Belated garden update

As I somewhat expected, I've managed to neglect my own dot of a backyard garden while furiously trying to publicize others within the Grow Food, Grow Hope initiative. It's only a little ironic, I guess.

Anyhow, the backyard plot has been flourishing in the past weeks. So far I've harvested radishes, lettuce and a dozen green onions. The carrots are huge, albeit smothered, and one of my pepper plants has a fist-sized green pepper waiting to be picked.

Yesterday I took the time to tend to some very intrusive and meandering (and neglected) cucumber plants. The nature of square-foot gardening doesn't allow much room for vining plants, so it's almost certain that you'll have to trellis them in some way to stop them from taking over every other square they can meander to (see: my carrots). So I've been thinking of ways I can trellis the

cucumbers in my relatively small area, without spending too much

money. Last week, Taylor mentioned creating an arc out of wood or sticks to allow the plant to vine around, and as the cucumbers develop gravity will naturally pull them downward. It sounded like a good idea, and when I saw the method first-hand in his own garden, I decided to try it as well.

Taylor used bamboo for his arch, which fits much better with the organic feel of a garden than something store bought, so I decided on the same. After an arduous but fun adventure into the woods behind Wilmington College, I found the patch of bamboo where Taylor's friend Chip had harvested the stalks. (Expect another post tonight from said adventure: a gem of a find.) We trekked them back to my house, and easily staked them into the ground and bowed them to make the arch. We twist-tied the vines to the bamboo, and voila, the garden has an entirely new, verdant look to it. And all it took was 5 minutes. (Not counting the hour long hike in the woods.)

Tonight I plan on taking my camera and notebook back onto the trail where we found the bamboo. Should make for some good blog fodder.

Weekending in Columbus

I will be back in Columbus for the weekend, and I really want to do something out-of-doors. I plan on biking a bit on Saturday morning, but in the afternoon I'd like to go hiking or trail-running somewhere.

Maybe hiking or running at Highbanks? Biking at Alum Creek? Creeking somewhere along the Olentangy? I'm wide open to suggestions. John Ross over at Columbus Alive has been shelling out some some good recommendations lately on his outdoors blog, Venture. This place seems like an especially worthwhile daytrip.

Anyone wanna get outside this weekend?

Sailing the mighty Lake Cowan

There are certain things you never expect to be able to do in southwestern Ohio. One of them would be skiing, which is why I've still never been, even though there are "slopes" not too far away. Another would be surfing or mountaineering or real backpacking, for reasons too obvious to write. And if I had written this post two weeks ago, I probably would have included sailing on that list.

But last Sunday Taylor, Mark and I were invited to do just that at Cowan Lake with the Cowan Lake Sailing Association. If it was windy enough, we were told, we could probably find a spot on one of the boats as extra weight to "ride the rails." (Just one out of a handful of sailing terms that we would pick up from our day on the water).

So we made it to the lake around 1 o'clock as directed, to secure a spot on a boat for the two races of the day. The weather was perfect: a sunny sky pocked with cloud tufts and a consistent wind that almost guaranteed we would be needed. We pulled into the sailing association's private lot, where the outdoor clubhouse sits overlooking the water, and were greeted by Bob and Terri Thobaben, the avid sailors who invited us. There was room enough for two extra on the Thobaben's Highlander and a third person would pair up with two other young sailors, Brian and Colin, both mechanical engineers from Cincinnati. Mark and Taylor went with the Thobabens, and I went in the other boat.

Without much instruction, we got the boats from the dock and made our way out to the middle of the lake, where a circle of fifteen or more sailors were getting "in line" for the race. I learned very quickly that certain terms, which otherwise had no context for me, were connected to simple, quick actions. For instance, "tack," or when the direction of the sail is shifted to change the direction of the boat, really means "duck," because the mast is about to swing from one side of the boat to the other, and your head is just an obstacle along its path. Luckily I was alert enough to figure that out ahead of time, and any time Brian yelled "tack!" my head was well between my knees.

But the races were a blast. The maze of ropes and pulleys and locks at first seemed impossible to understand. The way you throw your weight from one side of the boat to the other, to counteract a strong gail threatening to capsize your boat, was nerve wracking at first, but eventually it was exhilarating. Hanging yourself off the side of the rail and using only your feet wrapped around a rope in the bottom of the boat for leverage-- that was difficult to get used to. But it all became natural after a half an hour or so.

I happened to be riding up front, so any water that splashed into the boat typically drenched me first. But the sun dried us out within minutes, so the splash from the lake eventually became welcomed. I was just glad I had the foresight to double-wrap my phone in two Ziploc bags. Next time, it's staying in the car.

After the race, we docked and secured the boats and walked back to the clubhouse for a beer and some food with the Thobaben's and the rest of the sailing club, which that day probably numbered 25 or 30 members. As it turns out, the CLSA is one of the best sailing associations in the country, and it's literally five miles away from where I grew up. I never would have guessed. Supposedly, the former president of the U.S. Sailing Assocation is among its members, and several others are ranked nationally in their sailing class.

All three of us were buzzing after our impromptu day on the water, and we're all looking forward to that next windy Sunday, when our dead weight can be of use again. Next time, I'll bring a camera, and some more sturdy Ziploc bags.

Bike Racks Might Be Mandatory in Columbus

Soon, there might be new legislation on the books in central Ohio that would require certain businesses to have at least two bike racks available for patrons. Columbus's Department of Development has proposed a new rule that would require businesses with a large number of parking spaces to make bike racks available-- a rule that has been met, so far, with acclaim from biking and environmental advocates, and skepticism from small-business owners and associations. "Bike racks might be must for businesses" (6/29).

Having lived in Columbus for almost five years and relied on my bicycle as a primary mode of transportation, I am definitely in favor of this legislation, considering some of the provisions included in the smallprint. Cyclists in Columbus have long used trees, street signs, trash cans, hand rails, benches and countless other fixed, inanimate objects to lock their bikes up while they're at class, work, a restaurant, a bar, the grocery store, et cetera. The bike to bike-rack ratio on the Ohio State University campus, for example, is easily 50-1, and so bikes are regularly chained to anything that doesn't move. The campus considers that an eyesore, and many buildings have "No Bicycle Parking" signs next to likely objects: trees, hand rails, benches and so on. The obvious solution seems to be adding more bike parking, but that requires money, and everyone is hard up for that.

I understand where small-businesses would be concerned about a law that requires bike racks, which can sometimes cost upwards of $200-$400. That cost could cripple a fledgling business. But the law doesn't seem to be directed toward start-up shops. Rather, it's written for grocery stores, department stores, restaurants and bars that offer ample car parking, and no bike parking.

It's only obvious that urban citizens will be more likely to bike somewhere that has legal bike parking than someplace that does not, and Columbus, which is one of the most progessive biking cities in the Midwest, seems poised to capitalize on that.

Wash Post: Changing Face of American Farms

Though this story has little to do with Ohio, it talks a lot about some of the same issues we're working with here in Wilmington and Clinton County. In Maryland and Virginia, the number of small farms headed by a female is rising faster than anywhere else nationally. The national number, too, is rising steadily. "A New Crop of Farmers" (6/28).

The article is a great example of the growing awareness of small-scale food production, and it highlights some other important factors: CSAs, organic farming, buying local, et cetera.

Here is a great photo slideshow that accompanies the piece.

Dispatch: Ohio Gets Renewable Energy Stimulus Cash

Today was another good day for renewable energy prospects in Ohio. The U.S. Department of Energy announced today that Ohio will receive some $38.4 million in stimulus money for renewable and energy efficient projects throughout the state. "Ohio awarded federal funding for energy-efficiency, renewable energy projects." (6/26).

This brings Ohio's total energy-related stimulus bursar to $96 million; a sizeable sum to invest in energy infrastructure and development for the coming years.

As mentioned in the Dispatch article, the money will be mostly divvied up into four broad categories: 1.) $35 million to invest in and develop renewable energy sources in Ohio; 2.) $30 million will go toward loans for private companies who want to invest in renewable energy projects; 3.) $15 million will go toward grants for manufacturers who want to develop energy-efficient infrastructure and 4.) $8 million will go for retrofitting and weatherizing commercial and residential buildings.

The most important part about the news? The first slice of the stimulus pie, the $38.4 million announced today, could be available in a few days. Considering there is still a bottleneck of funds released months ago, that news is very well received. The truth, though, remains to be seen.

Ohio Gets Solar Boost

The Ohio House of Representatives passed some significant "green" legislation on Tuesday, implementing a pilot program which will install solar PV (photovoltaic) panels in 70 of the biggest school districts in Ohio. "Solar Schools Pilot Program Will Put Ohioans to Work" (6/23).

As the headline mentions, the biggest selling point of this bill (HB 113) is the job creation aspect. Ohioans are much more likely to latch on to the idea of moving forward in our green energy economy if there are some immediate, tangible returns, like jobs.

Apparently the state's solar grant program is impossible to navigate, and even harder to pin down the available funds, so this news seems to have been taken skeptically by Ohio environmental groups. But it's no doubt a positive step forward.

Here is the full press release, and here's a good Green Strategies Bulletin from April that breaks the bill down. No one's really talking about it yet in the blogosphere, so extra viewpoints are lacking.