Maui Farmers Union United May Meeting

Empowering & Interactive Meeting Ahead... Hele Mai Come Your the Event!!!


Live Link to watch and interact  http://www.gvolive.com/conference,empowermaui 

Maui Farmers Union United
Tuesday, May 24, 2011, 5:45 - 9:00pm
Pukalani, Tavares Center Pool Room
Localvore Potluck, Bring a dish to share for dinner!!!

Sorry, no cooking contest this month.

There is going to be something special about this meeting besides the monthly locavore potluck,seed exchange, produce swap, along with our short and substantive presentations.

This month is about hearing from you our members and guest as to what you want your organization to be, while expressing your engagement in creating it.

We will have the survey results from last months meeting.

Those that didn't get a chance to fill one out will be given one Tuesday nite.

This is a living dynamic document that will be a tool to assist in guiding our way actualizing food sovereignty here on our island.

Produce & Seed Swap:
Bring your home/farm grown produce for display.... then swap produce, seeds, cuttings and starts at the end of the meeting!

Gift cards from DTE & Hawaiian Moons!

Basket of Local Fruits. Mahalo Mana Foods!

Basket of produce from Greenleaf Farm Mahalo Marta & Bill Greenleaf!

Feather Meal Mahalo Crop Production Service!

Bio Char & "IMO" Indigenous MicroOrganisms
Mahalo Maui Aloha Aina!


Doors Open to public 6pm
6:30pm - 7:00 - Farmers Feast   "It's all about the food  "
All are welcome & encouraged to participate in this festive meal of good will
Be Creative its your event!!!
Grow, prepare and share a local grown dish, if you can't bring anything to share to eat, then either donate $5, or come early and set up or stay after to clean up.
This is a trash free event,
please bring your traveling cup, plate and fork!

7:00-8:30 - General Meeting
8:30-9:00 - Open Dialogue "Talk Story"

Meeting Schedule:
6:50-7:00-Announcements- Vincent Mina- maaevents@hawaii.rr.com

7:00-7:05-Welcome, Opening- Bill Greenleaf -gleafs@hawaiiantel.net
7:05-7:15-Chef's Corner - Marta Greenleaf Greenleaf Farm gleafs@hawaiiantel.net

7:15-7:25-Produce Scoop-Ryan Eareheart-Mana Foods Produce Manager, vegihead@hotmail.com7:25-7:35-Origin of Agricultural Wisdom: Harriette Witt- (Maui Astrologer) harriet@passengerplanet.com

7:35-7:45-HFU Update: Wayne Axelson- Moving Forward State Elections in July, By-Laws-waxelson@mac.com

7:45-8:30- Survey Results, Interactive Q &A regarding the pro-active future of the Maui Chapter of Hawaii Farmers Union United Bill Greenleaf, Wayne Axelson,Vincent Mina

8:30 - 9:00 Talk Story/Network - Pau!



Meeting Organizers:
Jim Hall
Bill & Marta Greenleaf
Wayne & Lynn Axelson
Vincent & Irene Mina

Maui Aloha Aina, 1768 Kalawi Pl, Wailuku, HI 96793, USA

IMO Indigenous Micro Organisms Workshop

Maui Aloha Aina Association's IMO Workshop with Dr. Hoon Park.

Invasional Meltdown

The April 2011 meeting of the Maui chapter of the Hawaii Farmers Union, was honored to have Art Medeiros, PhD. speak about his work at Auwahi. Art is a Research Biologist with US Geological Survey's Pacific Island Ecosystems Research Center on Maui.

Art is one of the few people that had a vision of what the lands on Maui should be like and was able to create that vision, if only in a small area. It's important to note that what he has accomplished and proven could be done, is a blueprint for what should be done before Maui hits the point of what was coined as "Invasional Meltdown."

Here is my take on "Invasional Meltdown."  See more on them here.


A couple of scientists named Daniel Simberloff and Betsy Van Holle, put together the theory that "Invasional Meltdown"is when alien species work together to by creating conditions that cause both to thrive.
This type of relationship between the alien species can happen in different ways. One invasive species can could prevent a species that is native to the area, from being able to hold off another invading species. They may do this by either overtaking the native species or killing it altogether.
Some invading species may provide food or shelter for other types of invading species. They may "pave the way" through the environment to help the intruding species gain access to the area occupied by the native species. Invading species, plant to plant or plant to insects or animals, can work in unison to spread through the spreading of seeds, pollination and food supplies.


Art Medeiros talks about this and more in his presentation. 


Bringing these thoughts together with what I learned from being around Dr. Hoon Park in the Maui Aloha Aina Body & Soil Conference, as well as the Maui Aloha Aina Associations IMO, Indigenous Micro Organisms workshop, is that any given area has a whole host of indigenous microbes that work in a symbiotic relationship with the plants from that area.


This made me think about how we have not only introduced invasion species of plants and animals, but we have brought in invasive species of microbes too.
While the indigenous microbes may have evolved to be better adapted to our islands, it seems that in many cases, adapted or not, the invading species often will overtake the native just through sheer numbers. 


As the relationships between the plants and animals within an ecosystem change, so does the relationship that the microbes has with the plants and animals.


Fortunately, through efforts of the people like Art Medeiros with plants and people like Dr. Hoon Park with Indigenous Micro Organisms, there is hope and a way to prevent reaching an "Invasional Meltdown."

Two Day Workshop with Dr. Hoon Park on IMO

    Produced jointly by Tri-Isle RC&D and Maui Aloha Aina Association.

        We are pleased to announce the a two day workshop with Dr. Hoon Park

                 (Presenter at the Body & Soil Conference this past January).

  (IMO) Indigenous Micro-Organisms or Korean Nature Farming by Master Cho.

            Dr. Park is Master Cho Hawaii Natural Farming Representitive

    More info on Hawaii nature farming at: http://naturalfarminghawaii.net/

     

 This workshop is a pre-requisite for those that wish to become certified in natural farming methods.

     Both for gardeners and farmers this is a way to grow the soil in producing nutrient rich food.

This two day workshop will cover a Natural Farming Overview and the making of preparations/fermentation's

* Concepts of IMO (Indigenous Micro-Organism) & Nutritive Cycle

* Soil Prep, Seed & Seedling Prep,

* Special Agricultural Medicinal Water

* Natural Pesticides: Soap / Chilly Pepper / Egg Yolk Seed Oil Plus others

* Natural Farming Livestock (Chicken & Pig Farming)

* * Hands on Practice of Natural Farming Inputs (Materials Covered) :

FAA(Fish Amino Acid) /CaPO4(Calcium Phosphate) /WSCa (Water Soluble Calcium)

/LAB (Lactic Acid Bacterium)/Ocean Water / Egg Yolk Seed Oil/Egg Yolk Oil etc.

 Attendees will receive a pint of natural pesticide & gallon bag of IMO #4 fermentation.

                                           Available for sale at the event:

             50# bags of IMO 4 IMO Text Books ($30) Recipe Books($20) CDs($5)

             When: Friday and Saturday-April 29, 30^th 9 to 5pm

            Where: Kumulani Farm Olinda ( Body & Soil Conference site)

            Cost : $80 with Irenes localvore lunch included for both days

                      $60 bring your own lunch for both days

                                                 Limited Seating Register Now!

                                                         This will sell out.

                   Call Vincent Mina (808- 357-4999) or MaaEvents@hawaii.rr.com

                        Mail Check to: Ma'a 1768 Kalawi Pl. Wailuku Maui 96793

"Whether Gardening or Farming it is essential that we understand and see what we are looking at when the goal is to build soil vitality & plant health. Inoculating the soil with indigenous biology using locally produced fermentations and preparations is a viable way to achieve these desired results.".Vincent Mina

Hawaii Farmers United Hosts It's First Locavore Cook-Off Contest

The Maui Chapter of the Hawaii Farmers Union hosted a Locavore Cook-Off Contest on the evening of March 22, 2011. With Chef Justin Pardo of Market Fresh Bistro in Makawao and Melissa Panzarini, they had the tough job of sorting through ten food entries that had the hungry audience, salivating and wishing they had signed up to be one of the judges, at least that's how it was for me...

Chef Justin as a regular to our meetings, always has some inspiring and taste bud tantalizing ideas on cooking to share.

Since this was the one year anniversary meeting since this group formed and falling on the Summer Equinox, it was decided to add some special events. So with the generous donations of Mana Foods with two great hand picked food baskets, some Bags of Feather Meal from Crop Protection
Service, and even some Bio-Char made by Ricky Apana, there was a donation raffle that everyone seemed very pleased to win.

The winners in three places were:

3rd place winner--Angelika Hofmann, who received a $45.00 gift certificate from Whole Foods.
2nd place winner with 52 points went to Evan Ryan, along with a $60.00 gift certificate from Down To Earth.
1st place winner with 56 points went to Keith Ranney. As 1st place winner, Keith received a $75.00 gift certificate from Hawaiian Moons, as well as a two year subscription from Edible Hawaiian Islands magazine.

The winners seemed to be overjoyed at the recognition for their cooking skills, but of particular note was that Evan Ryan's Green Papaya Salad that took 2nd place was literally picked off his trees and prepared right before he came to the meeting, just showing good food can be fast food.

The 3rd place winner Keith Ranney said after winning that "I never cooked nothing before."

Along with the popular Chef's Corner, the various great speakers, the community updates, the very popular pot luck meal, it seem that the Locavore Cook-Off was especially popular and may become a regular event. I sure hope so. Anyone wanting to see it continue can always help out by soliciting some great prizes and donations from friends, families and business.

I can't wait for April's meeting. I stay hungry already!

Jim Hall

Hawaii Farmers United Still Pictures