Worms and Bees

Worms and Bees? We are talking of course, about the wormy compost eating type of worms, and the gardening and cleaning type of working bee here.

Cleaning Bee 

On Sunday March 18th from 9:30am to 11:30am Mariel will be hosting a cleaning bee. Willing vollunteers are needed to come along and help deep-clean, scrub, and spruce the store. Have fun, contribute to the co-op, and earn volunteer credits too. Bring rubber gloves if you use them, all else provided. Contact us if you plan to come, and / or you have questions.

 

Worm Co-Ordinator Needed

Our worm farm is in dire need of a loving worm farmer to take charge of them. If you know a thing or two about worms and would like to take charge please let us know. You'd need to write up some instruction do-s and don'ts for the shop volunteers, and to monitor and clean out the worm farm periodically. And of course, you will earn volunteer credits for your time, as well as the eternal gratitude of the co-op worms.

Garden Bees past and upcoming

Last Sunday a gang of gardeners set to work in the co-op garden, weeding, mowing, pruning and harvesting. And contributing to our co-op and earning vollie credits along the way. THANKS to Paddy for organizing and to Gini, Cam, Jenna, Emme and Julie for your hard work!

Here are some of the gang with the lovely produce we harvested.

Next garden bee will be Sunday April 15. Watch for details in this blog and in the newsletter. We'll be feeding and mulching the garden, and planting a winter nitrogen-fixing crop to ready the garden for a bumper spring crop. All donations of mulch, compost and manure most welcome. If you have some "garden-fixins" for us, please let us know so we can arrange to collect it or have you deliver it closer to the time.

Vegetable News from DCF

Have you ordered a Flame Tree Vegetable box lately? If not, you've been missing some lovely seasonal veggies. Right now seems everything from green beans to new potatoes to eggplant to rainbow chard is in season down at the Dapto Community Farm.

Vegetable boxes can be pre-ordered at the co-op. They cost $30, they include a range of organically grown seasonal veggies, and they are delivered fortnightly, on alternate Thursdays, after 5 pm, to the co-op. There are only a limited number available, so to secure one, be sure to phone or drop in to the shop to pre-order yours.

On alternate Thursdays, while the Dapto farm has good supplies, there may also be a limited number of veggie boxes (up to 5) available for purchase at the store after 5 pm. If you'd like us to notify you if there are boxes available, please leave your number at the store.

The vegetable box schedule for the remainder of February/ March is:

Thursday 16th February - 9 boxes available - pre-order now to avoid disappointment

Thursday 23 February (call store after 5 pm to see if boxes are available)

Thursday 1 March - 9 boxes available - pre-order 

Thursday 8 March  (call store after 5 pm to see if boxes are available)

Thursday 15 March - 9 boxes available - pre-order

Thursday 22 March  (call store after 5 pm to see if boxes are available)

Thursday 27 March - 9 boxes available - pre-order

Please note that the Saturday lane way vegetable market has been discontinued after the trial period ended.

Welcome Bathurst Co-Op!

Wonderful news for Bathurst folk, and for our members who may be traveling that way, we at Flame Tree got the following letter and photo from Leah and the team at Bathurst:

Just wanted to let you know that the Bathurst Wholefood Coop is open for business! We would have had many more things to worry about if it weren't for Flametree so thanks for all your help and advice!
We would like to offer your member reciprocal membership if they are out this way!
Regards
Leah

If you'd like more details about the Bathurst co-op, or would just like to write a note of congratulations, you can contact them at coop@bathurstwholefood.com. It's great to welcome another member to our growing family of local food co-operatives across the country! And just a reminder that we do offer reciprocal member benefits for other co-ops too.

Special Volunteer Opportunities in February

We know there are many members who'd love to participate in the running of the co-op, (and earn some credits toward a volunteer discount of 25% for a shop), but can't commit to working in the store. There are many other ways you can participate. Please let us know if you've got skills or ideas to offer. And meantime here are some tasks coming up - please let us know if you can help with a Gardening Bee, or with delivering crates to Sydney. And in March, look out for a chance to help with a Shop Cleaning Bee (more details later).

Gardening Bee

Our garden coordinator Paddy will be running a garden bee on Sunday February 19 from 9 am - 11:30 am at the Co-op garden. Please contact us if you can help out. Please wear sturdy shoes and suitable clothing, sun-block and hat (or is that wishful thinking?). Bring garden gloves and hand-tools if you can. Participants who work for the full bee can earn a volunteer credit.

Deliver Crates to Reverse Garbage in Marrickville

We have excess plastic crates that our suppliers have not recovered. Our shop co-ordinator Mariel has arranged for the Reverse Garbage Centre in Marrickville Sydney to take them. Are you able to help? We need:

• Someone who drives that way on any day Mon - Sat, 9-5pm, (Sunday 10am - 4pm is an option but there is a market on at the centre on that day so access is limited)
• Someone who drives a van or ute or has a trailer, capable of carrying 15 large crates (the ones stacked up behind the shed, the kind used to deliver bread) and potentially 5 milk crates.
• Flame Tree would fund the fuel cost (please contact us for the maximum we could fund)
• Generous Vollie hours will apply, great for a member who has not been able to volunteer thus far
• (editors note - plus you get to poke around and find yourself some marvelous stuff at that treasure trove of a place! Sculptors alert! You will come home with a full ute too!)

Please contact us as soon as possible if you can help, so that Mariel can set the date with Reverse Garbage.

2012 Opening Hours, Saturday Markets, Veg Boxes

Happy 2012 Flame-Folk!

The Co-op opened again this week from Wednesday 4th of January for our usual opening hours:

Wed 2-6
Thurs 10-7
Fri 2-6
Sat 10-4

One exception: The co-op will close for the public holiday THURSDAY January 26. Open as usual on Friday 27 and Saturday 28.

Most of our suppliers are open this week (Jan 4), so we will be getting fresh dairy deliveries on Thursday afternoon and restocking the dry goods throughout the week. We will be unable to get plain and smoked tofu until the following week (11th Jan).

The fresh local organic fruit and veg market which we tried out in the last two weeks of 2011 trading will be continuing this Sat (7th Jan) with extended opening hours, from 10-1:30.  Louisa from Northern Illawarra Organics (http://www.niorganics.com.au) is providing the market stall and she'll also be cooking up some organic egg rolls for brunch this week, so come along and check it out.

The weekend organic market will sit alongside our fortnightly mixed organic vegetable boxes from Dapto Community Farm. Boxes will arrive every fortnight on Thursday afternoons, resuming January 12. They contain a mix of seasonal veggies, cost $30, and can be pre-ordered at the co-op or by phoning 0430 476 034 during shop open hours.

Co-Op Holiday Opening Hours

It's that time of the year again! (No, not winter, though it feels like it!). It's holiday season, and the co-op will be closing for a short period of time, from December 25-January. 3. Here are opening hours for December 2011 and January 2012, or view our calendar here.

Wednesday December 14 2pm - 6 pm

Thursday December 15 10 am - 7 pm

Friday December 16 2pm - 6 pm

Saturday December 17 10 am - 4 pm (+ Laneway produce market 10 am - 12 pm)

Wednesday December 21 2pm - 6 pm (+ Flame Tree stall at the Coledale Twilight Market)

Thursday December 22 10 am - 7 pm

Friday December 23 2pm - 6 pm

Saturday December 24 10 am - 4 pm (+ Laneway produce market 10 am - 12 pm)

Wednesday December 28 CLOSED

Thursday December 29 CLOSED

Friday December 30 CLOSED

Saturday December 31 CLOSED

Wednesday January 4 2pm - 6 pm

Thursday January 5 10 am - 7 pm

Friday January 6 2pm - 6 pm

Saturday January 7 10 am - 4 pm

Organic Fruit and Vegetable Market Trial NOW! Saturdays in December

Drum roll please!

We've been in discussion with a local organic fruit and vegetable supplier, and we have agreed to host a fruit and vegetable market at the Co-op for a trial period.

The first market will be SATURDAY December 17, and there will be another on SATURDAY December 24 from 10 am to 12 pm.

The market will be held in the laneway/ entrance to the co-op store. (Click here for a map if you need one.)

Please come along and try the market, and provide your feedback.Chat with Louise about her products, and where she sources them (she tries to source from local suppliers wherever possible). If you like the market, we'll continue it when the shop re-opens in the new year.

And if you have organically home-grown produce that you'd like to sell, bring it on down and join the fun of the market!