This workshop is for those who would like to grow food at home easily and without expensive equipment or farm chemicals. The first part of the workshop will cover making raised garden benches out of recycled pallets. These benches cost less than $5, take 15-20 minutes to make, are constructed almost totally of recycled materials, and are portable. They can be used for regular garden beds or for low-tech hydroponics. Since the benches are waist height, they are easier on the back or knees than ground level gardens. Being raised, they tend to have fewer problems with weeds and insects, and can be adapted to keep out slugs. One bench has the potential to save $500-1000 per year on vegetables.

The second part of the workshop covers how to make Bokashi, which is a type of fermented organic matter using EM (Effective Microorganisms) that was originally developed in Japan. Making your own Bokashi is an inexpensive way to incorporate beneficial bacterial in the soil for better health, productivity, and shelf life. Participants will learn how to make their own organic fertilizer.

Finally, a large variety of simple home techniques will be discussed related to raised garden benches and Bokashi, such as a simple home-scale hydroponic system.

Tim Lloyd of Pahoa will be leading this intensive afternoon workshop. Tim has a degree in tropical horticulture from UH Hilo (1993). He has worked with EM and nature farming in Hawai’i since 1997 and has been putting on workshops for nearly a decade. He is passionate about empowering people to grow their own healthy food sustainably, while reusing and recycling resources. He invented a tool to take apart a pallet effortlessly in less than 5 minutes.

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