ALMANAC: Wednesday March 16, 2011 - Sunrise 7:15 AM Sunset 7:12 PM - Moon 86% Waxing, Moonrise 3:42 PM. -  The Vernal Equinox will take place on Sunday at 7:21 PM.  The word equinox is derived from the Latin words meaning "equal night." The vernal, or spring, equinox is the point at which the Sun appears to cross the celestial equator from south to north, signaling the beginning of nature's renewal in the Northern Hemisphere.

1] Come Unity in Our Community: Spring Equinox Celebration
2] Rain Barrels and Herb Spirals lead off Education & Release Urban Homesteading Workshop Series
3] Tree Planting Sponsorship Fundraiser
4] Upstate NY Permaculture Gathering and Design Open Reminder
5] General Interest Potluck Meeting Recap / Volunteer Opportunities
6] Wanted / Wish List: Rocks, Soil, Perennials, Clay, Straw

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1] Come Unity in Our Community: Spring Equinox Celebration

Bringing together artists, musicians, dancers, writers, photographers, knitters, sculptors, poets, visionaries, philosophers, friends, family, & community to CELEBRATE the coming of SprIng!

7*~ Community Circle Invokation ~ to share, to give thanks, and to have fun! 8*~ Max McKee & Friends ~ psychedelic blend of rock, funk and world beat
10*~ Bellydance * Hoopdance * Yogadance Performances 10:30*~ Akumaroots ~ afrobeat & reggae
$10 at the door, Westcott Theater
*~ Live ART!  *~ Local Artisans  *~ Community Groups
We've got a facebook event page for this one!

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2] Rain Barrels and Herb Spirals lead off Education & Release Urban Homesteading Workshop Series

Learn together this spring and summer, creating synergy from thought and hands-on activities.

[Apr 2~ rain barrels]  717 Otisco Street 1pm - 230pm . Creation, installation and maintenance.  Live art rain barrel painting, light refreshments and one complete rain barrel will be raffled off! Participants will receive 1 ticket for every $2 donated to the Alchemical Nursery and 3 tickets for every $5 donated.  Register by emailing Sasha at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

[Apr 16 ~ build an herb spiral]  To be held at 717 Otisco St, Syracuse, NY from 1pm - 230pm.  Participants  will be instructed in the construction of an herb spiral using permaculture principles.  Observe and interact - Where would be the optimum siting for an herb spiral, taking into consideration of sun, wind, rain, soil, infrastructures, etc.  Catch and store energy - collecting the energy of the sun - exposure, warmth - rocks as heat sinks, rain - contours to collect rainfall & gardeners - convenient to attention and harvest, choose perennials.  Design from patterns to details - basic form of circle or ellipse with a spiral.  Use edges &  value the marginal - spiral shape creates maximum interfaces for productivity.  Participants are asked to RSVP by emailing This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and providing name(s) of attendees and contact email and telephone numbers.

[Future Dates ]  [Apr 23 ~ herbal medicine making]  [Apr 30 ~ perennial Permaculture planting]  [May 7 ~ build with Earth]  [June 11 ~ the work that reconnects]  [all sessions will be free to the public]  Full Series Info at: http://www.alchemicalnursery.org/news/358-education-a-release-series-practicing-synergy.html

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3]  Tree Planting Sponsorship Fundraiser

The Alchemical Nursery is participating in a reforestation fundraiser during the Spring 2011 season.  For every $15 sponsorship sold, one tree will be planted in a US National Forest in the donor's name, and $10 will stay local to be contributed to costs associated with the Rahma Edible Forest Garden at 3100 South Salina St in Syracuse.

Please consider asking your friends and family to sponsor trees and edible forests in our communities by purchasing a sponsorship.  You can obtain a sponsorship packet with donor forms and full information by picking one up from the front porch of 1125 Westcott St (please leave your name and contact email on the sign-up sheet) or by emailing Allie at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

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4] Upstate NY Permaculture Gathering and Design Open Reminder

Be part of a crowdsourcing effort to create an urban edible forest garden in the City of Syracuse, NY.  Flex your creative chops, build your design experience, learn through practice, help produce a perennial nutrition and wellness cultural resource.

The Best Design, selected by a panel jury, will receive a $250 cash award and be implemented on the property of the Rahma Free Health Clinic at 3100 South Salina St in Syracuse.  Submissions are due by April 1, 2011, with the Best Design and two Honorable Mentions announced at the Upstate NY Permaculture Gathering in Rochester, NY on Saturday April 9, 2011.

Full details including the creative brief, design criteria, and submission guidelines, are available at: http://www.alchemicalnursery.org/news/359-2011-community-permaculture-design-open-announcement.html

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5] General Interest Potluck Meeting Recap / Volunteer Opportunities

14 rousing folks turned out for the general interest meeting and potluck on March 7th.  in addition to the general opportunities presented below - many more projects were discussed and plans made including:
An upcoming yurt design and construction workshop series ~ The creation of a biofuels cooperative ~ The Zero Waste Generation trash art project ~ The Natural Building Colloquium
There are so many ways to get involved with Alchemical's mission right now! Build your resume and professional development as a volunteer/intern with real on-the-ground local community development and place-making experience.

• Implementing the 2011 Permaculture Design Open
• Organizing the 2011 “Education and Release” Workshop Series
• Creating Permaculture related art images
• Creation of a Slideshow Presentation and Table Display
• Mapping Permaculture, Intentional Community, and Progressive Place Projects
• Website Editor/Authoring
• Drafting an Employee/Volunteer Handbook
• Joining the Board of Directors

For full details visit:
http://www.alchemicalnursery.org/myblog-admin/current-opportunities-with-alchemical.html
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6] Wanted / Wish List: Rocks, Soil, Perennials, Clay, Straw

A couple of our upcoming workshops in the Education & Release series require some natural materials  to bring them to completion.  These materials aren't readily available on an urban lot site as they might be on a rural location, so we are in search mode.  If anyone can help contribute to these needs via donation, it would help offset our costs and save us much time.  Wanted:

• Large rocks/stones for creating the infrastructure foundation of the herb spiral
• Perennial edibles and herb plants for the front yard and the herb spiral planting
• Topsoil/ compost for the body of the herb spiral and planting of the perennial beds
• Clay and Straw for the cob construction workshop

Please contact Frank at either 315-308-1372 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
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