[Photo courtesy Kristina B.]

Happy Canada Day.

The Food Security Crew will be at the Youth Celebrate Canada Day event with Windermere Secondary School on July 1.

Youth Celebrate Canada Day will be at Renfrew Park Community Centre:

2929 East 22nd Avenue
Vancouver, BC V5M 2Y3
Tel: 604-257-8388

From 12-4 we'll be sharing skills around seed-starting, winter gardening, and making biodegradable seed-starting pots.

We hope you'll be able to join us. If not, take a look at these instructions (or these) on how to make your very own plant pots out of reusable materials. Enjoy!

...and remember that this year's Harvest Festival will be held on October 3rd in Slocan Park. Get ready to enter your longest bean, biggest tomato, smallest tomato, or most "unusual" vegetable into the annual competition!

Collingwood Community Gardens.

Established in 2005, the Collingwood Community Gardens (just east of Joyce-Collingwood Skytrain Station) are maintained by a dedicated group of local residents.

For a fee of $20 per year, community members grow fruits, vegetables, and flowers in their individual plots. They also contribute community service hours by tending a public food border (shared with the whole neighbourhood), central plant beds, a butterfly-attracting flower border, and the nearby Native Berry Trail.

The Community Garden is supported by partnerships with Translink, Community Policing, and Collingwood Neighbourhood House. This year the Gardens received a large donation of Sea Soil to help the plants along. Sea Soil is a composted fish and forest fines soil from Vancouver Island. It's a great local product that helps divert waste and is rich in nutrients.

One of the community garden plots is tended by a group of students from Focus Foundation BC. Focus Foundation is a local alternative school that focuses on reaching and teaching high-risk youth. While at the garden, the students are led by teacher (and horticulturalist) Mike D..

Another community garden plot is rented by Collingwood Neighbourhood House and is maintained by volunteers. This year, local residents (and Mayan farmers) Maximo and Francesca are tending the CNH plot. Some produce will be sold at farmers' markets, and some will be donated to the Families Branching Out dinner program. Maximo and Francesca are also very involved with the Maya Garden at UBC Farm.

Families Branching Out dinners are for local families with children 0-6; FBO Monday dinners are free and a great place to meet new friends and try new foods. For more information, contact Nancy S.

Community garden plots are full for this year, but if you are interested in joining the waiting list for the 2010 gardening season, please contact Stephanie.

Here are some photos of the Community Gardeners in action:


Watering the garden.


Potluck picnic lunch break during a recent work party.


Moving 11 cubic square meters of City of Vancouver compost was made possible by an awesome crew of gardeners.


Everyone is welcome to help out, regardless of age or ability!

Lavender flowers sprinkled in pine dust from the Aboriginal Youth Canoe Club carving workshop.


Summer on the rooftop garden.

It's June and the birds are singing, the bees are buzzing, and our Rooftop Garden Leadership team is helping to bring the garden to life. Some of our crops this year include sunchokes (Jerusalem artichokes), blue-podded peas, walla-walla onions, Russian blue potatoes, horseradish, three types of beets, and several varieties of radish, tomato, carrots, beans, and brassicas. We also have a border of edible and bee-attracting flowers planted by Friday night youth drop-in participants.


Blue-podded peas, heirloom variety developed in Holland c. 1500


French fingerling potato blossoms.


Nasturtiums and Scarlet Starlet marigolds, part of our edible flower border


Rooftop Garden


Flowering carrots. Carrots are bienniels, meaning they live for two years and flower in the second year. We will save the seeds for planting next year.


The long, dry days have forced some of our lettuce plants to "bolt," meaning to flower and set seeds. You can tell which ones are bolting because they're gotten tall and look like they're dancing! Some "bolt-resistant" varieties are also in this picture.



Here are some lovely bolt-resistant heirloom lettuce varieties, donated by USC (Seeds of Survival).


A youth participant showcases the CNH Youth Plot. It is planted and maintained by youth drop-in participants and Kids' Kitchen Leader, Jason.


The Rooftop Garden is the perfect setting for community gatherings. Here, community kitchen participants enjoy a delicious meal at sunset. The Aboriginal Youth Canoe Club also uses the garden for carving workshops.

Come by the Rooftop Garden on Tuesdays 1-3pm to learn some new gardening skills, meet new people, relax, and enjoy the sights and sounds. To get involved with the leadership team, contact us.