| Hibiscusmatters 16 July 201418

Environment&sustainabilityClearing out the garden makes your immediate environment tidier and more beautiful. However, by taking that unwanted wood and other plant material to the tip, you are adding to the burden that humans place upon the wider environment.

Eyeglasses collected in Orewa are finding their way to people who are unable to afford prescription glasses in the Pacific region.Orewa Lions have been collecting the glasses for years, but recently increased their efforts and in the last 12 months have collected 795 pairs from three Orewa optometrists.The Lions Recycle for Sight program started in 1996 when a member of the Papakura Lions purchased a Lens Testing

Meter and related equipment. Throughout the year, Lions volunteers collect used eyeglasses and deliver them to regional Lions Eyeglass Recycling Centres where volunteers clean, sort by prescription strength, and package the glasses.They are then distributed to people in need in developing countries, with volunteers matching each person with a suitable pair of glasses.Over the years, Lions estimate around 133,000 glasses have passed through the

recycling centre.Lions accept prescription and reading glasses, sunglasses and plastic and metal frames. Children’s glasses are especially needed.Orewa Optics owner Petra Hewitt says she always encourages people to keep their most recent pair of glasses as a backup when renewing their prescription, but that anything older than that can be brought in and placed in the Recycle for Sight donation box.

Green waste recycling comes to Whangaparaoa

Landfills should be the last resort after all efforts to reduce, reuse or recycle waste materials are exhausted. Nature leads the way in this respect, with all natural materials eventually breaking down in a continually renewing cycle.Recycling green waste has been made easier for Whangaparaoa residents this month, with the introduction of a new green waste drop off service at Whangaparaoa Landscape Supplies.Owner Bill Priest says he has made it affordable to drop off a trailer load of felled trees, branches and other green “waste, charging $40 per trailer

compared with around $58 to dump the same amount in the landfill. Bill is bringing an industrial-scale chipper operated by two people and capable of taking branches up to 300mm in diameter into his Karepiro Drive site each week to turn the plant material into mulch.Anything apart from flax, bamboo, cabbage trees or palms, can be included.“There are a lot of gardens on the peninsula and this will mean a shorter trip for Whangaparaoa locals with green waste,” Bill says.

The mulch produced will be far cheaper to purchase then the standard product.Best of all will be the satisfaction of

knowing you did the right thing by turning your garden waste into garden gold.

Green waste can now be transformed into ‘garden gold’ at Whangaparaoa Landscape Supplies.

Old eyewear bringing new vision to the Pacific

Petra Hewitt

WHANGAPARAOA LANDSCAPE SUPPLIES

Mon–Fri: 8am–4pmSaturday: 8am–2pmSunday: 9am–1pm

Only $40 per trailer load to recycle

your garden waste

The only gas fi lling stati on on the peninsula

No fl axNo bamboo

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The only GREEN garden waste on the Peninsula

up to 250mm diameter branches

45 Karepiro Drive, Whangaparaoa • Phone 428 375045 Karepiro Drive, Whangaparaoa • Phone 428 3750

Mitre10

Hibiscusmatters 16 July 2014 | 19

FREE METAL COLLECTION

A major fundraiser for the Tamaki Sports Academy is the free metal collection service it offers.We will pick up any old metal – whiteware such as fridges, stoves, dishwashers, washing machines – roofing iron, metal piping, venetion blinds, computers, batteries, car panels, cars, metal shelving, filing cabinets, machinery, lawnmowers, engines and so on.Tamaki Sports Academy offers mentoring, coaching, and work experience to South Auckland youth who have dropped out of the mainstream school system, but who show some sporting talent. Academy members are enrolled in the Correspondence School and work towards unit standard credits and national qualifications.

Ph 09 276 0328

• Whangaparaoa: Top of the Plaza, (top carpark, opposite Eddie Law).

Phone: 428 7620

• Orewa: The Gossip, 306 Hibiscus Coast Highway, Orewa.

(Agent for Cartridge World Whangaparaoa).

Out of ink?• New Cartridges• Refilled Cartridges• Printers• Paper• Free advice

Two Locations• Whangaparaoa: Top of the Plaza, (top carpark, opposite Eddie Law).

Phone: 428 7620

• Orewa: The Gossip, 306 Hibiscus Coast Highway, Orewa.

(Agent for Cartridge World Whangaparaoa).

Out of ink?• New Cartridges• Refilled Cartridges• Printers• Paper• Free advice

Two Locations

Environment&sustainability

When Jason Whear moved back to the Hibiscus Coast a year ago and began the process of setting up a home for himself and his daughter Keisha, he found it hard to make ends meet, despite the support of his family and friends.

Jason Whear and Christina Joy Edge

Online initiative helping struggling families

Brought up on the Coast, Jason had been living in Whanganui, where he says things are a lot more affordable.Through volunteering at the Salvation Army Family Store and looking online, the 32-year-old saw that there were many other struggling solo parents, students and families and wanted to help.He says it took him no time at all to start up the Hibiscus Coast free stuff Facebook page, and membership took off. There are currently almost 2000 members.The page allows members to give away all sorts of items to others in the community. Jason says members are very generous, and the recipients are also encouraged to pay it forward by giving anything they can.Christina Joy Edge joined the group as a single mother looking for furniture. She is now Jason’s partner and one of the page’s four administrators.Christina and Jason say that food is the main thin that people are currently asking for on the page.Items such as furniture and children’s clothing are always in demand and Christina and the other administrators also put together holiday packs for kids and new mothers.

The group has assisted others in the community, such as the couple whose roof came off in a storm.Running Free Stuff is a full time job, with Jason saying it takes up all his energy and time.“People helping out is how I got myself set up, and that’s why I’m putting everything I can back into the community,” he says. “I’m so grateful.”Online recyclingThere are several other local Facebook pages with a similar community, reusing and recycling focus, including Hibiscus Coast & Surrounds Freecycle, which asks its almost 2000 members to “help the community and environment by giving away unwanted goods and recycling”, and Pay it Forward Hibiscus Coast.

| Hibiscusmatters 16 July 201420

Environment&sustainability

Our mobile service comes to you!

We repair, recolour and restore: Leather • Plastic • Vinyl: Cracks • holes

tears • scuffs • fading • cat scratches & moreKal Patel 021 966 569 or 09 827 2341

northshore@fi brenew.co.nz • www.fi brenew.co.nz

We also clean & protect leather couches

The Experts in Leather & Plastic RestorationFurniture, Automotive, Aviation & Marine

14 Chenery Road, Red BeachPhone 426 3972

www.naturalwellbeing.co.nz

• Osteopathy (Acc reg) • Naturopathy • Women’s Health • Natural Fertility Support

Open: Mon–Tues: 9am–5pm, Wed–Fri: 9am–6pm, Sat: 9am–5pm Sun 10am–5pm

The Plaza, 719 Whangaparaoa Rd • Ph 09 947 5192

Poppy Design carries a range of French chic, beach house and industrial decor

for your home.

Purchase that special something for your

best friend, a special occasion, or a small

thank you to a teacher or client.

Up-cycled and re-purposed, products are made to order and available for purchase to create that natural look for your home

or business. Artwood collection available from catalogue in store.

Come check out our quality/designer & new clothing & accessories. Buy 1 jewellery item & get 1 half price* – on presentation of this ad

Palm Court, Shop 2, No 14, Silverdale Street, Silverdale (opposite Bendon) • Ph 426 0472 *Item of lesser or equal value

n I N T R O D U C I N G

Poppy DesignUpcycling started for Tania Betterton, as it generally does, on a ‘needs must’ basis.Tania, who recently opened Poppy Design in The Plaza, Whangaparaoa, has been creating beautiful items from materials that would otherwise be binned for more than 15 years.Unable to afford to buy a computer, in the late 1990s, Tania searched through reject parts from tech businesses and used what she found to build her own.She worked for some time in the computer industry, building software, but it wasn’t long before her passion for working with her hands led her to ‘dumpster diving’ in the United States.In an effort to refurbish a friend’s apartment in Arizona, she took to the streets and found a treasure trove of rejected items.“Even if the covering wasn’t nice, you could find furniture with good bones, take the upholstery from something else and make it work,” she says. “My aim is always to make a finished product look good enough for the most sophisticated home.”Returning to NZ with nothing but a suitcase, she combed the second hand stores.“I was always looking for a way to get beautiful things for no money,” she says. “I decided if I can’t afford to buy them, I’ll learn how to make them.”YouTube tutorials provided a crash course in welding and using skill saws and other tools. She learned the importance of asking, rather than simply taking materials from industrial sites, and why it was vital to de-nail a pallet before stripping it back – upcycling can be hard on equipment.Examples of her work are on display in Poppy Design – including the raised floor made of recycled pallets, a large cabinet and baker’s stand – along with her pallet tables at Manly Bar & Grill.

Tania Betterton

Other items in the store are sourced from Europe or even China – the focus is on enabling customers to create a stylish look for an affordable price.She makes upcycled items to order in a garage in Manly that she made from pallet wood. “It’s an affordable way to get a fresh look in a room, using what you already have, rather than buying new,” she says.Customers also come looking for ideas and advice – Tania can help with sourcing items from demolition stores. She always has at least 1000 creative ideas on the go and is happy to share her knowledge.“It’s so much more satisfying making things yourself, and seeing that idea blossom.”

Buying & selling all household chattelsall household chattelsall household chattelsall household chattels

LICENSED AUCTIONEERS & VALUERS

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Phone 09 426 53016 George Lowe Place, OrewaPhone 09 426 5301Phone 09 426 5301

Hibiscusmatters 16 July 2014 | 21

Environment&sustainability

Roses in JulyGrowing roses in Auckland can be a bit of a battle, with humidity creating ideal conditions for fungal diseases such as black spot or powdery mildew. In addition, those tender buds are like junk food for aphids, you need to supply lots of plant food in the growing season, and then there’s the pruning.By contrast, roses are also tough as old boots – easy going about soil conditions and tending to struggle on when unhappy and disease-ridden, rather than actually dying. It’s also hard to kill them with even the most severe pruning – I know gardeners who have cut their roses almost to the ground, only to have them spring back into life, better than ever.The only rose I have to prune with a little care is ‘Burgundy Iceberg’ as all my others are Flower Carpet, which need very little attention, just the odd rough haircut to control their size.I moved my ‘Burgundy Iceberg’ last season to a spot where it looks good but really needs more sun; it soldiered on, smiling in adversity and produced plenty of flowers, the latest of which appeared this month. It is this contrast between Prima Donna and tough guy – the rough with the smooth if you like – that is part of the charm of roses.Right now it’s pruning time, which brings out latent OCD tendencies in some gardeners; of course, it’s true that more care is involved for some rose types, such as climbers or standards. At the other end of the spectrum there’s the ‘devil may care’ system, which is haphazard but, to be honest, seems to work just as well with most roses.My pruning falls somewhere in the middle – I try to do a basic job that will keep my roses in good shape and healthy, but don’t stress about the finer points.The most important bit is to cut out any dead, weak, thin canes and any that are crossing each other. The aim is to create an open centre, where air can circulate, surrounded by healthy, strong canes.Look for outward facing buds, a little bit above where last year’s growth began and prune just above those buds.Yates Gardening Guide has a practical, no-nonsense approach if you need more information. The Heirloom roses website is also very good – www.heirloomroses.com/care/pruning/As for plant food, in spring and summer I dig any dead birds that have crashed into our windows or fallen prey to the cat near the roses and in spring and summer they get plenty of worm wee and sheep pellets. That seems to do the trick.I choose not to spray my roses, which is no problem for the relatively hardy varieties that I grow such as Flower Carpet. Natural predators, such as ladybirds and preying mantises, take care of aphids, which is both cheaper than spraying and better for the environment. And when it comes to the end of the season I don’t worry about a bit of fungal disease as the leaves are due to fall in any case.I figure, when you get roses still flowering in July, you must be doing something right.

with Terry Mooreterry@localmatters.co.nz

Gardening

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CLOTHING – MATERNITY WEAR – TOYS – BABY GEAR

Green Baby sells branded, top quality, new and gently used baby gear at a fraction of the retail price. For sellers, Green Baby gives you the opportunity to turn your no longer needed baby items into cash.

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29c Silverdale St, Silverdale (opp Hospice)

2065 East Coast Rd, Silverdale • Ph 427 8209Noel 027 238 1358 • l.waters@xtra.co.nz