**COMPOSTING BIN UPDATE**

Above is the compost bin available through 

San Bernardino County. Read below for more information

Above is the Compost bin available through the City of Redlands. 

Read below for more information. 

Hello Sisters. 

After further research we have made a few discoveries that might be of interest to you. We have found a few alternatives to building the compost bin. Through the City of Redlands Solid Waste and Recycling Division they sell compost bins to residents (we are checking if that includes Mentone) for about $31.00.

  Click Here for the website.

 I am going down today to check it out, so I will post more details about size, and type later today. This seems to be considerably cheaper  and less time consuming than building one.  Also they are selling a large (75 gal. I believe) tumbling compost bin at Costco for $99.00.  

We need your feedback.

 Tell us please what you want to do. 

Leave a comment below, call me (rachelle at 792-0184) or email me (sparkles2000@gmail.com).

If we decide to just purchase our bins then we will just schedule a class on filling our bins and producing nutrient rich compost. 

** Here is what I found out, the compost bin through the City of Redlands is a 30 inch stackable container with a lid, it is black and plastic. It seems to be very sturdy and just snaps together.  It is very similar to the type of compost we might be building. There is only one available to each resident at the low $31.00 cost, each additional purchase is aprox. $62.00 (I can't remember the exact cost they told me).  Unfortunately this doesn't include Mentone residents. Maybe you can coordinate with someone you know within the Redlands boundaries who doesn't need one and purchase one through them? I don't know, just a thought. **

*** More good news....San Bernardino County offers a compost bin for it's residents which includes Mentone, woohoo, and even better it's only $24.30. You would have to drive to 

222 West Hospitality Lane, and go to the Solid Waste Dept. to pick it up.

Here is the link to the SB County Website.***

Time To Get Our Hands Dirty

Hello Everyone. April is literally around the corner, and gardening seems to be on everyones mind. So it is time to get our hands dirty. We will be building compost bins this month.  We found a "Perfect Compost Bin" to build. According to Composting1o1.com "Its inexpensive, easy to build, and features five stackable sections for simple efficient composting." (Cheryl and I will let you know if that is true before the class begins :)) But what we liked most about this bin is that you can customize it to the size you need. Not everyone may need 5 sections. Some may need more or less. Be sure to take that into consideration when purchasing your materials. What we have listed for materials is for a 5 section bin. Also we would like to invite husbands to come if they would like to build the bin. 

 

Time to Build: estimated 2 to 3 hours.

Cost: estimated $50 to $75 depending on type of wood you use.

Materials:

60 feet of 1-by-6 utility wood

10 feet of 2-by-2 utility wood

80 2-inch wood screws (bring your electric drills charged and ready, if you have one)

1 quart of wood sealer

For detailed instructions and information on this bin:

 CLICK HERE.

For this class you will need to purchase your supplies and have them cut and ready to go. If you need help with cutting your wood contact Rachelle.

 We will be holding the class on April 14th at 5:30 at Rachelle Poulsen's home.

 This will be a 2 part class. The first part (April 14th) will be to build the bin.  Part 2 will be on how to use your compost bin and make rich organic compost for your garden. We don't have a date yet on the second class, since we do not know if we will need one or two days to build the bin. But we hope to have all the bins built and functioning by the end of April. 

If you have any questions call Rachelle Poulsen.

"Purse-onal" Birthday Dinner

It's the annual Relief Society Birthday Dinner and this year it's a "PURSE-onal" affair! 

It's on St. Patrick's Day, March 17th at 6:30 at the Stake Center.  Lite Dinner will be served. Sister West will be speaking on the different purses she has been through in her fascinating life. Bring your purse-you'll be glad you did! There's an on-time raffle for those punctual people! This is going to be a great way to meet new sisters, and socialize with those you already know.  Don't miss out on this fun event!! See you there! Young women are encouraged to come too!!