Going Organic
with Eleesa Zlatic of the
Lemon Farm Organic Market
(monthly column from The Friendly Bay Islander magazine - April 2016 edition)
Dearest Community, I want to
sincerely thank you for all your support. I am always so humbled by the kindness,
consideration, and help that my family and I are given.
By the time this goes to publication, our inaugural Macleay Island Red Tent will have occurred, with its theme of ‘Find Your Tribe’, where
women come together to share their stories, laugh, nurture and connect with
their Sista’s. Whilst this is a women’s circle, I have to say that living on
the Island for me as been a case of finding my Tribe. A community of
enchanting, colourful individuals, who are living their sea change lifestyle
with a village feel, and I feel blessed and grateful to be a part of this shared
journey.
We recently held our Autumn Infinite EarthFest, and it was
‘lovely’! Very home grown and heartfelt. A loving thankyou to everyone who
attended, and to all the stall holders. I am grateful to everyone who helped
the work experience folk for their help with creating some great activities on
the day. Running Wild and Jam for Jams made some noise with their Funky Junk
workshop, and the kids had a fabulous time banging out the beats on recycled
containers, pots and pans, and drum sets. Mike and Bojan from Homeless Yellow
pulled the sounds together, and it was great to listen to! Thanks also to Cassie
for your beautiful smile, and volunteering your help on the day.
The Insect Hotels (or should they be called Motels???)
Workshop was incredibly popular. There will be some very happy insects moving
into funky new houses in local backyards very soon. If you missed out, we will
be holding these workshops again in the future! Thanks to the team from Running
Wild for getting all the materials organised, and Brendan and Dillon for running
it on the day. This workshop supports our ‘Chemical Free Islands’ campaign,
encouraging people to stop spraying pesticides, and to allow Insects to do their
thing for the environment.
A fantastic way to get rid of rags is to make them into a rug
mat using a toothbrush! This free workshop was run by lovely Eileen in her very
cool retro tent. Lots of people contributed to the communal mat being made, or
bought a kit to get started at home. It is such a great way to use up items of
clothing that would normally be tossed. A perfect example of upcycling! Eileen
will be at our next ‘Infinite EarthFest Winter’, if you would like to get
involved and learn a new skill.
Infinite EarthFest Winter Solstice: Saturday 25th
June
Infinite EarthFest Spring Equinox: Saturday 24th
September
Infinite EarthFest Summer Solstice: Saturday 17th
December
Please mark these dates in your Calendar, and contact me if
you have a stall that fits the criteria of environmentally friendly, organic,
recycled, upcycled, spiritual and arty. We are also looking for home grown
musicians and entertainment, particularly with an earth friendly, world music
feel.
Ok now for the latest news…. HOW EXCITING! The Organic Market
now has a Coffee Bar! Come along and try an organic coffee, tea, or a delicious
organic Fairtrade hot chocolate. There are plenty of treats to enjoy with it,
raw treats, gluten free cookies and chocolate truffles to name a few… yum! I
must say the feedback so far has been great. We have been ever so kind, and
have solved the dilemma of which cup size to choose by having only medium! But
not just any medium size cup, ours are an eco-friendly compostable and
biodegradable cup! … which we recycle into plant pots (when you’re finished of
course) or you can take them home and pot something up for yourself. Nothing
should go to waste, so our coffee grinds are being used in various ways on the
farm too.
Now for those of you who get picked up from the Ferry each
week, we now have a BUS!!!… yes, that’s right, it is comfort all the way to the
farm now. No more alleee oooops up into the Blue Landy any more, just a
comfortable step into being chauffeur driven for your organic shopping
pleasure.
If
you can’t make it to the market, or want to make a commitment to your healthy
eating plans, just contact me and we can arrange a box for you each week. We
deliver to the Ferry for pick up on the other Islands or Mainland. Have
a beautiful week!
