Sunday, February 2, 2014

There is a good little Compost Education Centre in the Fernwood area of Victoria.  I hadn’t visited it for quite a few years and decided it was time for me to register for some workshops.  So on Saturday I did this.  Look at the funky welcoming sign, attached to the outer fence, I love it!  btw, the membership cards have the same design.

After I paid for my membership, bought a few seed packets it was time to go to the  building where the workshop would be held.  And it is in the most lovely Cobb house!  I’ve seen photos but have never actually seen one so this was quite a treat for me.

 

Here is a side view.  I found the thick walls of the straw/hay mixture were very effective at retaining the heat, plus I loved the look of this.

and here is a photo from the opposite side of the building ..

 

Among some of the items discussed, and the workshop was about vegetable gardening year round .. were the following:   So me, loving gardening in general and not very clever (yet) in vegetable gardening .. I found this information quite helpful.   So the thing is .. to plan when the seedlings need to be planted out and then work backwards from that, to actually start the seeds.  Although, with the “winter start of summer seedlings” I’m waiting to see how those seeds will sprout!

And, of course, this is quite important ..

 

And the sun came out and the skies were blue …. while we were outside .. looking at the raised beds.

Clever and inexpensive way to have a protected crop.  Seen in books and lovely to see in real life.

I just loved these permanent places to grow peas, beans, squash!

Clever way to keep neighbourhood cats out of the garden, tiny stakes planted helter skelter to dissuade our feline friends from using raised beds as their toilet.  In the past I’ve used those airy plant trays to keep kitties out .. but this idea is one that I will try.  I think it might also keep cats away from the birds.  Since our Duncan has departed this earth, I’ve noticed some neighbourhood cats .. cute as they are .. in our yard and I want to discourage them.

These raised beds look wonderful .. lots of work has gone into their creation and I can only imagine the lovely crops that will appear in the summer.

Here is a cover crop of vetch in one raised bed.  So that is what vetch looks like!  There is already lots of that around the yard!

 

And I really like the look of this lovely old willow …. looks like it is well used.

 

There is even a composting toilet .. that is a subject for another day, I think.

The blue skies were there for a while .. and when I was inside, I was impatient to be outside.  Right.

 

And how did I miss this very attractive display of container gardening!

 

There are also allotment gardens for the neighbourhood at the Compost Centre … very interesting gardens they were.

 

And on the way out .. I caught sight of this lovely little garden gnome/elf .. thought he was kinda cute.

The workshop lasted from 2 to 4 pm and I appreciated the knowledge of the Instructor  (an Organic Master Gardener and certification of Permaculture from Gaia College!!!) .. and I learned much about planning a vegetable garden.   Now I need to plan what I am going to plant.

And I’m still checking on my “winter sowing of summer seeds” that I started in Mid-January.

This was a fun day and I quite enjoyed being in a gardening atmosphere in a place that I hadn’t visited for way too many years.

🙂