Willow Avenue in Ithaca (Dey St. exit from Route 13).
Showing posts with label Homestead FREEcycle. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Homestead FREEcycle. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
Community Seed Swap
Community Seed Swap & Guidelines
Bring your home-saved seeds (or surplus purchased seeds) to share with others, pick up some seeds for spring planting, learn how to clean seeds, and get tips on starting plants from seed for next year's garden. Cost: $5.00 donation, or free if you bring seeds to share! See below for guidelines if you plan to bring seeds to share. Contact Chrys Gardener at cab69@cornell.edu if you have any other questions.Seed Swapping Guidelines
- It's ideal if you can pre-package small seeds in individual envelopes. Sometimes with small seeds, people don't realize how much they are taking. By pre-packaging there will be more to go around. Write the name of the variety and the year collected on the envelopes. Large seeds (corn, beans, etc) can be loose for people to package themselves.- People will have questions about the varieties you are swapping - how tall does it get, how many days till harvest, what's the flavor like, etc. Know your varieties, and if you want to save yourself from repeating the same information you can make an index card with information for each of the varieties you are swapping.
Home-Saved Seed
- Be sure that you saved seeds from plants that were open-pollinated varieties, not hybrids, otherwise they will not come 'true-to-seed' for the next person that grows them. If you bought the plants from a garden center, the tag may say if it's a hybrid. If you started the plants from seed yourself the seed packet will say either open-pollinated or hybrid- Some vegetables will cross-pollinate with other related plants, for example many types of winter and summer squash can cross producing sometimes inedible results in the next generation. Some plants are self-pollinated and are easy to save 'true' seed from without any isolation techniques - tomatoes, lettuce, peas, and beans are all generally considered 'fool-proof'. If you saved seeds from other types of vegetables without avoiding the possibility of cross pollination, just state that on the seed packets (eg. 'Possibly crossed with other squash').
Purchased Seed
- If you have extra quantities of purchased seed that you want to swap, you can bring both open-pollinated and hybrid varieties. Just make sure they are clearly labeled as such so that people who want to save seeds from them know which is which.- See more at: http://ccetompkins.org/calendar/13/11/06/community-seed-swap-guidelines#sthash.uIGajFUy.dpuf
Community Seed Swap
Bring your home-saved seeds (or surplus purchased seeds) to share with others, pick up some seeds for spring planting, learn how to clean seeds, and get tips on starting plants from seed for next year's garden. Cost: $5.00 donation, or free if you bring seeds to share! See below for guidelines if you plan to bring seeds to share. Contact Chrys Gardener at cab69@cornell.edu if you have any other questions.
It's ideal if you can pre-package small seeds in individual envelopes. Sometimes with small seeds, people don't realize how much they are taking. By pre-packaging there will be more to go around. Write the name of the variety and the year collected on the envelopes. Large seeds (corn, beans, etc) can be loose for people to package themselves.
See more at: http://ccetompkins.org/calendar/13/11/06/community-seed-swap-guidelines#sthash.uIGajFUy.dpuf
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Ithaca Freecycle
The ulitmate in reduse, reuse, recycle! I did not quite realise how it worked, only that it needs a dedicated yahoo email account unlike google thingies. So I made a yahoo account and then I still could not use it... turns out it's like a group or forum and you have to use your yahoo membership to become member first. Man, I so no not get computer stuff! Says the person with the blog, haha.
But, long story short, if you like to get free stuff and like to give away free stuff, all local, Ithaca Freecycle is the way to go. Though, if you like to get stuff it pays to check your email more than once a day :-)
I just got my hay barn all filled up again with goat hay, free, from a lady who had to let go of her flock and had it just sitting around taking up space... It is sooo nice to start winter with a full barn! Oh, and let's not forget the two boxes full of assorted canning jars... it was like Christmas!
Oh, you don't need to use the yahoo email if you don't want to - once your membership is approved you can change your settings and add any other email address for both sending and receiving. Yay!
By the way, there is a new (ish) store in town called ReUse that's good for getting reused timber, building materials similar to Significant Elements and home stuffs like the Salvation Army. They have a sister store next door which offers reused computer equipment. They're located in the Triphammer Mall, in the old Millers store.
But, long story short, if you like to get free stuff and like to give away free stuff, all local, Ithaca Freecycle is the way to go. Though, if you like to get stuff it pays to check your email more than once a day :-)
I just got my hay barn all filled up again with goat hay, free, from a lady who had to let go of her flock and had it just sitting around taking up space... It is sooo nice to start winter with a full barn! Oh, and let's not forget the two boxes full of assorted canning jars... it was like Christmas!
Oh, you don't need to use the yahoo email if you don't want to - once your membership is approved you can change your settings and add any other email address for both sending and receiving. Yay!
By the way, there is a new (ish) store in town called ReUse that's good for getting reused timber, building materials similar to Significant Elements and home stuffs like the Salvation Army. They have a sister store next door which offers reused computer equipment. They're located in the Triphammer Mall, in the old Millers store.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
FREE scrap wood and pallets
There are a few places in town that are still willing to give away pallets and scrap wood.
Pallets are wood platforms used to ship stuff on. Most pallets have a refund, so do not take those nice ones stacked behind stores - they are worth money. Pallets with a 2x4" size frame tend to be all pine, pallets with a narrower frame tend to be hardwood (these are also heavier).
Scrapwood are cut offs and pieces of lumber used for packaging large bundles for shipping. Depending on where the shipment came from the lumber could be hardwood, but most are low grade pines. Packing lumber tends to be pretty beaten up, and most often has routed channels to keep the metal packing straps from slipping.
Agway Ithaca on route 13 gives away used pallets. If you do not need real nice ones, and not that many, they're happy to help you out. If you need real nice ones (hardwood etc) they might ask for a few bucks.
A business on the corner of route 13 and Green Street leaves pallets out on the grass between the sidewalk and the street on a fairly regular base. It's the business with the chain link fence, before Pegasus. First come first serve, obviously.
Cayuga True Value Lumber on 801 West State Street (rt 79 west) has lengths of scrap wood and sometimes pallets for free. The scrap wood is piled up in a small wooden shed off the parking lot on the side of the store - but ask for permission first, sometimes the employees store stuff there for other projects.
Lowe's Ithaca at 130 Fairgrounds Memorial Parkway has a scrap wood bin in the back of the building, behind the saw apparatus in the wood department. They also have pallets on and off. It is a good idea to verify with an employee you have the right bin, the cash register people know about scrap wood being free. I heard about a storage trailer for free pallets parked back there but have not located it yet - ask and maybe you will!
It has become difficult to find decent pallets, especially in winter (wood stoves) and spring (maple syrup). It pays to keep your eyes open! If you find a new location let me know and I'll be happy to add it to the list.
Pallets are wood platforms used to ship stuff on. Most pallets have a refund, so do not take those nice ones stacked behind stores - they are worth money. Pallets with a 2x4" size frame tend to be all pine, pallets with a narrower frame tend to be hardwood (these are also heavier).
Scrapwood are cut offs and pieces of lumber used for packaging large bundles for shipping. Depending on where the shipment came from the lumber could be hardwood, but most are low grade pines. Packing lumber tends to be pretty beaten up, and most often has routed channels to keep the metal packing straps from slipping.
Agway Ithaca on route 13 gives away used pallets. If you do not need real nice ones, and not that many, they're happy to help you out. If you need real nice ones (hardwood etc) they might ask for a few bucks.
A business on the corner of route 13 and Green Street leaves pallets out on the grass between the sidewalk and the street on a fairly regular base. It's the business with the chain link fence, before Pegasus. First come first serve, obviously.
Cayuga True Value Lumber on 801 West State Street (rt 79 west) has lengths of scrap wood and sometimes pallets for free. The scrap wood is piled up in a small wooden shed off the parking lot on the side of the store - but ask for permission first, sometimes the employees store stuff there for other projects.
Lowe's Ithaca at 130 Fairgrounds Memorial Parkway has a scrap wood bin in the back of the building, behind the saw apparatus in the wood department. They also have pallets on and off. It is a good idea to verify with an employee you have the right bin, the cash register people know about scrap wood being free. I heard about a storage trailer for free pallets parked back there but have not located it yet - ask and maybe you will!
It has become difficult to find decent pallets, especially in winter (wood stoves) and spring (maple syrup). It pays to keep your eyes open! If you find a new location let me know and I'll be happy to add it to the list.
Friday, February 12, 2010
FREE plant containers and transplant trays...
The Cornell Cooperative Extension has a plant pot recycling program where you can donate and pick up used plastic plant containers. They have all kinds of sizes, shapes and uses - including seedling starter trays, hanging baskets, round 1/2 and 1 gallon planters, square planters and even sometimes ceramic / clay containers. It all depends on the donations what is available, of course!
I have also found plant containers by the side of the road, to take or for regular recycling, especially at the end of planting season - it pays to keep your eyes open while driving :-)
Craigslist.com is another good place to get (large) amounts of planters, though most times you are expected to take all, not pick and choose.
Use a white vinegar solution to clean the containers, especially ones used for seed starting and young transplants.
I have also found plant containers by the side of the road, to take or for regular recycling, especially at the end of planting season - it pays to keep your eyes open while driving :-)
Craigslist.com is another good place to get (large) amounts of planters, though most times you are expected to take all, not pick and choose.
Use a white vinegar solution to clean the containers, especially ones used for seed starting and young transplants.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
use CRAIGSLIST for free stuff!
A very good way to ask around for local FREE gardening goodies is to use craigslist.com
I have been lucky to get old metal roofing panels (future goat house), perennial plants (tons of hosta), galvanized piping (was greenhouse, will house electric in goat house), goat milking stand, chicken waterers and feeders, Musckovy ducks, and lots of mulch hay & straw. Just ask, you never know what might pop up :-)
I have been lucky to get old metal roofing panels (future goat house), perennial plants (tons of hosta), galvanized piping (was greenhouse, will house electric in goat house), goat milking stand, chicken waterers and feeders, Musckovy ducks, and lots of mulch hay & straw. Just ask, you never know what might pop up :-)
FREE seeds at the Seed Exchange
The Cornell Cooperative Extension has a Free Seed Exchange program where you can pick out 10 packets of seed for FREE! They receive surplus seed packets from local companies and internet companies, even certified organic. Of course, the selection varies each year and each week. I have been told that if you donate seeds you saved yourself - labeled and dated - you can trade for more seed packets.
The Cooperative Extension is located at 615 Willow Avenue, Ithaca NY 14850 and can be reached by phone at 272-2292 and by email at tompkins@cornell.edu
The Cooperative Extension is located at 615 Willow Avenue, Ithaca NY 14850 and can be reached by phone at 272-2292 and by email at tompkins@cornell.edu
FREE wood chips
The city has a gigantic mount of free wood chips for pick up by the general public. It is behind the bus parking - take rt 13 north, Willow Ave left (pass the HiFi place), follow Willow until the golf course and at the T crossing take a right hand turn, around the TCat bus depot.
The mount should be visible shortly after that on the right hand side. It is in between the road and the railroad tracks / route 13. As far as I know you can pull up and shovel to take as much as you like - which I have done several times already! Be aware, not only the city uses this dump so if you see weeds mixed in with the wood chips get chips from a different spot - the heap is more than large enough. If you dig in deep enough, you'll find composted mulch (dark brown). I've even found wood shavings for my chicken coop!
The mount should be visible shortly after that on the right hand side. It is in between the road and the railroad tracks / route 13. As far as I know you can pull up and shovel to take as much as you like - which I have done several times already! Be aware, not only the city uses this dump so if you see weeds mixed in with the wood chips get chips from a different spot - the heap is more than large enough. If you dig in deep enough, you'll find composted mulch (dark brown). I've even found wood shavings for my chicken coop!
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