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PEA-Badge-Gardening

BadgeRequest gardening - sand badge
 
gardener
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Using organic (or better) permaculture techniques to grow nutritious food and improve air quality regardless of potential limitations on your location. Projects include fertilization methods, seed saving, and urban-friendly means of expanding your permaculture influence.

Sand
  • Create a large potted polyculture (minimum 5 plants and 3 species)
  • Grow a new plant from a cutting
  • Grow a tray of micro-greens
  • Sprout seeds for cooking
  • Grow a table herb garden from seeds (Must include at least 4 herbs)
  • Grow a Tuber
  • Grow a Vegetable Protein
  • Grow a Fruit
  • Grow a Vegetable
  • Grow a Grain
  • Pot and maintain 2 plants inside your home to improve air quality


  • Do 5 of the following:
    - Seed saving (may be from store bought fruits)
    - Grow a plant from seeds you’ve saved
    - Make a vermicompost tea (preferred) or compost tea (from homemade compost) and use it on your container(s)
    - Create an indoor mushroom growing system from an existing household material such as spent coffee grounds
    - Harvest 1/2 lb of mushrooms from an indoor growing system
    - Use vermicompost to fertilize indoor plants
    - Use spent coffee grounds or other waste materials to fertilize indoor plants
    - Set up a hanging plant
    - Pot and maintain some other species of houseplant


  • Straw

    Under Construction

    Wood

    Under construction

    Iron

    Under construction
     
    pollinator
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    I'm not sure who is currently working on this PEA badge, but I have some ideas! Not sure where they'd rank as far as difficulty...
    Growing Micro-greens
    Alternative planters/garden beds/mini gardens
    Simple kitchen/food scrap compost collection
    Improving bagged/local soil (simple ammendments)
    Winterizing small beds/planters
    Simple/mini greenhouses
    Pest/critter protection
    Companion planting
    Make seed tape
    Make seed starting pots
    Research native plants and source seeds
    Keep a weather log
    Keep a growing log (track time to sprout/bloom/fruit/harvest)
    Create a vivarium (closed system)
    Create a vivarium (open system)
    Simple hydroponic systems
    Simple aquaponic systems
    Create eco/permie fertilizer
    Create eco/permie bug spray
    Mini-hugel beds
    Grow one of each: starch, fruit, veggie, protein
    Root a woody cutting
    Root an herby cutting
    Simple grafting
    Sprout seeds (soaked, in soil, on paper, etc)
     
    Carolyne Castner
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    I've done a lot of these myself, and I would love to help create pages/threads for these! Let me know if that's ok
     
    pollinator
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    I already have plenty of house plants. Also some of those mentioned here. So all I have to do is make photos of them and then I get the BB?
     
    gardener & hugelmaster
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    So all I have to do is make photos of them and then I get the BB?



    PEA is not quite ready but it's getting very very close!
     
    Posts: 4
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    Mike Barkley wrote:

    So all I have to do is make photos of them and then I get the BB?



    PEA is not quite ready but it's getting very very close!



    How are we looking on this?
     
    Mike Barkley
    gardener & hugelmaster
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    Very good question Kirsten. It looks like the sand level tasks are ready & listed here.

    I looked at several of them & didn't see that anyone had completed one. I also don't see any PEA badges available to award people. I think they're actually ready but not yet visible. I'm really not sure though. D Logan is more up to speed on the entire PEA project. Perhaps do the task & apply for a badge & be the first ground breaker!!!
     
    steward
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    We're fiddling with this badge right now.  This morning Paul and I talked it over.  The changes should be posted soon.

    Once they're "official", they need their individual BB threads created which will list the actual requirements for each item.  So if you want to start some in advance, take lots of pictures since you don't know what will be required until it's written...
     
    gardener
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    I'm curious for the potted polyculture... Would a classic walled raised bed with an open bottom count? Or would it need to be a true pot? A lot of people in urban areas do this and they're often not that big. Figured it will come up at some point once the BB is up.
     
    Mike Haasl
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    I'm pretty sure that homemade posts/planters would be fine.  I suspect (but don't know) that they need to be inside for this badge to be applicable.

    I'm imagining someone getting PEA1 certified.  If their pots were all outside in their back yard it might not be as impressive to the other apartment folks as if they had to grow the plants indoors.
     
    D. Logan
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    A raised bed feels like cheating to me. I say this, not because of the outside rain and sunshine aspects, but more the lack of limitations on space. When you have an entire raised bed to work with, you could easily fit the 5 plants/3 species in with minimal effort even if they don't really work well together. In a more traditional pot, you need to think through what is going to work together instead of fighting one another to prevent one from crowding out another or otherwise fail. In an enclosed pot, you need to consider roots, growth patterns, light access, etc. All in ways that aren't nearly as big an issue if you have an entire raised bed to work with.
     
    Mike Barkley
    gardener & hugelmaster
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    Some apartments have balconies. Would that be an acceptable PEA location?
     
    D. Logan
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    Mike Barkley wrote:Some apartments have balconies. Would that be an acceptable PEA location?



    Yes. The key is that the task can be done in any apartment, but not must be inside. The idea is that it is able to be done in any person's situation, but not that it must be done in a specific location. Every badge bit can be done in the most cramped, near windowless apartment on the planet, but you don't actually even have to live in an apartment. It's all about offering a way to do the Permaculture Experience Anywhere so that those who aren't in a situation to advance PEP can still get a strong start and show their enthusiastic efforts to live a more permaculture life.
     
    Posts: 21
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    I see a couple of the BBs involve using vermicompost; perhaps it would be worth adding making a vermicompost bin as a separate BB (maybe under the choose 5 section)? Unless that's being saved for a higher level badge, but it seems on a similar level as the other Sand BBs.
     
    Mike Haasl
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    I think that will be in Dimensional Lumber Woodworking
     
    pollinator
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    Pot and maintain 2 of the following plants inside your home to improve air quality:
       - Pots can’t be plastic, cement, porous terra cotta, styrofoam



    Um I know I am being dense but what materials CAN be used for the pot?  Do the same restrictions on pot material apply to the other grow a XXX?  

    My micro dwarf tomatoes are all in plastic pots for now as they made the best use of my space.  I am getting ready to start a new batch and if those need to be in different type pots to qualify for this I need to figures that out and plan for it...  

    Plus of course I want to plan out that poly culture so if there is a restriction on type of planter material...  
     
    Inge Leonora-den Ouden
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    Dorothy Pohorelow wrote:

    Pot and maintain 2 of the following plants inside your home to improve air quality:
       - Pots can’t be plastic, cement, porous terra cotta, styrofoam



    Um I know I am being dense but what materials CAN be used for the pot?  Do the same restrictions on pot material apply to the other grow a XXX?  

    My micro dwarf tomatoes are all in plastic pots for now as they made the best use of my space.  I am getting ready to start a new batch and if those need to be in different type pots to qualify for this I need to figures that out and plan for it...  

    Plus of course I want to plan out that poly culture so if there is a restriction on type of planter material...  


    After reading this I can only think of glazed ceramic or porcelain ('china') pots. But I always use a pot of plastic or terra-cotta inside those ceramic pots. So ... what else would be possible? That's my question too
     
    Mike Haasl
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    Ceramic, porcelain or glazed terracotta sort of things are what we're after.  But it's easier to say what isn't allowed and allow for some creativity in what is allowed.  Maybe someone will make a wooden planter.  Or a metal one...
     
    Becca Miller
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    I imagine glass could be allowed as well, as long as it had drainage holes.
     
    Becca Miller
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    Mike Haasl wrote:I think that will be in Dimensional Lumber Woodworking



    Ah, I hadn't considered the building of the container as part of the task. I currently have my worms in a single level plastic bin but maybe I'll add making a multi-level wooden worm bin to my list of projects. They sure look nicer and could be built to fit in my space better.

    It does seem to me that there are (at least) two separate skills here and that once someone either builds (or otherwise obtains) the container to keep the worms in, they also need to source and properly assemble the worms, bedding, grit, water, and food scraps. Then there is the ongoing maintenance of the bin and keeping the worms alive and fed. Maybe the basic assembly could be Sand level and then for a higher level badge there could be something like harvest x amount of vermicompost from your worm bin? Not sure if that's too long term of a project.
     
    Mike Haasl
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    You got it!  Often things will be split appropriately between badges.  Other times we missed an opportunity do that  When the Straw level is defined there will be room for all sorts of more advanced and time consuming projects!
     
    Dorothy Pohorelow
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    That answered half my question.  Do the same restrictions on pot material apply to all the growing projects?  Ie do I need to find glass, ceramic or glazed terra cotta for my micro dwarf tomatoes?  Or other indoor veggies or herbs?  

    Micro Tom and a few others will grow and make tomatoes in a 6 inch pot but are happier in a larger pot.  Other varieties do better in 10 to 12 inch pots.  Ie most micro tomatoes will grow well and set tomatoes in 3/4 to 2 gallon grow bags or nursery pots.  Since I will have up to 30 micros in my spare bedroom I opted to go with 0.70 gallon plastic pots I could get in bulk...  wry grin my outside micros are in grow bags...

    I do want to do a multiculture but I need the pot for it and size/shape of the pot will effect what I would put in it. And that would be effected by what I can find that I can afford.
     
    Mike Haasl
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    Ahh, thanks for that.  Yes, I think the pot requirements should apply to the whole badge.  I'll see if we can adjust it.
     
    Inge Leonora-den Ouden
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    Mike Haasl wrote:Ceramic, porcelain or glazed terracotta sort of things are what we're after.  But it's easier to say what isn't allowed and allow for some creativity in what is allowed.  Maybe someone will make a wooden planter.  Or a metal one...

    Yes, I thought of metal after I wrote my reaction. I have several houseplants in old metal cooking pots. But always with a plastic or unglazed terracotta pot inside. The holes are in the inner pot, the outer pot has no holes, the water has to stay in there (do not overwater houseplants)!
     
    Dorothy Pohorelow
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    Where are we standing on this?   In other words can I start on this badge yet?  

    Micro greens will get started this week, so will a jar of sprouts.  In a week it will be time to start my peppers and some of my herbs...   Should I just document things as I do them and be prepared to upload them once the BB threads get made or???
     
    Mike Haasl
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    Yes and kind of :)  This badge is official.  But the individual badge bits haven't been typed up and turned into links.  

    I'll get the volunteers who have typed BBs before to hopefully turn their attention towards the PEA badges that are official.  

    Thanks for the prodding!
     
    Dorothy Pohorelow
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    Back again with another question.  I normally start my seeds in plastic seed starters filled with seed starter OR in the peat pellets set in a plastic tray.   I have been moving away from bio sponges and peat pellets for a number of reasons but if I already have them I feel like I need to use them up as to do otherwise would be rather wasteful.  
    SO my question is if I set my peat pellets in metal or glass trays will they be acceptable as a seed starting medium? I am assuming my plastic seed starters are not due to their material...
     
    Mike Haasl
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    That sounds like a reasonable approach to me!
     
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    This seems to be the place for my question - is there a rationale for why unglazed terracotta is not allowed? It's my go-to material for houseplants/indoor herbs (I get my pots mainly from a local organic/better than organic/permaculture-supporting garden centre). If it's not safe, or there is another reason, I'm interested to know!
    A lot of glazed/ceramic pots I can source locally have questionable finishes food safety wise (possibility of lead, toxic materials), and although I love wood boxes, indoors I worry about mold/water leakage. Metal could potentially work, but if it's new, that's a lot of metal needing to be mined to make the number of containers I would need, and I still would have to deal with drainage. Used is possible, but I haven't seen many options locally lately. Glass again has the issue of drainage (I'm just not good enough to keep houseplants alive without drainage!).
    Until this year, my outdoor garden (formerly a balcony garden) has been mostly scavenged pots (plastic) and two cedar planter boxes I built with help from a family member (but no watering tray, they just drip out into my garden). I moved into my own little (inner-ring, walkable) suburban home this summer. Now that I have my own little yard, I'm hoping to build some hugelkultur beds for the back yard and some raised beds for the front (as per the Wheaton Eco Scale, I'm trying to gently move folks upwards gradually, which means no hugelkultur in the front yard yet! Plus, I don't really have space in the front...).
    This turned into a bit of a ramble, sorry! Thanks for your help!
     
    Mike Barkley
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    Good question Julia. I'm going to take a wild guess & say it might be a misprint. Perhaps the intent was to say nonporous??? Maybe it has something to do with glazed pots will dry out less frequently??? Being the holiday it might take a few days for someone who actually knows the answer to chime in.
     
    Mike Haasl
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    I'm not sure either.  I'm barely remembering something about leaking/wicking and damaging furniture but I may be misremembering...
     
    Julia Megan
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    I mean, you certainly have to be careful where you put them, but that's a very solvable problem to me? Much easier to deal with than a wooden container garden indoors, I would think.
     
    gardener
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    I also find it really odd that even porous terra cotta is not acceptable. Isn't that the most sustainable potting material in common use? It's long lasting, ecological, friendly to most climates, fully recyclable when broken... Unless I'm wrong about those points, which is always possible.
     
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    Ideas:

    Propagate by cutting (leaf or stem) (in water or dirt), show new growth. Succulents, some house plants, or even shrubs.
    Regrow from scraps (green onion, garlic greens, lettuce....)
     
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    Hello, I'm looking for some help on how to get started. How do I submit evidence for a badge? I've missed a "how-to" somewhere and am feeling a little lost. Any help would be appreciated! Thank you in advance :)
     
    master gardener
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    Heather Holman wrote:Hello, I'm looking for some help on how to get started. How do I submit evidence for a badge? I've missed a "how-to" somewhere and am feeling a little lost. Any help would be appreciated! Thank you in advance :)



    Hi, Heather; welcome to Permies!

    First, have you read this general thread about how everything works?

    Basically, you go to one of the links up at the top of this page -- maybe grow a tray of microgreens and read the top of that, maybe review what others have done, pay special attention to what you have to demonstrate, and then post a reply to that page showing what you did.
     
    master gardener
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    Do not use plastic, cement, porous terracotta, or styrofoam pots.



    Out of curiosity, I have seen it mentioned before but I haven't seen an explanation. Why is there aversion to terracotta?

    Is something in the process of making it a negative? I use unglazed terra cotta almost exclusively indoors but maybe I should reconsider. I'm starting to play around with low fire clays and hoping to do some outdoor firing in a primative way. Not sure if they will be pots but I might want to try to use them but I'm not sure if that would be kosher.

    Appreciate any thoughts.
     
    Mike Haasl
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    I can't remember but I think it might be due to moisture wicking through the pot and getting on the floor.  But I might be wrong about that...  I know there was a reason and I doubt it was toxicity related.
     
    Inge Leonora-den Ouden
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    Timothy Norton wrote:

    Do not use plastic, cement, porous terracotta, or styrofoam pots.



    Out of curiosity, I have seen it mentioned before but I haven't seen an explanation. Why is there aversion to terracotta?

    Is something in the process of making it a negative? I use unglazed terra cotta almost exclusively indoors but maybe I should reconsider. I'm starting to play around with low fire clays and hoping to do some outdoor firing in a primative way. Not sure if they will be pots but I might want to try to use them but I'm not sure if that would be kosher.

    Appreciate any thoughts.


    Hoping to get an answer to this question too.
    I love terracotta, both glazed and unglazed. I have a collection of handmade terracotta pots, most only glazed inside (form Mediterranean countries).

    I use unglazed (mass production) terracotta pots for all of my houseplants, but inside a 'cache pot' (a glazed ceramic or metal plant container). This is the traditional way I know for houseplants, the method my mother used too ...

    Now there's good quality plastic containers and trays (for microgreens) that will last almost forever, for me there's no reason not to use those. Except for 'they do not look nice'.  
    Terracotta always looks much better!
     
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