Thursday, June 30, 2011

It's Almost July!!

A Speckled  Roman Paste Tomato is almost ripe for picking and the official first BLT of the year!

June was such a happening month that we have yet to even consider July and yet, holy cow!  Here it is!  School is out but the Garden lives on and still needs tending. July will be ever bit as busy and we hope you'll find time to make it out to the Garden sometime in the coming month!  Here are some of our upcoming events - more will be added as I get the chance to read my email and respond to my phone calls!  

02 July  - Growing Food in Southern California - our monthly series taught by yours truly on, guess what? - growing food in Southern California.  From 9 to 12 we will cover all the things you need to do and will want to do in July to have a productive food garden in our part of the world.  If you've read the books from back east and England, you know we can't follow their directions!  We have to honor our climate and soils and this is the course that shows you how to do that!  $25 at the gate - reservations are not required.  Coffee and tea are served - bring your own cup!  

03 July - Beekeepers are showing up in their gear and others dressed as bees to the Mar Vista Farmers' Market in support of the Mar Vista Community Council push to legalize beekeeping in Mar Vista. Support your local beekeepers and help save the honey bees from ruination!

04 July - Time for our Fifth Annual Fourth of July Ice Cream Social!  Most of our flavors are from the Garden - favorites from the past are Meyer Lemon Ice Cream, Chocolate Mint (from our chocolate mint plants!), and plum sorbet!  Folks who bring a homemade pie, crisp or a fool (a crustless pie, I kid you not!) get a free plant - like a rosemary, rose, or even a fig or other fruit tree.  We fire up the grill, if you want a hot dog, BYOD and burn it to your own satisfaction.  $5 gets you in with a bowl for the ice creams of your choice!

10 July - the Seed Library of Los Angeles (SLOLA) meets on the patio at 2;30 - some committees hold their meetings before the regular full meeting.   Some changes this month:  the program will be before we conduct any business (a report on what seed school was like and what was learned there!) and then we will have seed check-out after taking care of a little business.  This time, some of our new varieties from the Native Seed/SEARCH collection will be offered for the first time.

Please note, the weekend of 15-17 July I-405 will be closed from I-10 to CA 101!  Local traffic is predicted to be snarled.  Of course, this was the same prediction for the 1984 Olympics when the predictions themselves caused a lot of folks to flee and resulted in optimal traffic for those who remained.  We think, therefore, this should be taken with an 'advisory caution' - your mileage my vary. Wildly. 

23 July - Victory Garden Evaluation Picnic - all instructors of the LA Victory Garden Initiative are invited to a potluck at The Learning Garden to evaluate the recent spring round of classes and hobnob with your contemporaries in this movement - learn from one another and Rachel Surls and Yvonne Savio.

24 July - 9 to 1 at the Mar Vista Farmers' Market - The Learning Garden has a booth of herbs and other garden delectables fresh from the Garden.  Come out and get cher goodies!  You cannot get them fresher without growing them yourself!

Still to come:  Dates for Westside Produce Exchange and Our TImebank and a listing for the showing of Vanishing of the Bees in support of Mar Vista's initiative to become the first part of Los Angeles to legalize bees in the city! So watch for updates!


david
The Gardenmaster

Monday, June 13, 2011

The Gardenmaster Goes To Seed School - Who's Minding The Garden?


Coverage Schedule for the Garden, 17 June to 26 June

17, Friday
18, Saturday
19, Sunday
20, Monday
21, Tuesday
22, Wed.
23, Thursday
24, Friday
25, Saturday
26, Sunday
10:00:00 AM

JM SO



KD SO DP JM JM
11:00:00 AM

JM SO



KD SO DP JM JM
12:00:00 PM

JM SO



KD SO DP

JM
01:00:00 PM

JM SO



KD SO DP MJB JM
02:00:00 PM KD

JM TS





MB KD DP MJB JM
03:00:00 PM KD

JM TS





MB KD DP MJB JM
04:00:00 PM KD

JM TS





MB KD DP MJB JM
05:00:00 PM KD

JM TS





MB KD DP MJB JM
NOTES:
The person listed on this schedule is the person in charge and responsible for the locking/unlocking of the Garden. If access is needed to my office, JM has the key. Access to the high school tool shed is with DP. Some tools will need to be placed in the shade house or the greenhouse so everyone will have access to tools. As of this writing there is no coverage for Friday (17th) and Sunday (19th) afternoons. Please, pitch in and help us out!

The 24th is the last day of school – there will most likely be a barbeque by VHS staff for the teachers. There will collections of teachers (different departments of about 20 folks) having lunch in the Garden probably Wednesday and Thursday - so far only Thursday (English Department) is booked, but that means little.

The 24th, 25th and 26th are the official celebration days for VHS's Centennial Celebration – expect lots of people and the gates to the school should be unlocked and open – even though there is only one name listed for each hour, all the extra time that anyone can give will be most welcome!

david

Agape's Sacred Service Saturday Blesses The Learning Garden!


Agape Spiritual Center of Truth holds a Saturday each year to do service all over the Los Angeles area.  The Learning Garden has been on their list even before there was a Learning Garden at Venice High School!

June 11th was the date for Sacred Service Saturday this year and with our crew of volunteers, we got the Fiber Arts Garden ready to for summer planting; we started a new rose garden along Walgrove Avenue and we cleared pathways and weeded under a grove of tropical fruits.  All of these activities were done with gusto and love!  These things benefit The Learning Garden and further our intention to be a place of beauty and learning for the community in which we are located and to be a garden producing food, medicine and fiber to teach those who come here the importance of plants in everyday life. 

From the staff, volunteers and board of The Learning Garden, THANK YOU Agape and Earth Spirit Agape (their ministry for ecology and care of the planet) for your help in creating this place called The Learning Garden and helping us to be even more effective in serving our community!

david