Ethanol as Fuel – Fruit Project

Sean Isles is an entrepreneur in Vancouver and he sent the Vancouver Fruit Tree Project information about his new project working with ethanol. Ethanol fuel can be made from anything that has sugar in it, like fruit that is so far past its prime that no one wants to eat it or cook with it. He writes, “Ethanol is a good replacement for gasoline as fuel for cars.  It is carbon-neutral because the carbon that enters the atmosphere from the car’s exhaust has been taken out of the atmosphere during the prior growing season when the plant used it in photosynthesis.

It can be produced locally, unlike gasoline – have you ever heard of a back-yard oil refinery?”

Sean wants to see whether it’s feasible to make fuel alcohol on a community scale.  One of the requirements is a supply of feedstock, like waste fruit.  He’s hoping to partner with the Vancouver Tree Fruit Project Society to turn waste fruit into fuel and will keep VFTP informed about the performance of the fuel in small engines.  As locally-made fuel proves itself, he’ll invite members of the community to test the fuel in real-world driving conditions, then use the momentum generated to build a larger plant that can turn waste into fuel for everyone.

Waiting for Cherries

Cherries are here!

I came home from work on Friday to find three big containers of cherries waiting for me! I’d been watching our trees – one was showing very little fruit and the other…well, it had lots of fruit but it was waaaay up there for only the birds to enjoy. Or so I thought! Our trees are 30 years old and over 30 feet tall. Of course, most of the cherries are in the top 10 feet - well over ladder and even picking pole reach. Hence my amazement at seeing all these cherries in my kitchen!

Some have gone to the neighbours and some I’ve dehydrated but there’s still a big container left. I’ll give it to my neighbour who is skilled at all things food preservation, and let her give them the attention they deserve. I didn’t ask my husband Brad how he got them. I don’t really want to know, because it probably involved climbing ladders and hanging off the roof of our 3-storey complex. Since he is the primary caregiver of our small children (and was home alone with them at the time), I won’t ask, I’ll just give him a big hug for getting them for me. He knows I love cherries - but probably not more than I love him – so one day we’ll have a chat, but not till the cherries and crows are long gone.

- by Erin, VFTP Pres

do you have a fruit tree in your yard?

no, this is not a locally grown apple. a little too perfect for that. but there are lots of apples grown right in vancouver, in our own backyards. do you have an apple tree? or another fruit bearing tree? does the amount of apples growing on your tree overwhelm you when its time to harvest? does some of the fruit end up falling on your yard, rotting & attracting unwanted pests?

solution! Vancouver Fruit Tree Project brings groups of volunteers together to pick fruit from your tree, and then the fruit gets redistributed in the community to those who need it, like daycares, community centres, etc.if you are the owner of a fruit tree in your backyard (or front yard), contact us and let’s work together!(joey is a new blogger with the vancouver fruit tree project society. like a good vancouver resident, she really loves food & coffee. she works at a local restaurant, & she also photographs & writes her own random little food blog. recently, she’s become increasingly interested in the topic of food security. she wanted to know more, & she wanted to know how she could be involved in her community. in her research, she stumbled upon the vancouver fruit tree project last month & really liked how they care about food, people, the environment, and about waste (or not wasting), among other things.)

Welcome to the 2011 Season

The 10th Fruit Tree Project Season

This is the Vancouver Fruit Tree Project’s first e-newsletter!  We send information about Fruit Tree Project volunteer opportunities, projects, and events.To sign up, use the form on the right hand sidebar.

Here are some ways to join us:

Volunteering for picking fruit: If you’re new this year, to be contacted for fruit picking email picking@vancouverfruittree.com with “pick list” in the subject line.

AGM! We’re holding our annual Annual General Meeting on Thursday, June 16th. Details to follow. Call for nominations- if you’d like to join the Board as a member at large and help the project grow strong, call Erin to see how you can get involved on this level: 604-8872-5591.

Outreach event: Would you like to table at the Stone Soup Festival at Britannia Community Centre Sat. May 7^th for 2 hours between 12-5pm? Email outreach@vancouverfruittree.com to sign up.

Bike trailer workshop –Thanks to the generous Vancouver Cargo Bike Collective, we’re able to make pedal powered deliveries this year. Learn to ride with the trailer: email picking@vancouverfruittree.com.

Slow Fruit Cycle Event: Imagine a slow, group bike ride to show off the Fruit Tree Project’s harvest and build support! Volunteers wanted to assist in planning/organization of a slow fruit cycle in late July or early August, email outreach@vancouverfruittree.com.

Volunteer Opportunities: more volunteer opportunities on our website, including Board member positions, bloggers, social media, drivers….

New faces and ideas are always welcome. Drop us an email, or come to the next meeting. Email info@vancouverfruittree.com for dates and times.

we’ll be hiring…

We’ll be hiring a part-time Coordinator this season. If you enjoy volunteer coordination, have good communication skills, are organized, and have a 3-year driving record (so you can book Car Coop vehicles), watch the website at www.vancouverfruittree.com and Facebook for updates..

Book Review: Independence Days

In the Bookshed: Independence Days | Sharon Astyk
Guest Post by Megan Adam

I should warn you upfront that no sooner was I done this book, that I started clearing a corner of my basement for long-term food storage. Not necessarily because Sharon Astyk makes a compelling case for the end of civilization as we know it, but because the notion of security – and in particular food security is so compelling to me. For more than a decade I have put some food by each year, canning mostly, occasionally drying foods, but after reading this book I’m committed to doing a lot more. Three months supply of food for each person in the house? I’m not sure about that yet, but I’ve got that corner cleaned out and I’m going to fill it.

Independence Days is an excellent introduction to the whys and hows of food storage covering everything from how to get your family to eat storage food (not a problem in our house because we already eat lots of beans and lentils and rice) to recipes to the principles behind lactofermentation. What I particularly appreciated were the acknowledgements throughout that moving oneself into a more secure food paradigm is a task often complicated by the hard realities of personal economics, and the people with whom we share space.

Astyk’s style is eminently readable – conversational and breezy throughout as she chides her own past mistakes in food preserving (really – she says – don’t let your fermenting kimchi explode in your kitchen), and imparts real-world wisdom in each step of the various processes – root cellaring, canning, drying, lactofermentation and season-extension in the garden. Additionally, an extensive home medical kit is also covered as part of your home preparations — just in case.

While not an alarmist, Astyk does ask us to consider the possibility that we encounter a disaster so great that we are not able to access grocery stores or municipal water supplies. That might be a quarantine, it might be an earthquake, or it might just be a job loss that leaves one with little means to pay the rent and eat. In any of these situations she suggests that putting food by while we have it available is not only a good strategy, but a responsibility to ourselves and our families.

I can’t say I disagree, and while greater food security for my family is something I’ve always meant to get around to, this book is written in such a way as to give you confidence in getting started without being overwhelmed. If food security at home is something you think about, this is a good first-reference and an enjoyable read.

- Megan Adam blogs at http://amongtheweeds.ca