Green Living Thursday

With the recent cold weather, wind and snow, I thought it would be a good idea to discuss some ideas about what to do in the kitchen during a blackout. It is inevitable that sooner or later our electricity is going to go out. We all remember last winter when it was out for several days. When that happens, fixing food can present a problem. Here are some tips to help you get around in the kitchen when the electricty is out.


The key to getting through a power outage is to be prepared. Preparing ahead for possible blackouts will make it easier to get through them if they do occur. One way of preparing is to stock your refrigerator and pantry with foods that let you fix a decent meal without electricity. Canned items such as tuna are an excellent thing to stock in the pantry for emergency situations. When cooking any dish that will reheat well or can find a second life in a salad, make extra. If you have leftover cooked pasta and a few fixings - olive oil, oil-packed sundried tomatoes, olives, canned tuna - it's a cinch to throw together a satisfying salad. Or you could reheat that pasta in ready-made sauce from the pantry in a chafing or fondue dish or over a camp stove.

If you have a few hard-boiled eggs stashed away, all the better. Extra blanched or roasted vegetables are good with a vinaigrette, served at room temperature. Leftover meatloaf or any roasted meat can anchor a supper, as can ratatouille or chile.

Barbecues and outdoor gas grills can save the day and the dinner, but if you don't own such gear, there are simpler solutions. Just think outside the box - or maybe take something out of its box. The camp stove you haven't used since your trip to Yosemite can heat up all manner of leftover home-cooked or canned food, and so can that chafing dish you got as a wedding present more years ago than you care to admit.

Heating leftovers or canned foods or making something really quick like pasta in store-bought sauce; an omelet, or warmed tortillas piled with whatever is around.

Checklist

-- Learn the art of planned overage, but use extras in your meals within a few days even if there hasn't been a blackout. Replenish your standby supply as you go along.

-- Check what non-electric cooking options you have. Make sure they are in working order and you have the needed fuel - charcoal for the grill, portable gas cylinders, Sterno or denatured alcohol, even small candles for those buffet warming dishes.

However, do NOT under any circumstances use gadgets and fuels designed for outdoor use in a closed space like your kitchen. Carbon monoxide-filled fumes can quickly turn that blackout meal into your last supper.

With a little planning, it is possible to make it through a power outage and still manage to eat well. Don't forget to check on your neighbors during times when we are experiencing situations such as power losses or severe weather.

Stitch says...

Ho! Ho! Ho! Merry Christmas

Greening your Holidays II

Packing Peanuts, what are they good for? Well that depends. They can be the bain of our existence at times. However, there are some things you can do with them. In the past few years, some strides have been made in the packing peanut industry, such as peanuts made out of corn starch or wheat. Some biodegrade quickly and can be put into your compost pile and others dissolve in water. Also, traditional packing peanuts are made out of polystyrene and are now color coded to indicate the origin of the material they contain. Polystyrene takes hundreds of years to decompose in nature, so recycling it is key. Green colored packing peanuts are made from at least 70% recycled material, while white and pink colored peanuts are composed of at least 70% raw (i.e. non-recycled) materials. Additionally, pink peanuts have been treated with chemicals to prevent static cling.

One alternative to using shipping peanuts is to use popcorn. If you have an air popper, this works perfectly. Just be sure your popcorn is plain with not butters, oils or seasonings on it. Plain, dry popcorn works wonderfully well as a packing material and can then be put outside for the birds to enjoy.

But if you do find yourself afloat in a seat of shipping peanuts, here are some things you can do with them.

REUSE THEM: Store packing peanuts in an old pair of pantyhose to keep them from over taking your house until you are ready to ship them off to someone else. Cut a hole in the toe and tie it off with a twisty seal for easy peanut dispensing.

REFUSE THEM: If you detest packing peanuts, ask mail order companies if they use them before you agree to place an order and encourage them to use the new biodegradable variety. Sometimes companies, particularly smaller outifits, will agree to ship your order with shredded newspapers or some other more eco-friendly substitute instead.

RECYCLE THEM: More and more recycling programs are accepting packing peanuts, but make sure you put them in a bag or box so they don't escape and invade the neighborhood. Also, shipping services like Mailboxes, Etc. will often accept peanut donations, as will many stores and businesses that do a lot of shipping. If nothing else, list them on Freecycle since someone in your area is bound to be moving or shipping something.

RE-PURPOSE THEM: Packing peanuts make great stuffing. No, not for your turkey, but for things like pet beds and draft dodgers. Simply sew up your project and then use the packing peanuts for the stuffing.

So with a little imagination, we can turn an annoying item like packing peanuts into something useful.

Greening your Holidays I

As the holidays quickly approach, it is good to keep in mind how to have a Green Christmas. One tip is to be organized and do any ordering and shipping you have to do early enough so you can avoid overnight shipping. Using ground transportion means less fuel use and pollution. In our harried society, it is easy to forget a birthday, anniversary or wait until the last minute to do your holiday shopping. Overnight shipping burns the most fossil fuels per item, while ground shipping tends to be six time more energy efficient than air. Because airplanes release their greenhouse gases way up in the atmosphere, they tend to do more damage than gases emitted at ground level, at least as far as global warming is concerned.

Using ground shipping instead of overnight shipping, will also green your wallet, since most companies charge a heft price for the service. Consider making it your New Year's Resolution to organize your purchasing and bill paying so that you give yourself enough time and can avoid using overnight services. You will not only be helping the environment, but yourself as well.

December bills

It is that time again. Water meters were read last week and the bills were sent out on Dec. 7th. They will be due on Dec. 28th. Paying on time assures you won't be charged a $15.00 late fee. We bill every other month, so the next bill will go out around Feb. 1. Thank you.

Snow, snow and more snow!

Wow, that was quite a storm on Monday. Snow, wind and rain sure made for an interesting day. We hope you are all warm, dry and safe. With the holidays quickly approaching, some of you may be leaving your mountain home. Or perhaps you will be heading out for warmer weather. Please remember that if you leave your mountain home, turn your water off at your customer valve. This is located in a box next to your water meter. Should you have a frozen pipe and it bursts, having your water shut off will save you from having all sorts of damage or a large water bill. All water that goes through your meter is your responsibility, even if it is due to a leak or a pipe breaking. So please, it is better to be safe than sorry. Turn you water off if you leave.

First Snow!!!

Last Saturday morning brought a big surprise. Snow! What a refreshing way to start the morning. This is a timely reminder to get your winterizing done NOW, as it seems Old Man Winter isn't going to wait until it is winter on the calendar to make himself known. Since we need all the moisture we can get, it is better to be prepared for the weather than to be scurrying around at the last minute in the cold and snow. Remember to turn your water off if you leave your mountain home. Unhook all outside hoses and cover any exposed faucets. It is like the old saying, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Happy Thanksgiving

Everyone here at Pine Cove Water District, Jerry, Becky, Vicki, Jerry, Jeremy and Stitch, wishes each of you a very happy and blessed Thanksgiving holiday. We are all very blessed to be able to live in a place as wonderful as Pine Cove. We will be closed on Nov. 26th and 27th so that the employees may enjoy the holiday with their families.

Newsletters are out!

By now you should have all received your Fall/Winter newsletter in the mail. We would love to hear your feedback on the new, colored and expanded format. We tried to make the newsletter very helpful and informative. Please drop us a note or give a quick call to let us know what you thought about it. Our phone number is 951-659-2675. You can also email us at info@pcwd.org or leave a comment here on our blog. We love hearing from our customers.

Increasing living space without increasing energy costs

As the owner of a small 900 sq. ft. cottage, I know first hand how it is when living space is at a premium. But is bigger really better? I don't think so. Living in a small space saves energy, however, it can be a challenge trying make the most of a small space. So I got to thinking, how can a person increase their living space without going to the expense of major construction, which would in turn increase their energy use?

After a little research, I came up with some great ideas. For instance, if you have a high vaulted ceiling, you can add a loft which would increase the square footage of your home and give you more living space, but wouldn't increase your heating and cooling costs. It would also be a lot more economical than adding on a traditional room. You can also consider closing in an existing deck or patio, either with screening or windows, depending on what you will be using it for.

There are many other "mini spaces" you can add on to make your home seem bigger without the major construction involved in adding on a room. How about taking out a sliding glass door and adding a small nook or niche? Bay windows that extend down to the floor can also expand a room without actually adding on. A garden room put on over an existing deck or patio can also be utilized to increase your living space while keep costs reasonable.

During the warmer months, why not think about adding an outdoor room. A deck, porch, or patio can do double duty as an outdoor kitchen, dining room, living room or entertainment space. They can be as elaborate or simple as you want, depending on your budget. They can be attached to your house or you can make a space in an attractive area of your yard. A ground level deck is easy to construct and there is a wide variety of materials available for making patios. We all know food tastes better outdoors, so why sit in a hot house and eat dinner when the great outdoors is beckoning? And really, what could be better than sipping your morning tea or coffee outside with the birds and squirrels watching the sun rise? The winter months provide a great time to sit and dream and plan where you could add an outdoor room, so get out your pad and pencil!

Have you ever thought about installing an outdoor shower? A simple garden hose can be turned into a solar water heater. Or you can go all out and have a plumber run hot and cold water lines to your outside shower. How much fun would it be to shower outside under a canopy of pines and cedars? As a bonus, the water you use to shower can be put to use in the garden.

So if you are feeling like you need more space, stop and think about the impact of new construction, not only on your wallet, but on the environment as well. Perhaps one of the above suggestions would help improve your living space and keep you energy use from going up!

Green Living Thursday a day late!

This week kept Vicki and Becky very busy preparing the Fall/Winter Newsletter and getting it ready to be mailed out. They are now all mailed out and we hope you will take a few minutes to read it through. There is a lot of information in it and we look forward to hearing your feedback.

So my Green Living Thursday post was postphoned until today. Better late than never! Today I want to talk about saving electricity. I found some surprising facts on The Daily Green. We all know the drill. Turn off the lights when you leave a room, unplug appliances you aren't using, turn down the thermostat and so on. But here are a couple of things you can do to cut your electric bill that I never though about.

For instance, get rid of your cordless phones or cut down to just one. Cordless phones are energy vampires. They sit in their cradles recharing so they are sucking up electricity 24/7. If you replace a cordless phone or two that you don't really need, you can save on your electric bill. An added benefit is that corded phones will work even during a power outage, whereas as cordless phone will not.

It may seem old fashioned, but a tradition corded phone uses only a trickle of electricty that comes throught the phone line. Compare this to a cordless phone which uses 2 to 3 watts of electricity in both active and standby modes. Approximately 60% of cordless phone energy use occurs during standby time.

If you still want the convenience of a cordless phone, then consider getting just one and putting corded phones in the rooms you aren't in as much. If you do purchase a cordless phone, make sure to look for the Energy Star. By following these tips you will soon see your energy savings adding up.

Another good tip I was unaware of is about ceiling fans. I have several in my home and during the summer they get a work out. But in the winter it never occured to me to turn them on. However, during the winter months when we are heating our homes, a ceiling fan can be switched to rotate clockwise instead of counterclockwise, which will circulate the warm air pooled near the ceiling, back into the living space, keeping you warmer and allowing you to lower your thermostat. I am going to be trying this tip in my home for sure.

My last tip is about computers. We all know that turning them off when not in use saves a lot of electricty. However, what I didn't know is that a lap top is much more energy efficient than a desktop. A laptop uses 15 to 25 watts of electricity as compared to a desktop which consumes a whopping 150 watts! I for one, was unaware of this huge difference in energy consumption. A laptop also only draws a fraction of a watt when in sleep mode. So if a new computer is on your wish list, check out the laptops. I have had one at my home for 5 years now and I love the portablility and flexibity of the laptop. It does everything my desktop does and takes up so much less room. Now I know I have been saving energy as well.

If you have any tips on how to save energy around the house, please email them Vicki at info@pcwd.org. We look forward to hearing your comments.

Newsletter Coming!!

It is almost that time of year again. The Fall/Winter Newsletter will soon be appearing in your mailboxes. It has a new and improved look and format. We are hoping that everyone will take the time to read it. It is chock full of information, pictures and all the news from around the water district. It has been a busy summer around here. We have worked very hard to make the newsletter interesting and informative. We would love your feedback on it as well. If you have anything you would like included in the next newsletter, please let us know. We would love to hear from you. You can contact us via email at info@pcwd.org or by phone at 951-659-2675. We are always interested in knowing what our customers are thinking.

It's Green Living Thursday!

Well, here we are on Green Living Thursday and as promised I will discuss how to make compost. I know there is a lot of mystery surrounding compost. If you start doing some research you will find that some sources make it sound like a very complicated and exact science experiment. In my experience, there are many ways to make compost. Yes you can follow the scientific route and have compost in a much shorter time or you can take the more laid back approach and let Mother Nature do it in her own time.

In my own composting experience, which is minimal at this point, I tend to take the passive approach, rather than the aggressive approach. There are many good reasons for either approach, but basically it comes down to a personal choice based on the amount of time, money and available composting materials at your disposal. As I become more experienced at making compost, I hope to move to the more aggressive approach of making compost.

The EPA has an excellent page on composting and tells you about several different methods, including how to compost indoors and has a great list of what to put into a compost pile and what not to put into the compost pile. It is a quick and easy read with lots of information.

http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/rrr/composting/by_compost.htm

Here is a list from their site of what to put into a compost pile.

Animal ( cow or horse) manure
Cardboard rolls
Clean paper
Coffee grounds and filters
Cotton rags
Dryer and vacuum cleaner lint
Eggshells
Fireplace ashes
Fruits and vegetables
Grass clippings
Hair and fur
Hay and straw
Houseplants
Leaves
Nut shells
Sawdust
Shredded newspaper
Tea bags
Wood chips
Wool rags
Yard trimmings

Here is a list of what not to put into a compost pile and why.

Leave Out/Reason Why

Black walnut tree leaves or twigs- Releases substances that might be harmful to plants
Coal or charcoal ash -Might contain substances harmful to plants
Dairy products (e.g., butter, egg yolks, milk, sour cream, yogurt)- Create odor problems and attract pests such as rodents and flies
Diseased or insect-ridden plants- Diseases or insects might survive and be transferred back to other plants
Fats, grease, lard, or oils- Create odor problems and attract pests such as rodents and flies
Meat or fish bones and scraps- Create odor problems and attract pests such as rodents and flies
Pet wastes (e.g., dog or cat feces, soiled cat litter)- Might contain parasites, bacteria, germs, pathogens, and viruses harmful to humans
Yard trimmings treated with chemical pesticides- Might kill beneficial composting organisms

One thing you will need prior to starting your compost pile is a container for your compost. This can be anything from a small, wire bin you make yourself, to a three bin system or even a tumbling composter. There are many styles available online and at garden centers well as directions on how to build one. However, several things will determine what type of container you will need. The amount of time, money, space and materials you have will all play a part in the type of composting container you get, as well as the amount of effort you want to put into it. If you are a little handy, you can even build your own bin or make one out of a trash can. The most important thing about composting is that you do it!

Once you have your compost bin and have read up on what to put in to the pile and what to avoid, you are ready to start composting. Certain methods will yield compost faster than others, but as long as you don't have a soggy, wet pile that turns to slime, you will eventually get compost. If you pile is in danger of getting to wet and you have an open container, you can throw a tarp on top to keep some of the winter moisture out of the pile. Composting doesn't have to be hard or scientific. Just follow a few simple rules about what to put into the pile, turn it as much as you can, keep it moist and eventually you will get compost.

The most wonderful thing about composting is that it is keeping all that waste out of the landfills. Making less trash is something we should all be concerned about. Composting and recycling are easy to do and help to alleviate the amount of trash put into our landfills each year. If you are still unsure about composting, do some research online or pick up a book at the library. There is a lot of information out there now about organic gardening and composting. Remember, your garden will thank you for composting with healthier trees and a bountiful garden.

Speaking of Compost.....

Compost is on everyone's mind it seems. Over the weekend, I was working in my garden, adding compost to some beds, when my neighbors stopped by. They were curious as to how I was able to get things to grow, when they had not had any success in getting anything to grow. They asked me if the soil up here was poor. I explained to them that composting was the best way to go in order to enrich the soil and improve it's water retaining ability. I have found this to be true in my own garden.

The great thing about compost is that you can make it yourself. Composting is an excellent way to divert waste from our landfills and provide the much needed "black gold" our gardens crave. Composting is very easy. I will discuss in Thursday's post exactly how to compost and what kind of containers are needed to hold you compost. It is not as difficult as you might think. Stay tuned for composting samples right here at the water district. We are in the process of setting up our own composting system to cut down on waste produced by the district.

The November 9th issue of the Press Enterprise contained a story about UCR starting a composting program. According to the Sustainable Endowments Institute, a Massachusetts nonprofit group, a recent survey of 332 colleges and universities in the US and Canada found that 55 percent were composting food.

Fortino Morales, an environmental science major and head of Sustainable UCR, a student group that educates classmates about eco-friendly practices says, "We need universities not just to teach about sustainability, but to practice it themselves." We could all take a page from that book! Talk is cheap as they say, but actions speak louder than words.

Why bother composting you might ask. Keeping waste out of landfills should be everyone's priority because they are reaching capacity and because decomposing rubbish emits methane, a greenhouse gas more potent than carbon dioxide. UCR's dining services produces more than 11,000 meals on a typical weekday through the university's 19 food outlets. Campus-wide, 1,932 tons a year go to the land fill. Now, 1,466 tons have been diverted according to Gustavo Plascencia, the general manaer for UCR's residential dining.

If more people, restaurants, institutions, schools, office buildings and hospitals start composting, think of the amount of waste that WON'T go into the landfills. In return, we would have wonderful, rich compost to add to our soil. Which in turn helps the soil retain water and provides much needed nutrients for plants. It is a win win situation.

Don't forget, we are giving away a free bag of compost to the first 50 customers who stop by and ask for it. Just come on into the water district office located at 24917 Marion Ridge Rd. Our office hours are Monday thru Friday from 9 to 12 and from 1 to 4. We are closed from 12 to 1 for lunch. Come by and pick up your bag and see for yourself the difference compost can make. See you at the office!

Green Living Thursdays

With all the talk about conservation, sustainability and green living, I thought it might be a good idea to start posting some green living tips. I will try my best to do this each Thursday. If you have any suggestions or any topics you would like to see addressed, please feel free to email them to me at pcwd2675@yahoo.com .

Since we live in this wonderful forest, I thought I would start off by discussing ways to have a tree free home. A sustainable household should try to create as much as possible, a tree free home. Here are some suggestions to get you started.

1. Replace paper napkins with cloth napkins. Cloth napkins are a wonderful alternative to paper napkins and can be easily made by recycling fabrics you already have around your home or can purchase second hand. Sheets, towels, tablecloths, curtains and clothing are easy to turn into napkins. It only takes basic sewing skills to make a napkin or if you prefer a non sewing project, you can make them buy using iron on tape. By recycling fabrics into napkins you are not only taking a step towards reducing your dependence on paper products, but you are also reducing the amount of waste in our landfills.
2. Replace paper towels with a special set of cloth towels or napkins or cut up old T-shirts. As with the napkins, just wash and re-use. These items can all be washed with your normal laundry. There is no need to make a special load.
3. Take your own cloth shopping bags with you to the store.
4. If you pack a lunch, don't use a paper sack. Use a re-usable insulated lunch bag and tuck a cloth napkin and a set of real silver ware inside. Also pack your food items and drinks in re-useable containers that can be washed out nightly and re-used.
5. Purchase bleach-free toliet paper that is made from the highest post-consumer waste content you can find. (80% minimum)
6. If you print documents, print on once-used paper and/or bleach-free, recycled paper with the highest post-consumer waste content available.
7. Create and use note pads from once used paper. Leave messages for family members on a reusable message boards or chalk boards instead of using note pads. Put one in a central location so everyone can see it.
8. If you will be doing construction on your house, search out alternatives to using newly cut wood. Check for eco-friendly floorings such as bamboo, previously used wood or composite decking.
   

We hope you find these tips helpful and we look forward to hearing from you. Good luck in your quest for having a tree free home.

FREE COMPOST!!!

In order to help encourage people to amend their soil during the fall season, we have decided to give away one bag of compost to the first 50 people who come into the office and ask for it during the month of November only. We have been giving away free bark chips for quite a while now and it has become very popular, so we thought we would take it one step further and give away some free compost. So don't wait. Come and get your bag before they are gone.

Weather Station Working

After the weather station being down for a short time, it is up and running again. If you would like to see what the current weather conditions are, just go to our website at www.pcwd.org and click on the link at the top of the page that says "click here for current weather condition. It will give you current conditions as well as graphs charting what the weather has been since midnight.

We hope you find this to be a useful addition to our website. We think it will be especially helpful to those of you who live off the hill and would like to see what the weather is doing prior to making the trip up. We get many calls on road conditions, amount of snow fall and weather conditions in general, so we thought this would be a useful addition to the water district.

For those of us that live here full time, it is helpful to see what the temperature is prior to venturing outside or how fast the wind is blowing. We hope it is something that you find useful. Please let us know how you like it.

Compost, what good is it?

While living in Pine Cove is generally a good thing, trying to have a garden or grow things up here can be a challenge. Between the short growing season, the poor soil, the altitude and the lack of moisture, one can begin to wonder if gardening is an exercise in futility.

The good news is that you can have a sucessful garden, but it will take a little work. One of the best things you can do to ensure gardening sucess, is to add compost to your soil. This applies to your native plants as well as any areas you wish to plant in. This is beneficial in several ways. In an article written by Gary Nakamura, of the University of California, in July 2003 entitled Living in Southern California Forests, he briefly explains the benefits of compost.

"In California’s Mediterranean climate, water is usually limited during the growing season. Most of the precipitation occurs in the winter and runs off. All the water plants have for growth is that retained in the soil, so the depth, texture (sandy, clay, rocky), and organic matter content determines how much water will be available to plants. Protecting the soil from erosion and compaction is important to maintaining its waterholding capacity."

Now, if you are trying to grow vegetables for instance, you are going to have to water your garden. Since we are all trying to conserve water, you certainly don't want to waste it in the garden. Every drop needs to count. By amending your soil with compost, whether bought from the store or made in your own yard, you are not only increasing the nutrient content of your soil, but you are improving the soils ability to absorb and hold water, thereby making the watering you do much more efficient. If you go one step further and add a layer of mulch after the garden is planted, the mulch will help retain the moisture and in turn, save water. If you use a natural material for your mulch, such as bark chips, which we offer for free here at Pine Cove Water District, you will have the added benefit of the bark chips slowly decomposing over time and themselves turning into compost as well.

Now that we are in the throws of autumn, it is the perfect time to get out there and amend your soil. There are many types of soil amendments available at hardware stores, home improvement centers and garden centers. Starting now will enable you to reap big rewards come spring.

Throught the month of November, we are giving away a free bag of compost to the first 50 people who come to the water district and ask for it!

Reminder!

Just a quick reminder that water bills are due by October 25. The next billing cycle will be on or about December 1. If you have any questions regarding your bill, please call Becky at 951-659-2675 and she will be more than happy to explain our billing procedures to you. Thank you.

Chilly Morning

Yesterday and today, the temperatures have been a bit cooler. Since it is autumn, this is to be expected. These chilly days are the perfect time to remind everyone to get their homes winterized.

The Town Crier will be publishing a Winterizing Guide at the end of October and there will be lots of helpful information to help you get ready and prevent an unexpected problem such as a frozen water pipe.

Please remember to call us if you have any questions what so ever about what to do once winter arrives. If you cannot locate your customer shut off valve, please call us a 951-659-2675 during normal business hours when the weather is good and we will be more than happy to send someone over to help you locate you valve and show you how to turn it off.

It's like that old saying, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." Very true when it comes to preventing a problem with your water pipes this winter.

School Daze

This week Vicki Jakubac and Jerry Holldber are making a presentation at Idyllwild Elementary School. On Tuesday, Vicki discussed groundwater and the water cycle with Mrs. Tirheimer's 3rd, 4th and 5th grade GATE class. On Wednesday, Jerry will be presenting some sample boards of a water meter as well as an outside drip irrigation system. Vicki will be discussing conservation with the children after Jerry's presentation and give them some tips on how they can save water at home. On Thursday, Vicki will end the presentation by having the kids make Edible Earth Parfaits to teach them about geologic formations in an aquifer. We will end the day by presenting each child with a Certificate of Participation for their efforts in learning about ground water and conservation. This has been quite an experience and we hope the kids have learned a lot and enjoyed our presentation.

Snow Guessing Contest

This year, Pine Cove Water District is participating in the Idyllwild Town Crier's annual Snow Guessing Contest. The contest ends on Oct. 30, 2009, so you will want to stop into the office and get your guess in as soon as possible. As an added bonus, we are giving away a free ice cream or candy with each guess, while supplies last. So come on in and put in your guess and you could win $100 Idyllwild Shopping Dollars and get a free treat at the same time.

First Day of Fall!!

Today is the first day of autumn, so it is a good time to start getting things in order for the upcoming winter season. If you do not already know where your customer shut off valve is, please call the office at 951-659-2675, during normal business hours, Mon thru Fri from 9 to 12 and 1 to 4, to arrange for someone to come out to your home and show you where it is located. Please call if you do not know how to turn your customer valve off. We will be more than happy to come out and show you how to do it.

Everyone should know where their customer shut off valve is and how to turn it off. It is better to get prepared now while the weather is nice, rather than to wait until you have a pipe burst during a snow storm and then try to work it out. We can't say it enough. If you leave your mountain home, no matter what the weather, please turn off your customer valve. And don't forget, all weather that passes through the meter is the homeowner's responsibility, even water lost due to frozen or broken pipes.

Just a Reminder

Next week, "the boys," aka Jerry and Jeremy, will be out and about reading meters. New bills will be mailed out by approx. Oct. 2 and due on Oct. 25th. Hope this helps clear up some of the confusion about the billing cycle. The next billing cycle will occur Dec. 1.

Changing of the seasons

It is the middle of September, so autumn can't be far off. This past Monday gave us a hint of the cool weather that lies ahead. Now is a good time to get some fall housecleaning done before the snow flies. It is no fun to be hold up during bad weather in a house that isn't fresh, clean and cozy.

However, cleaning the house from top to bottom with toxic cleaners isn't the way to go. If you never have tried using natural cleaners, why not give them a try? Most are made with simple ingredients that you probably already have around the house and are gentle and non toxic.

Some common housecleaning ingredients:

• Baking Soda (sodium bicarbonate) – Mild abrasive, odor neutralizer, cleaner, water softener. Baking soda has a high pH and is therefore able to neutralize odors by changing their pH instead of just masking them.
• Borax (sodium borate) – Found in the laundry detergent section of the grocery store, borax is an alkali that is toxic if swallowed, but has strong cleaning powers: cleans, deodorizes, softens water, and disinfects
• Washing soda – “SAL” soda, sodium carbonate decahydrate, is a mineral. It cuts grease, removes stains, can be used to clean walls, sinks, tubs, and tile. Found in the laundry detergent section, it’s made by Arm & Hammer. (Caustic! Wear gloves.)
• Cornstarch – Use to clean windows, carpets and rugs as well as for polishing furniture
• Hydrogen peroxide – Antiseptic useful in kitchens and bathrooms and also a bleach alternative.
• Lemon juice – Bleach alternative, also has deodorizing qualities.
• Liquid soap – Unscented castile soap made from of vegetable oil can be found in many health food stores, it’s a good base for all-purpose cleaners. (For areas where hard water is common, buy biodegradable detergent instead.) Alternately, save soap slivers and make your own liquid soap by combining them with water.
• White distilled vinegar – Good for removing mildew, cutting grease, dissipating odors, and removing stains and wax build-up
• Distilled water – Better for mixing with your other ingredients that tap water which may contain some minerals or chlorine depending on your local water supply.
• Isopropyl rubbing alcohol – Disinfectant.
• Bleach — Alternative disinfectant and stain remover. Chlorine bleach is toxic but used judiciously can be very effective. Never combine bleach with other substances.
• Salt – Use as a mild abrasive.
• Super fine steel wool – Restores luster to some surfaces such as stainless steel sinks.

We all know that white vinegar and water makes an excellent cleaner for windows and surfaces such as kitchen counters and bathroom fixtures. Another easy way to clean in the bathroom is to mix up a little liquid clothes detergent with baking soda into a paste and use that to scrub tiles, tubs, sinks and toliets. It is gentler on your skin than harsh chemicals and smells lovely. It leaves porcelin shining and beautiful and you won't leave the room choking on chemical smells.

There are many websites out there that have recipes for natural cleaning solutions. I think you will be amazed at how well they actually work. Your wallet will thank you as well because you won't be spending money on all sorts of cleaners. The information in this blog post is from www.demesne.info/Sustainable-Living/Greener-Cleaning.htm.

Remember: Store ALL cleaning solutions in clearly marked bottles or containers away from children or pets. Though less toxic than other cleaners, some ingredients are poisonous and can still hurt or kill humans and pets.

Fall/Winter Newsletter

Before you know it, the time will be here to send out our semi annual newsletter. We try to make it as interesting and informative as possible. If you would like to see something addressed in the newsletter, please let us know. You can post a comment to this post, email us at becky@pcwd.org, call us at 951-659-2675 or stop by the office located at 24917 Marion Ridge Rd. We love to hear your thoughts and ideas. Even if you don't have any newsletter suggestions, just stop in and say hi!

Bills are due!

Just a reminder. If you haven't paid your water bill yet, please do so before Sept. 10 to avoid a disconnect notice and/or a late fee. We mailed the bills on Aug. 3 and they were due by Aug. 25th. If you are having a problem, please call Becky at 951-659-2675 and discuss the situation with her. Our next billing date is Oct. 1, 2009. Thank you.

The value of water

We all know that water is a priceless commodity. Where would we be without fresh, clean water? Besides being a necessity for life, it is an incredible bargin! In a world of sky-rocketing prices on everything from food to homes to fuel, tap water remains one of the best deals around. At a fraction of a penny per gallon, tap water provides safety, convenience and freedom. Less than 1% of the average person's total personal income is spent on water and wastewater services.

Consider the prices you pay for other things as compared to water. How much would you be willing to spend on a nice dinner out? Chances are that one dinner would cost more than a water bill for one month. An 8 oz. glass of water can be refilled approximately 15,000 times for the same price as a six-pack of soda. How much was that bottle of wine you had with dinner last night? How about that blended coffee drink you had this morning?

The price of milk is around 3 to 4 dollars per gallon. One gallon of olive oil can set you back quite a bit as well. What about the price of juice these days? Studies show that bottled water is no purer than tap water, yet bottled water costs about 1,900% more. When you get right down to it, water is the best deal in town.

Add to that the fact that your water bill pays for a lot more than simply water. You get sophisticated water treatment, frequent testing and monitoring and a vast underground infrastructure that delivers safe, plentiful water right to your tap. We have knowledgeable, helpful staff manning the office and working in the field. As your water provider, we serve more than water. We provide value, public health, fire protection, reliability and peace of mind. Our job is to ensure that your water keeps flowing, not only today but well into the future. It's all part of our service commitment to you and everyone in our community. If you have any questions about your water bill, please feel free to call us at 951-659-2675 or stop in the office which is located at 24917 Marion Ridge Road, Mon thru Fri from 9 to 12 and from 1 to4.

It's raining, it's pouring!

This morning brought some surprise wind and clouds. This afternoon brought a surprise thunderstorm! We even had some hail. What a wonderful way to start September. Hopefully this moisture is wide spread and will help all the firefighters with their fight against all the fires. We are blessed that ours is out and we dodged the bullet once more.

Friday Follies

If you are looking for a way to do some easy care gardening, check out this website.

www.hangpot.com

It is a clever way to hang pots on fences, walls, posts or garden gates. It is a wonderful way to have a garden with out having to go through all the work of digging up the ground. You can grow a variety of things in these pots. While they aren't big enough for something like a tomato plant, they would make a great way to have an herb garden, grow strawberries, lettuce or anything else that is on the small side.

End of Summer Musings

Now that we are at the end of August, we have to big weekends coming up. This weekend of course, is the Jazz Festival. It will be a little challenging for some people to make up to the hill due to the closure of Highway 74 from Hemet. However, 243 from Banning will remain open and so everyone should be able to make it up ok.

Next weekend will bring the 3 day Labor Day weekend. I guess this means that summer will be officially over. School has already started and autumn, Halloween and Thanksgiving can't be far behind. While the carefree days of summer may be coming to an end, we certainly have a lot to look forward to with the coming cooler weather.

We hope that all of our customers enjoy these last two summer weekends. Please remember to turn your water off when you leave you mountain home.

Billing

There seems to be some confusion when it comes to our billing system, so here are the facts. They are also listed on our website at www.pcwd.org.

We bill on the first work day of the even months (Feb, Apr, Jun, Aug, Oct, Dec). The bill is due on the 25th of that same month, or the following Monday if the 25th falls on the weekend. If your bill has not been paid by the 25th, late notices are then generated and the account is subject to disconnection and/or a $15.00 Late Fee after the 10th of the following month, unless the bill is paid in full, or you have called the office to make other arrangements.

We have had an occasional problem with the small postcard bills getting lost in the mail or not reaching the customer. If you have not received your bill by the 10th of the even months, please call our office to request a duplicate, or you can email becky@pcwd.org. Remember, you are responsible for your water bill even if it gets lost in the mail.

Please make sure that the office has your most current mailing address and a phone number to be used in case of an emergency. If you have not filled out your Application for Water Service yet, please do so as soon as possible. You can mail it in, drop it off at the office or fax it to 951-959-3112. Please email becky@pcwd.org with your current billing information and emergency phone number, or feel free to call the office and speak to us personally.

As always, please remember to turn off your water when you leave your mountain home.

Monday Musings

Early Saturday morning I awoke to a strange sound. What could that noise on the roof be? Then it dawned on me that it was rain! Oh happy day. It was raining. While it didn't turn out to be a lot of rain, at least it was something. It was refreshing to wake up to a cool, rainy morning. I pulled on my heavy robe as it felt pretty chilly in my house, and headed downstairs to put the kettle on for tea. I leisurely sipped a cup of hot tea while I listened to the raindrops come down. It was a wonderful way to start the day. It makes me long for autumn and cooler, wet weather and I thoroughly enjoyed the respite from the non-stop sunshine. Plus the smell of rain is one of lifes true pleasures.

I hope you too enjoyed the little shower Mother Nature saw fit to provide us with. I can only hope that we have more mornings like that in store for us.

Shake or wood shingle roofs

As a public service to our customers, we wanted to make you aware that The Mountain Communities Fire Safe Council is working with FEMA to obtain a grant that would help homeowners to replace wood shingle or shake roofs with class A fire resistant roof. A property owner could pay as little as 30% of the cost of a new roof. However, it is very important that you fill out an application as soon as possible in order to get put on the list now.

You may have already received a postcard in the mail from the Mountain Communities Fire Safe Council regarding this matter. You can call MCFSC at 951-659-6208 or stop by their office to get put on the list. They are open Monday thru Friday, from 9 to 12 and 1 to 4.

The Pine Cove Water District wants to be sure our customers have the opportunity to apply for this program. We have sent a letter to those customers in our district that we have identified as having a wood shingle or shake roof, informing them of this program. We hope you will take advantage of this opportunity. If you fall into this category, please check into this program as it could save you a lot of money on a new roof.

August Already?

Time is flying by and before we know it, summer will be over. We would like to remind everyone to be sure and TURN OFF your water at your customer valve when you leave your mountain home. Nothing can ruin a wonderful vacation like coming home only to find out you have had a leak. Turning off your water when you leave, not only prevents damage in your home should a leak occur inside, but it prevents excessive water usage should a leak go undetected for any amount of time. With the dry, hot weather we have been having, a small outdoor leak can go undetected for a long time. Many people mistakenly think that there would be a large wet area should a leak occur, but that is not always the case. Depending on the location and size of a leak, you may never see any wet ground at all.

Remember that any water that runs through your meter is your responsibility. So please be very diligent about turning your water off when you leave the hill and prevent a unfortunate situation from occurring.

Weather Station is up and running!

The weather station is back up and running! We are very excited to be able to provide up to date weather that is happening right here in Pine Cove. Just go to our website at www.pcwd.org and click on the link. We hope you find this weather station a useful tool.

Heat Wave

After a couple of very hot weeks, it was nice to have the clouds roll by on Saturday and spritz us with a few rain drops. It would have been nice to have more rain, but at least the clouds provided a little relief from the previous 2 weeks of heat and humidity. This type of weather is hard on not only us humans, but on our gardens as well. If you haven't already done so, perhaps now would be a good time to add some mulch to your garden.

Summer Projects

Now that the nice weather is here, this is the time most people try to get those remodeling projects done. If fixing up your kitchen or bathroom is on your to do list this summer, make sure you choose new appliances and fixtures that meet the Energy Star standards and are water saving. Do your research prior to purchasing. Take advantage of rebates not only from manufacturers, but from utility companies as well. By being an informed consumer, you will not only save money on the initial purchase, but you will continue to save money by lowering your utility bills. You will also be doing your part to help the planet.

If purchasing new appliances isn't in your immediate future, there are still things you can do to save energy. If your refrigerator has an automatic ice maker, turn it off. It saves electricity if you make ice in trays and fill up the ice bucket yourself.

You can make or purchase a solar oven and cook your meals outside by using free sunshine. Or try eating more raw foods, like salads, that need little or no cooking. Have fresh fruit for dessert instead of baking up tempting treats. A favorite at our house is fresh strawberries sliced up over graham crackers, topped with a little freshly made whipped cream. No baking required!

Take showers instead of baths, and keep them short. This not only saves water, but it also saves electricty or propane. By using less hot water, we use less energy, as well as less water. You can use a simple kitchen timer to time yourself. You can also turn off the water all together while you get lathered up and then just turn it back on long enough to rinse off. And don't forget to install a low flow shower head to save even more water. We have them available here at the water district office.

Now is also the perfect time to change out your toilet to a low flow model. We are currently offering a rebate of $100 on low flow toilets and you will save money each month on your water bill as well.

Don't let water run down the drain while you wait for it to get hot. Keep a large stock pot in the kitchen and a bucket in the bathroom to collect the water that would normally run down the drain. That water can then be used for cooking or for watering plants, or even added into the washer. Don't let it just run down the drain. Better yet, install a hot water recycling unit like a Chili Pepper, and get a $100 rebate and instant hot water.

If a new washer is in your future, be sure to check out the front loading models that use about half the water of a top loader. They use less energy, less water and are gentler to your clothes. They come in a variety of sizes to fit most any situation. Many can even be stacked if you are short on space.

There are many options today to lower your energy costs and save water and money. So before you start your summer remodeling projects, do your homework and you will be glad you did.

July already?

As the 4th of July weekend draws near, it is hard to believe that the year is offically half over now. We hope everyone has a pleasant and safe holiday weekend.

The next board meeting will be held on July 8th at 10 am. We hope you are able to attend.

As summer is now in full swing, please continue to monitor your water use and take advantage of our free mulch and water saving kits. If you need more information, feel free to stop in the district office or give us a call. If you have any water saving tips you would like to share with us, please leave a comment. We would love to hear about everyone's ideas for saving water at this time of the year.

We also have lots of blue bird houses ready for pick up. Just stop by the district office as ask for one!

I Scream, You Scream, We all Scream for Ice Cream!

PCWD is handing out free ice cream. You heard right. On Thursday, July 2, 2009, any child that comes into the Pine Cove Water District office between the hours of 1 pm and 4 pm, will receive a free ice cream treat. So bring the kiddies over on the afternoon of July 2nd and get a free treat for them, on us.

Board Meeting

This morning at 10 A.M. is the monthly board meeting. We hope you will join us. To read the minutes from the board meetings and other news and happenings, please visit our website at www.pcwd.org.

BBQ Big Success!

On Saturday, Jerry Holldber gave his annual State of the District presentation at the Pine Cove Property Owners monthly meeting. A tour of the Rocky Point storage facility followed the meeting and then on to the long awaited BBQ lunch, which was held at Dutch Flats. A tour of the Dutch Flats Treatment Plant was also held. Even though the weather was on the cool side, over 50 people attended. Everyone enjoyed a delicious lunch of tri tip sandwiches, potato salad, macaroni salad and a variety of cookies. The food was excellent and the company was wonderful. A good time was held by all. Thank you to everyone who came.

Only 4 More Days!

Mark your calendars. This Saturday, June 6th, is the annual Pine Cove Property Owners Association & the Pine Cove Water District's Annual Presentation & Tour of the Facilities Meeting.

The guest speaker at the PCPOA will be Jerry Holldber, General Manager, PCWD. The meeting starts at 8:30 a.m. at the Pine Cove Fire Station (upstairs). Also included is a FREE LUNCH following the tour. You can call the water district office to RSVP at 659-2675 or stop in the office for more details. We hope to see you there!

Memorial Day Memories

We hope everyone had a memorable holiday weekend. If you have any pictures of local events you would like to share, please send them in! We would like to post pictures of the happenings here in Pine Cove.

Happy Memorial Day

We would like to wish all of our customers, both full time and part time, a safe and happy Memorial Day Weekend. And remember to always turn your water off when you leave your mountain home.

Edible Landscaping

For those interested in more information on Edible Landscaping, you might want to check out the book Edible Landscaping by Rosalind Creasy. Also interesting reading is Eric Toensmeir's Perennial Vegetables. You can also go to edibleforestgardens.com for more information on edible landscaping forest style.

Potager vs Cottage

If you have decided to put in some edible landscaping, you may be wondering where to start. There are a couple of types of gardens that blend edibles with ornamentals. One is an English cottage garden and the other one is a French potager garden. Both can be beautiful and as simple or as grand as you would like. I will try to explain the difference.

The confusion between the two gardening styles are more practical vs esthetic, but borrowing on one another. The French and English had ties through the monarchies and borrowed from one anothers cultures and customs, including gardening and animal husbandry. Modern-day "organic gardening" and "intensive gardening" have their origins in old French gardening practices using companion planting of flowers and herbs with veggies and fruits, composting and keeping small barnyard animals, as well as many other simple and practical gardening-homesteading methods.

Potager is French, basically a kitchen garden, and traditionally was fairly structured in layout, often with potted plants and ornamental structures as well as herbs and flowers. It was separate from purely ornamental gardens, and close to the kitchen (potage itself meant soup). The potager had no association with poverty, as large estates kept them for the household. In France, approximately 23% of the fruits and vegetables consumed are home grown.

The Potager Garden was a designated plot; a special garden wherein was grown veggies & herbs for 'potage' (meaning, any plant you can eat), with flowers that were good companion plants for insect control or to improve the growth and production of the vegetables and herbs, and for attracting bees to pollinate. Many of the flowers were to be eaten, as well, i.e. Calendulas (Pot Marigolds), Nasturtiums, chives, chamomile, peas, and others, even roses. Orchards were often planted nearby for convenience as well as beauty and pollination, as both attract bees.

Potager Gardens could be quite formal (for the wealthy), or not (for the more humble classes). Paths could be paved and plots geometrically layed out and fenced with shrubberies or permanent structures (lovely, formal French manor-style gardens), or as in the provential kitchen "yardens" or small acreages, potage gardens more often had paths of dirt that merely wound casually through informal, asymmetrical plots of this and that. They were more often found right out the kitchen door of the humble French home for easy access and for safety and security.

Potager gardens were designed to be more practical, but not to ever be at the expense of 'esthetic appeal'. Even the practical could be beautiful. Beautiful and fragrant gardens promoted good mental health. It was a chance for some fresh air and sunshine out of dreary, dark, often ill-lit and sometimes dank houses. If your mind was happy & well, your body often was too.

Cottage gardening is English in origin and originally focused on edibles out of necessity. The "cottages" were just that: small houses occupied by people of very modest means, perhaps originally serfs who were allowed to grow for personal use or even market on the small plots allocated to them. Space was at a premium, so things were crammed together to get the most out of the growing space available-- also why cottage gardens include so many trellises, arbors, etc. Most would have had animals as well. Chickens for eggs, a pig for meat, a cow or goats for milk.

Cottage Gardens were designed to utilize a limited space around the home, often the front yard. They were neither formal nor geometrical in design. They seldom utilized perfect symmetry in lay-outs. Dirt or gravel paths that would lead you from one garden area to another, often totally obscured from the view by hedgerows of privet, evergreen, ivy clad rock walls or fences with tall flowers, like hollyhocks, foxgloves, or rambling, climbing roses. Arches and trellising extended the gardens farther into the air, so more could be planted on less ground and they could completely block out their neighbors for more privacy.

This lead to the romantic, flower filled gardens, complete with a rose covered cottage, that we envision today when we hear the term cottage garden. Clearly, the meaning of both has evolved over the years, particularly in the last century, as fewer people in western society depended on what they could produce to eat. Now we often think of the cottage garden as strictly ornamental, a style rather than a necessity; and of the potager as a charming way to grow vegetables in an ornamental setting.

No matter which style of garden you decide will work best for you, remember to amend your soil with lots of organic compost, water deeply and less frequently using drip irrigation or other water wise irrigation, and mulch to retain as much moisture as possible. If you are going to plant a lot of ornamentals, look for native plants that will thrive in our mountain landscape and have low water requirements. If you are going to do a mix of edibles and ornamentals, make sure you plant plants with similiar water and light requirements together, such as roses and tomatoes.

By doing your homework on a plant's light and water needs, you can create a beautiful garden that thrives here on our mountain and provides you with fresh, organic fruits and vegetables and is beautiful to look at as well.

De-Lawning and Edible Landscaping

Here on the hill, lawns are few and far between. However, approximately 40 million acres across the U.S. are covered in lawns. An estimated 238 gallons of fresh water are needed per lawn, per day, to keep them green, making lawns the largest irrigated crop in the nation. To conserve water and decrease your monthly lawn-related expenditures, consider de-lawning a portion or all of your lawn space by replacing your turf grass with an organic garden. This will also give you a lot more to show for your efforts!

But what do you put in it's place you may ask? Why not plant fruits and vegetables? Instead of planting ornamental trees, plant fruit trees. By mixing vegetable plants and ornamental plants, you can create a lovely, lush looking garden with no lawn in site. This is much more productive than just watering a lawn.

Other excellent methods of conserving water include rainwater harvesting—by which runoff rainwater collects in rain barrels and we discussed in a previous post. Also remember that watering your garden deeply encourages deep rooting, and that watering in the evening or early morning cuts down on evaporation, leaving more water for the roots that need it.

Going green with your gardening is physically and mentally rewarding, and it also provides you with an endless supply of the freshest produce and most delicious organic food at the lowest possible cost.

Going Green with Gardening

Does anyone remember the Victory gardens from WW I and WWII? The United States government asked its citizens to plant gardens in order to support the war effort. Millions of people planted gardens. In 1943, Americans planted over 20 million Victory Gardens, and the harvest accounted for nearly a third of all the vegetables consumed in the country that year. Emphasis was placed on making gardening a family or community effort -- not a drudgery, but a pastime, and a national duty.

Over the years, we have gotten away from growing our own fruits and vegetables, however, now is the time to bring that tradition back again. Why plant a victory garden you might ask? Well,
today our food travels an average of 1500 miles from farm to table. The process of planting, fertilizing, spraying with insecticides, processing, packaging, and transporting our food uses a great deal of energy and contributes to the cause of global warming. Planting a Victory Garden to fight global warming would reduce the amount of pollution your food contibutes to global warming. Instead of traveling many miles from farm to table, your food would travel from your own garden to your table.

Having your own garden allows you to provide your family with healthy, organically grown fruits and veggies because you control how it is grown. You can feel good serving food to your family that isn't full of chemical pesticides and fertilizers. Plus, our current economic situation is other good reason to start a Victory Garden. Every time that food is shipped from the farm to the store and your table, gasoline is used. As gasoline prices rise, food costs rise. Add to that the freshness factor. What could be tastier than a salad freshly picked from your garden or berries just plucked off the vine?

An organic garden can supply you year after year with fresh and healthy organic food for a fraction of the price you would pay in a grocery store. While establishing an organic garden does take time and patience, there are ways to plan your green garden so that it practically takes care of itself. Let’s dig around and unearth the very best ways for going green with gardening.

As a whole, American homeowners use millions of pounds of fertilizer and pesticides on their lawns and gardens every year. The use of pesticides and inorganic fertilizers is responsible for an alarming toxic buildup of chemicals in our soil and drinking water. Inorganic fertilizers often contain heavy metals and other dangerous ingredients disguised under the term "inert" on product labels. These ‘inert’ ingredients in our garden products are subject to little regulation and yet they abound in our most personal spaces, affecting our health and that of the planet.
A healthy and prolific organic garden takes time and effort to establish, but it teaches the green gardener valuable lessons about patience and provides a new appreciation for the subtle relationships that exist in nature.

Non-organic methods also often produce an effect opposite of the one intended—would-be pest control methods contribute to an increased incidence of pest problems that lead to an endless cycle of even heavier applications of toxic chemicals. Chemical salts and fertilizers cause an initial burst of lush and succulent growth, which is a veritable magnet for pests. Meanwhile the same chemicals are wrecking havoc on the soil below, weakening its natural defenses against pests and disease by discouraging earthworms and beneficial micro-organisms from inhabiting the area.

Healthy Soil

Successful organic gardening begins with healthy soil. By working to create a balanced soil, you naturally reduce the need for pesticides and fertilizers. In healthy soil, nutrients, trace minerals, and helpful fungi are stored in the many organisms living under the ground that can be accessed by your plants as they need them. Compost is a superior alternative to chemical fertilizers because it improves soil structure and texture, allowing the soil to hold more water. Composting also promotes soil fertility and stimulates healthy root development. You can find compost from a local organic supplier or your local recycling center, or you can easily set up a compost bin for a composting operation of your own. Recycling your own garden and kitchen waste can provide you with a rich amendment for your soil at no cost whatsoever, while drastically reducing your contribution to the garbage that goes into the county landfill. The average person throws out 1,500 pounds of trash per year, says Mark Harris, author of Embracing the Earth. This excessive number is reduced to 375 pounds of trash annually when you compost!
Another organic gardening trick for preserving healthy soil is keeping it covered at all times. Sun and water wash away and destroy vital nutrients, harming the soil’s structure. Drastic fluctuations in soil moistness can also slow plants’ growth. Just consider what adding a 3-inch layer of mulch—weathered straw, grass clippings, shredded leaves, bark chips—can do.

Mulching:
Helps keep the soil moist
Conserves water
Discourages weeds
Prevents nutrients from being washed away
Adds humus and nutrients to the soil as the mulch material decays

Avoid using peat in green gardens as peat bogs are an essential part of the ecosystem–taking peat from them destroys valuable wildlife habitats. So many great alternatives to peat are now available that there is no reason to diminish the dwindling peat bog supply and threaten the survival of wildlife species.

Plant foliage also acts as a living mulch by keeping the soil cool and providing shade for underlying plants. You can employ companion planting in your organic garden with plants that have different sun and shade requirements–you’ll be planting shade-loving plants beneath taller shade-providing ones. Gardens planted in this intensive manner conserve soil area and resources and allow green gardeners to take advantage of the chemical and symbiotic interactions between plants. Every plant releases different chemical agents through its leaves and roots that in turn affect plants growing in close proximity. Plants that promote each other’s growth may be planted together to boost the health and productivity of the garden as a whole.

Successful Methods for Organic Gardening

Intensive intercropping, by which one crop is grown between rows of another, has multiple benefits. It maximizes your garden size while minimizing your water and nutrient requirements, allowing you to grow the healthiest plants. Your garden’s immunity to insects is further increased when you plant herbs and flowers—including basil, chives, chrysanthemums, marigolds, and mint—known to help keep pests away. Using disease-resistant and pest-resistant plants, in addition to plants that attract natural predators such as ladybirds, and rotating the crops in your garden also help to deter pests from returning while adding varied nutrients to the soil.

Successive planting allows you a continuous supply of produce throughout the growing season. By timing your crops to provide a constant harvest you keep your organic garden busy and active all season and you save money all year. Planting pollinator-friendly plants such as wild lilac, goldenrod, and lemon balm attracts butterflies, bees, and moths to your garden. Pollinators affect 35 percent of the world’s crop production and are directly linked to the pollination of 87 of the leading food crops. By growing a variety of native flowers that pollinators are drawn to, you positively contribute to the output of food crops worldwide. Planting local species is also important for ensuring the vitality of your garden. Choosing well-adapted plants for your soil, weather, and sun or shade exposure increases plants’ ability to deter pests and requires less effort from you to grow and maintain.

exerpts taken from greenlivingideas.com

Rain Water Catchment System

Now that the warm weather is here, it is the perfect time to set up a rain catchment system. Harvesting rain water is an excellent way to provide water for outdoor irrigation. A 1,000 sq. ft. roof will yield approximately 623 gallons of water from 1" of rain. This winters rain fall total was 21". That would have been a total of 13,083 gallons of water that could have been saved from one roof. Rain water is wonderful for plants and a you can make your system as simple or complicated as you like, depending on your watering needs. To figure out how much water you could save, just multiply the sq. footage of your roof by 623. Then divide by 1000. This will tell you how many gallons of water you could collect from your roof from 1" of rain. It is surprising how much could be saved.

Rain barrels are a great way to collect rainwater and distribute it. You can buy them or make your own from a 55 gallon drum. There are many examples of how to convert a 55 gallon drum to a rain barrel online. It is relatively simple and inexpensive to do. Your system can be as large or as small as you wish. Websites like HarvestH2O.com, provide a wealth of information on rainwater harvesting and rain water storage tanks come in many different sizes.

Watch this blog for other water saving tips and ideas in future posts. We will be discussing things like edible landscaping vs ornamentals, water permable driveways and sidewalks and many other ideas. Please feel free to contact us if you have any ideas you would like to see discussed on this blog.

Don't Forget!

Several weeks ago we announced the beginning of Friday Follies. We are hoping to get some pictures of the goings on in Pine Cove and will post one picture each Fri. However, we have yet to receive any pictures. We know there are lots of great pictures just waiting to be taken, so grab your camera and start snapping away. Then email your picture to us here at the Water District, at info@pcwd.org, and watch and see when your picture gets posted for all to see! Let's see if we can get one in time to be posted this Friday.

Holiday Weekend

The first holiday of the summer is almost upon us and here on the hill, that means cookouts, yard sales and lots of visitors. However, it is very important to remember that we are still in a drought. As we all look forward to lots of fun and relaxation, we would like to remind everyone to please remember to turn off your water when you leave your mountain home, even though it is summer. This is the most important thing that you can do to help in a drought situation. Turn your water off at your customer valve upon leaving. If you need help locating your customer valve, please call the office at 951-659-2675 during normal business hours.

Also, if you haven't done so already, please fill out your Application for Water Service and return it to the District office. We would like to finish updating our records and it is important that we have current information on file for every customer. If you need an application, please contact Becky during normal business hours by phone or email, info@pcwd.org. We are located at 24971 Martion Ridge Road, next to the Pine Cove Fire STation #23. Feel free to stop by. We hope everyone has a safe and happy Memorial Day Weekend.

Spring Newsletter

Keep your eyes peeled! Our spring newsletter is in the mail. Watch your mailbox for the blue Pine Cove envelope. The Spring 2009 newsletter contains lots of valuable information, tips and announcements. We hope you enjoy it.

Board Meeting

The monthly board meeting will be held at 3:00 pm today instead of the usual 10:00 am. The public is welcome to attend and we appreciate any input you may have. If you are unable to attend the meetings, but still want to stay up to date, the agenda, as well as the minutes from last month's meeting are always posted on our website. Just go to pcwd.org and click on meetings. You may also post any comments or suggestions that you may have, right here on our blog.

What have you done for me lately?

If that is what you are asking of the water district, we are proud to tell you we are doing a lot!

We are happy to provide the following services FREE OF CHARGE to all Pine Cove Water District customers.

*Water conservation kits and information
*Rebates on low flow toilets, hot water recycling systems and high efficiency front loading
washing machines
*Wood chips for garden mulch
*Blue bird houses made from recycled wood
*A website, PCWD.org to provide answers to questions and information about the water district
and conserving water
*A blog, pinecovewaterdistrict.blogspot.com, to provide tips, news, up to the minute info and allow our customers to leave their comments
*Irrigation and environmental consulting

If you are interested in any of these services or products, just give us a call at the office. The number is 659-2675 between 9 and 12 or 1 and 4 and Becky or Vicki will help you. Or stop by. We always appreciate it when our customers stop in and let us know what is on their minds or to let us know what we can do to help them.

We are showing our concern for the environment by helping our customers to conserve!

Monday Musings~~Has Spring Finally Sprung?

The week is starting off on a warm note. The sky is blue, there is a breeze, the air smells fresh and clean and the temperature is perfect. When the weather starts to warm up, it is natural to want to get out into the yard and start cleaning up winter's mess. But before you start planting or watering anything in your yard, be sure to check your irrigation system for any wear and tear or damage that might cause leaks. Consider installing a timer so you don't forget about it and over water. Also be sure you do not irrigate when it is raining. And don't forget to mulch. A layer of mulch helps keep moisture in and slowly decomposes adding nutrients to the soil. Being water wise in the yard is everyone's job.

Friday Follies

As the week closes, we have seen an improvment in the weather. While still cool, at least the sun is shining and it feels like spring just might arrive one of these days.

Starting on Friday, April 24, we will have a picture of the week. Submit your picture via email to info@pcwd.org. It can be a picture of anything in and around Pine Cove. Think sunsets, sunrises, the garden, nature, an especially cute house or yard, trees, the fog, squirrels and so on. So get out your camera and see what wonderful images of Pine Cove you can capture.

Getting Ready for Spring

We ended last week with clouds and fog and a couple of inches of snow. Today isn't much better. It has been cold, cloudy and very windy. Although it is spring on the calendar, you would never know it by our weather. But we know spring will eventually come and when it does we will be all the more appreciative.

Now is the perfect time to start planning for your summer garden. We have bark mulch available for Pine Cove Water District customers free of charge. Please take advantage of this. A 3 to 4 inch layer of mulch helps retain moisture and allows you to water less. It also slowly decomposes over time creating wonderful compost which in turn enriches your soil and provides additional nutrients for your plants. It is a win win situation.

Also, carefully consider a plants water needs prior to putting in into your garden. Look for native plants and plants that tolerate drought conditions. A little planning before hand can lead to a wonderful garden later on.

Now Available

A quick reminder to let you know that we currently have blue bird houses and water saving kits available free of charge for Pine Cove Water District customers. Just stop by the district office located at 24917 Marion Ridge Dr. and pick yours up today.

Week's End

It has been a busy week here at the water district and we are ending the week with a foggy, overcast day. Perhaps we will get some precipitation later in the day. Water bills were mailed out on Monday and our monthly board meeting was held on Wednesday, April 8 at 10 a.m. You will find the minutes from the board meeting on our website, http://www.pcwd.org/. The next board meeting will be held on May 13, 2009 at 10 a.m. in the board room at the water district office on Marion Ridge Dr.

If you haven't been to our website yet, I would encourage you to take a look around it. It has lots of information regarding the water district, as well as many useful resources. Stay informed by checking our website and blog regularly. We also encourage you to ask questions or leave comments here on our blog.

Welcome!

We are happy to announce that the Pine Cove Water District now has a blog. Please stop by often and see what is happening around the district. Check for updates, news and events. Feel free to leave a message and tell us what you think. We look forward to hearing from you.

Jerry