Posts from — September 2009

Tuesday, Sept  29th

Concepts in Year Round Gardening 9:45-11:45 am
Grandview Woodland (near Nanaimo and 1st)
The Whys and Wherefores of food cycles - why we want them, how to get them. We will plan round the calendar food supplies, both in the larder and stored in the garden.

Introduction to Medicine Making 1:30-4:30 pm
Main St./Little Mountain (near Cambie and King Ed)
There are so many plants that are safe, easy to recognize and locate, and effective. We will learn some recognition techniques, and then how to make teas, poultices, tinctures and infused oils. We’ll learn about solvents, supplies and storage.

Apartment and Container Gardening 6:30-8 pm
Potluck @ 5:30 for folks who would like to share a meal together
Downtown (near Davie and Seymour)
How to get more food from your balcony or patio. Space and weight are big problems for apartment dwellers. We will decide how to choose plants, discuss containers, soils, feeding and watering, succession planting and more in this workshop for small spaces.

Wednesday, Sept 30

Seed Saving Primer 9-10:30 am
Kits Point Village (near Cornwall and Arbutus) co-sponsored by Kits Point neighbourhood Village
Seed saving is the missing link in food security. In our current political climate of seed patenting and ownership, it is increasingly important that a critical mass of a population have a good understanding of seed saving techniques. This will make it possible to create networks for seed abundance and resilience in many communities. This workshop will provide a deeper understanding of seed saving basics as well as provide time to discuss the implications of forming our relationships soon and well.
Your donation includes a copy of The Five Levels of Seed Saving by Terry Klokeid.

Shapes in Sharing 10:45-11:45 am
Kits Point Village  (near Cornwall and Arbutus) co-sponsored by Kits Point neighbourhood Village
Ideas for sharing land, food, space and time with a workshop component. We’ll do a study of our own assets and shortfalls and figure out how to equalize these on both a large and small scale.

Intensive Urban Microfarming 1:30-4:30 pm
Potluck @12:30 for folks who would like to share a meal together
Cedar Cottage (near Victoria Dr., south of Trout Lake/John Hendry Park)  For folks who are ready to refine and to deepen their knowledge of urban microfarming, Robin invites you to participate in a 3 hour gathering that will examine as many of the following topics as time allows:
· Increasing backyard food production
· Succession planting
· Shade growing
· Extending the growing season through your choice of plants, Water Wisdom, Plant Calendar Mapping and Microclimating.

Apartment and Container Gardening 7-8:30 pm
Potluck @ 6 for folks who would like to share a meal together
Lower Lonsdale, North Vancouver (near Lonsdale & 1st & Lonsdale Quay)
How to get more food from your balcony or patio. Space and weight are big problems for  apartment dwellers. We will decide how to choose plants, discuss containers soils, feeding and watering, succession planting and more, in this workshop for small spaces.

All workshops are offered on a pay what you can basis. A one hour workshop usually costs around $10 to $15; a 1 1/2 hour workshop around $15 to $20; a two hour workshop around $25 to $30, a 2 1/2 hour workshop around $30 to $35. and a three hour workshop around $40. Our contributions to these workshops make it possible for teachers like Robin to expand and to deepen the scope of the important educational and social change work that they are involved in, particularly in these uncertain times. Enrolment is limited to 20 people for each workshop. (15 for Apartment workshops.)

To register:
(or to find out more about hosting a future workshop), please contact Ross at rmoster@flash.net.

Robin Wheeler is back in town later in the week, and Village Vancouver, Fork in the Road, and Kits Point Village are very pleased to be offering two more neighbourhood workshops with her. (And three in Coquitlam a couple days later.)

Robin is the founder of The Sustainable Living Arts School (http://www.ediblelandscapes.ca/), and the author of Gardening for the Faint of Heart and Food Security for the Faint of Heart. She lives on the Sunshine Coast, and brings a vast wealth of knowledge and experience to her teaching.  You can expect your knowledge to expand and your soul to be delighted…and sometimes for your hands to get dirty.

Food Preservation Basics

Friday, Sept 18th  2-4 pm in Mt. Pleasant (on 7th, near Broadway and Fraser)

We will go over the top 10 food saving techniques and what pros and cons are connected with them. We’ll talk about seasonal availability and how to be ready for the bounty, plus what supplies we should have on hand at all times to be ready for any disaster.

Concepts in Year Round Gardening

Friday, Sept 18th  7-9 pm in Kits Point Village (near Cornwall and Arbutus)

The Whys and Wherefores of food cycles - why we want them, how to get them. We  will plan round the calendar food supplies, both in the larder and stored in the  garden.

Register: Contact Ross at rmoster@flash.net.

Both workshops are offered on a pay what you can basis. A two hour workshop usually costs around $25 to $30. Our contributions to these workshops make it possible for teachers like Robin to expand and to deepen the scope of the important educational and social change work that they are involved in, particularly in these uncertain times.

Enrollment is limited to 20 people for each workshop.

A weekend long introduction to permaculture course is happening at the Heart Gardens, a branch campus of the Sustainable Living Arts School, in historic ‘downtown’ Roberts Creek this weekend . The course is offered through Capilano University. Join Delvin in a unique learning experience about permaculture in the Elphinstone rainforest.

Permaculture Design is a holistic approach to sustainable community development. This course is a basic introduction to permaculture principles and concepts. Organic gardening with native plants will be discussed, and there will be tours of the Heart Gardens and Gumboot Gardens in Roberts Creek. There will also be a discussion about composting and a hands-on workshop about making your own organic solid and liquid fertilizers with an easy to create and maintain worm farm.

Where? The class meets at the “Elfinhome”, at the back of the Gumboot Café in the Heart of Roberts Creek.

When?
Sat Sept 19 and Sun Sept 20

Noon - 5 pm

Register? via Capilano University

$69

http://www.capilanou.ca/ce/sunshine-coast/gen-interest.html
604.885.9350
conted@capilanou.ca

More info? Email Delvin at delvin@illuminated.com

A creative evening with Robin Wheeler (Edible Landscapes) for apartment dwellers on Vancouver’s downtown peninsula

WHEN

7 to 8:45 pm, September 28, 2009

WHERE

Gordon Neighborhood House, 1019 Broughton Street

(Between Nelson and Comox. Venue tel. 604-683-2554)

WHO

Robin Wheeler teaches traditional skills, sustenance gardening and medicinals at Edible Landscapes (www.ediblelandscapes.ca), a nursery and teaching garden in Roberts Creek, British Columbia. She is the author of “Food Security for the Faint of Heart” and “Gardening for the Faint of Heart.”

WHAT

Think about the 100-mile diet, farmers’ markets, community gardens, high food prices, sustainability, food safety, emergency preparedness…and you will understand why more and more people are interested in having healthy food grown close to home. Now there’s a buzz about the “100-meter diet.” But how much food can we grow for ourselves here in the West End of Vancouver?

In the first half, Robin Wheeler will cover various concepts from her book and experience—edible landscapes; food growing on apartment balconies and patios; ideas for sharing land, food, space, and time; food preservation/storage in apartments; and so on. In the second half, an open discussion will share information about issues in the West End. What’s already being done and who’s doing it? How can apartment dwellers get more space to grow food? What frameworks and support systems exist? Can these ideas somehow help low-income families? What problems and opportunities exist? Entrance by donation ($5 recommended). A report will be prepared afterwards, so please contact us if you can’t attend but would like to know the outcomes.

REGISTER:

FoodWestEnd@gmail.com

SPONSORS

Green Millennium Foundation (www.greenmillennium.org)

West End Residents Association (www.wera.bc.ca)