SUBMITTED BY THE SALT SPRING ISLAND FARMLAND TRUST
What began as a scrappy grassroots effort to protect and preserve farmland on Salt Spring Island has blossomed into a thriving hub for education on regenerative practices. With the launch of the Root to Bloom Centre, the Salt Spring Island Farmland Trust is entering a bold new chapter, evolving its popular learning into a full-fledged education centre that aims to spread the innovations and expertise of island growers far and wide.
Drawing on the incredible talent of local and regional experts, the Root to Bloom Centre is inviting locals and visitors to delve into hands-on workshops, webinars and training in regenerative agriculture, food sovereignty and farm-to-table culinary arts.
“The Root to Bloom Centre aims to become a Hollyhock for farming on Salt Spring Island,” said program manager Shannon Farmer, referring to the world-famous Hollyhock retreat centre on Cortes Island.
“We’re building on our popular Learning Series,” Farmer explained, laying out the centre’s lineup that offers fall courses ranging from seed saving to soil health to compost brewing to Indigenous wild food stewardship. “It’s all grounded in a shared commitment to ecological sustainability and community well-being.”
The Root to Bloom Centre springs to life just as Royal Roads University (RRU) is carrying out a community engagement process to inform their planned programs and services at the Bloom Castle by the Sea. The Beddis Beach campus was donated to RRU by the late Susan Bloom, an environmental philanthropist and pioneer in land conservation.
RRU is working collaboratively to develop academic programs, resources and community events to be offered at the new Bloom Castle campus for residents and visitors to Salt Spring Island. Francesca Jackman, senior advancement specialist at RRU, said, “Our collective vision is for this one-of-a-kind space to be a shared resource focused on regenerative sustainability that benefits residents, local Nations and Indigenous community groups, students, faculty, staff, alumni, partners and the broader academic community, and reflects a blend of educational pursuits and community tradition.”
Salt Springers will be able to provide input via a public survey in early September, and can check out other engagement opportunities on the university’s website. Meanwhile, the Farmland Trust is rolling out innovative programming this fall at sites including The Root food hub on Beddis Road, the Burgoyne Valley Community Farm, and various farms around the island.
“We’re thrilled to be collaborating with RRU as they bring higher education directly onto the land,” said Jenn LeBlanc, chair of the Farmland Trust. “Together, we’re fostering a model where academic learning, community knowledge and on-the-ground experience all feed each other.”
Unlike a traditional classroom, the Root to Bloom Centre unfolds across Salt Spring’s fields, forests and farms. This fall’s Root to Bloom hands-on offerings provide an inspiring mix of technical skills and place-based wisdom:
• Walking the Wild Food Web with Indigenous food educator Jared Qwustenuxun Williams
• Cover Cropping 101 with Daria Zovi of Quarry Farm
• Seed Saving with Dan Jason of the Living Seed Sanctuary
• Soil Microbiology & Compost Brewing with Soil Food Web technician Paz Rainville
• Gardening With Native Plants with ecological biologist Emony Nicholls
• Cooking With the Bounty of Salt Spring with Jenn LeBlanc
• Year-Round Gardening with Linda Gilkeson
“We’re building something special on Salt Spring — a resilient local food system, grounded in regenerative practices,” said LeBlanc. “The Root to Bloom Centre is a natural evolution of our work — a way to pass on skills, share knowledge and spread ideas that are being incubated on Salt Spring Island far and wide.”
Workshops take place at sites across Salt Spring and online, with many courses being filmed for future on-demand access, ensuring the knowledge spreads far beyond the island. To register for upcoming workshops or become a Friend of the Farmland Trust, visit ssifarmlandtrust.org.