A Salt Spring homesteader is offering total beginners a crash course on growing food next weekend.
Together with Transition Salt Spring (TSS), Lena del Mar will hold a hands-on workshop June 11 at Peace Farm. The workshop, taking place from 9 a.m. to noon, will be an introduction to growing food for complete beginners.
According to TSS, local growers and gardeners are an integral part of local efforts to combat climate change, helping reduce greenhouse gas emissions by producing and providing local food for their families and community.
“A whopping approximate 25 per cent of our total personal greenhouse gas emissions comes from the food we eat, specifically because we don’t grow it ourselves or buy from local growers,” TSS stated. “Home gardens, community gardens and wild food harvesting are an integral part of a low-carbon local food system.”
TSS described del Mar as a “newer generation homesteader” who began Peace Farm with a grassy meadow, which now nourishes her family.
“The first few gardens I grew I would look at my veggies and wasn’t excited. They didn’t look the same as the store,” she stated. “Years later, and of course with some practice, my garden veg is my top choice, local farm is second and grocery store is bottom of the list!”
“There is nothing like eating from your own garden. It’s my goal to help beginners get set up to win and start growing,” she added.
The workshop will cover basics such as where to grow, soil health, which plants to plant and how to care for maturing seedlings.
Registration for the workshop, happening on June 11 rain or shine, is at https://revenue-can.keela.co/intro-to-gardening with a suggested $30 contribution going to supporting the work of TSS.