Tips and ideas for the summer months

Lasqueti Island Climate Change Action Group

Tips and ideas for the summer months

The tables have turned. After so many months of working hard to stay dry and to create heat, Lasquetians are now directing their attention to conserving water and protecting themselves and their gardens from over-heating.

We hope that these few ideas will stimulate creativity and conversations about how to take advantage of the abundant free heat and light energy that summer brings.

Many homes on Lasqueti now have solar installations. There are also many small solar devices available which can be very useful, like solar lights and phone chargers. Some on the island are using a new automatic solar irrigation system from Lee Valley, Irrigatia. It is responsive to the weather, watering most heavily on hot sunny days. So far, results are great, with gardens thriving after absences of over a week. Here is the link: https://www.leevalley.com/en-ca/shop/garden/water-and-irrigation/irrigat...

Passive solar is the purest way to harness the sun’s energy. This summer we have been cooking everything from lentils to potatoes to quiche in a Sun Oven that is over 30 years old and still working well. The same model is still available : https://www.stratenergy.ca/solar_oven.htm You can also order a cleverly-designed, cheaper model which is lightweight and uses vacuum insulation : https://gosun.co/collections/solar-ovens. You can even make a solar cooker yourself from readily available materials. It could be a family project simple enough for kids to make. There are lots of designs online. Cooking with sunlight is most efficient using dark-tinted glass cookware. How about making sun tea in a dark glass bottle filled with water and tea and left in a sunny location? The black bags that warm water for solar showers can be used for warming water for dishwashing and clothes washing too.

Of course, the scarcity of water in this season presents big challenges to gardeners. As well as heavy mulching, consider foregoing raised beds in order to hold more moisture at the level of the plants.

This is the perfect time of year to gather the fir cones that have opened up in the hot dry weather. The resin they contain and their shape make them excellent fire starters for when the cold weather returns.

Come check out the table of the Lasqueti Climate Change Action Group at the market. We would love to hear your summer energy-saving ideas.

(co-written by Amalia and Aigul)