Audrey Gomez
Whether you’re looking to grow some veggies or just lower your water bill, there will be lots of water conservation tips at the Every Drop Counts event on May 30.
The Santiam Food Alliance is sponsoring the free event, which takes place from 1 to 4 p.m. at Sunshine Industries, 1333 Clark Mill Road.
“We want people to know that high water rates shouldn’t keep them from growing some of their own food or having an attractive garden,” said Jan Neilson, one of the event’s organizers. “This event will show folks how to keep their water bills low and avoid wasting this invaluable resource.”
While the focus of the Santiam Food Alliance is to “spread the joy of local healthy food,” that can’t happen without water.
Group member Barbara Rowe has worked with schools on their production gardens. She said sometimes students would turn down free vegetable plants because water is too expensive.
At the event there will be information about drip irrigation, a watering system which slowly drips water to the roots of the plants, as well as how to manage where you plant your garden, she said.
“Over-watering is really a problem,” Rowe said.
Learning to conserve water is an important subject because there was a low snow pack this year, she added.
Oregon, as a whole, is not yet facing a drought, but on May 22 Gov. Kate Brown declared drought emergencies in eight Oregon counties.
“The majority of our state is parched due to the warm winter and lack of snow,” Brown said in a press release. “As we move into summer, many areas of the state are going to dry out very quickly, likely leading to a difficult fire season as well as water shortages. We need our state, local and federal partners to be prepared as our communities grapple with hot and dry conditions.”
To raise awareness of the situation, state agencies will use the hashtag #ORdrought across social media to keep Oregonians informed and prepared to adapt to drought conditions.
Santiam Food Alliance member Nancy Kirks searches #droughttolerant on Instagram for ideas about drought-tolerant plants.
The Santiam Food Alliance typically hosts four events a year: Food Day, Seedy Tuesday, Seed Saving (in the fall), and Seed Swap (in the spring).
“Our group is small, so we said (let’s do) four events a year,” said Marlene Peterson.
There are about eight people on the steering committee, she said. They also keep a list of potential volunteers.
“This way no one gets overwhelmed,” Rowe said. “We all felt passionately about people eating good food.”
“There is so much available locally,” Peterson added.
Every Drop Counts! Water Conservation for Home and Garden
– Saturday, May 30, 1 to 4 p.m.
– Sunshine Industries, 1333 Clark Mill Road
– Exhibitors will include OSU Extension Master Gardeners, the South Santiam Watershed Council, and the Lebanon and Sweet Home farmers’ markets.
– Information opportunities will include a rain-barrel display, a collection of drought-resistant plants, advice on converting older toilets to low-flow, and information about drip irrigation, mulching, permaculture, and front-yard gardening. Consumer Power will provide coupons for low-flow showerheads for its customers.
– Speakers at the event will be Harry McCormack, of Sunbow Farm, and Jonathan Carroll, of Corvallis. Carroll will speak at 1:30 p.m. about home water saving, rain catchment systems, and using collected rainwater. McCormack will speak at 2:30 about water itself (“It’s more than water!” says McCormack), storing water, and low-water delivery systems for the home garden.
– For more information, contact Jan Neilson at (541) 401-2678, or Barbara Rowe at (503) 930-6978.