Upcoming events

Join Esquimalt Community Garden for our upcoming events!

All events are free and are open to the public. To learn more about our events, dates and times please visit our blog at esquimaltcommunitygardens.blogspot.com or “like” our facebook page.

Grow a Row Launch Party

Come learn about Grow a Row, sign up for the program, and meet with other growers in your area Snacks and drinks will be available, along with seeds for participants.

Sat Apr 21st from 12:30pm-2:30pm

Annual BBQ Party

Join our annual BBQ party at the Community Garden.

Sat Jul 28 (exact time to be announced)

Garlic Planting Workshop

Are you a garlic lover? Mark your calendars for this hands-on workshop. In this workshop you will learn everything you need to know about garlic.

Wed Sep 26 (exact time to be announced)

Garden Closing Party and Clean-up

Join us for our last gathering of the season. We will be cleaning up the garden and preparing for the next season.

Sat Oct 20 (exact time to be announced)

upcoming workshops

Join Esquimalt Community Garden for our upcoming workshops!

Learn from local master gardeners during this exciting new workshop series! All workshops are designed to be hands-on learning and most will be held at the Esquimalt community Garden locate din Anderson Park (835 Colville Rd.). You can register for individual workshops or for the whole series. Individual and family price options are available. To learn more about our workshops please visit our blog at esquimaltcommunitygardens.blogspot.com or “like” our facebook page.

Maximizing your Harvest with Square Foot Gardening

Grow lots of food in small spaces using this simple planting method. You’ll learn step-by-step tips & tricks for success in your garden, and grow plenty of food for your kitchen!

Sat Apr 21 9:00am-12:00pm

Making your Plants Happy with Companion Planting

Some plants compliment each other and are actually healthier and more productive when grown together. This workshop will outline the basics of companion planting and includes a “three sisters” planting demonstration.

Sat May 26 9:00am-12:00pm

Enjoying Chickens in Your Own Backyard

Are you aware that you can enjoy chickens in your own backyard in most municipalities within Greater Victoria (including Esquimalt)? This workshop is perfect for anyone that has an interest in raising chickens! You’ll learn how to find the supplies you need, keep your chickens happy, healthy and producing eggs. The afternoon component will also include a “backyard chicken tour”, allowing you to see a few different backyard set-ups and speak with local backyard chicken enthusiasts.

Sat Jun 16 9:00am-3:00pm

Composting 101

Learn all of the basics for getting your compost started, keeping it healthy and using it to nourish your garden. You’ll be amazed with how simple composting can be when you follow a few important tips!

Sat Jul 21 9:00am-12:00pm

Planning & Planting your Winter Garden

Extend your growing season and enjoy eating your own home-grown food throughout the year! Learn which plants to include, when to plant them and how to protect and harvest them throughout the cooler months.

Sat Aug 11 9:00am-12:00pm

$10 (individual)/ $15 (family) per workshop

$35 (individual)/ $55 (family) for the series

Subsidies are available for low income families.

Please contact Esquimalt Community Garden Society for more information.

next public meeting

our next pubic meeting will be on February 24th, 2012 4-6pm at Serious Coffee in Esquimalt Plaza (upstairs). This will be our first public meeting of the year and we hope that both gardeners as well as residents of Esquimalt will share their thoughts, ideas, concerns and proposals for the ongoing development of the community garden.

Hope to see everyone there!

Gearing Up for the Gardening Season with Great Community Events - Everyone Welcome!

From Companion Gardening to Backyard Chicken Farming, the Esquimalt Community Gardens Society (ECGS) is very excited to announce a number of upcoming public workshops and events scheduled throughout 2012! Workshops will be given by local garden experts and will feature both classroom and hands-on learning opportunities to help ensure you have the utmost success in your garden this year! To learn more about the many opportunities offered, keep checking our blog for new announcements, email us at esquimaltcommunitygardens@gmail.com or visit our Facebook page and search through our 'Events'. If you'd like to sign-up for any of our upcoming workshops, visit the Esquimalt Parks and Recreation website. Everyone is welcome!

Here is a brief list and description of some of the events and workshops the ECGS will be hosting throughout the gardening season.

Get the Most out of your Garden with Square Foot Gardening!

Participants will learn a variety of time-honoured tips and tricks that will transform a small plot of land into a produce producing powerhouse!

Sat Apr 21 9:00am-12:00pm

Crash Course in Companion Planting

Play Plant Match-Maker in your garden and give your veggies the support the need to sucseed! Some plants are healthier and more productive when they are grown together with other plant species. In this workshop you will learn the basics of Companion Planting, and will get to practice hand-on with a "three sisters" planting demonstration at Anderson Park Community Garden.

Sat May 26 9:00am-12:00pm

Enjoying Chickens in Your Own Backyard

This workshop is perfect for anyone that has an interest in raising chickens! You’ll learn how easy it is to keep happy and healthy chickens in your own backyard. In the afternoon, participants will enjoy a “backyard chicken tour” during which they will see a number of different coup designs and have a chance to speak with local backyard chicken enthusiasts. We promise, once you've had a taste of your own farm-fresh eggs, you will never go back to store bought! Yummy!

Sat Jun 16 9:00am-3:00pm

There is no such thing as Garden Waste! - Composting 101

Learn all of the basics for getting your compost started, keeping it healthy and using it to nourish your garden. You’ll be amazed with how simple composting can be when you follow a few important tips!

Sat Jul 21 9:00am-12:00pm

Planning & Planting your Winter Garden

Take advantage of the Vancouver Island climate that makes us the envy of the country! Extend your growing season and enjoy eating your own homegrown food throughout the year! Learn which plants to include, when to plant them and how to protect and harvest them throughout the cooler months.

Sat Aug 11 9:00am-12:00pm

adjusted to:

$10 (individual)/ $15 (family) per workshop

$35 (individual)/ $55 (family) for the series

Join the Compost Ed. Centre for a Potluck Feat!

Come join the Greater Victoria Compost Ed. Centre for a potluck feast, live music, barn dance, apple-bobbing and a celebration of a successful Grow a Row Season!

WHO: YOU and your friends and family!
WHERE: Rainbow Kitchen (310 Henry St.)
WHEN: Saturday, October 1st
5:30-9:00 pm
FREE!

Bring along a local potluck item to share, and your dancing shoes! Soup, bread, and beverages will be provid-ed. Dick Pollard and Friends will be playing live fiddle n' folk music and teaching square dancing to anyone interest-ed! This is a family-friendly, alcohol-free event.

Questions? Call the Greater Victoria
Compost Education Centre at 250-386-9676.

RSVP with Marion at vicgrowarow@gmail.com.
Please let Marion know how many people are coming and what potluck item you are bringing.

Mark Your Calendars for the Upcoming Garlic Planting Workshop!

Garlic! The Workshop

Thurs. Oct 13 | 4:00 – 6:00PM

Esquimalt Community Gardens

Anderson Park, 835 Colville Road

Kim Watt, Site Manager at the Greater Victoria Compost Education Centre, will teach you how to grow the best garlic. We’ll learn lots and then plant garlic in the community garden that will go to Grow a Row once it’s harvested!

REGISTER IN ADVANCE – Email Marion at vicgrowarow@gmail.com

COST: By Donation

Suggested donation $5 for Grow a Row Participants, $10 for anyone else.

FALL HARVEST BBQ!!!

Fall Harvest BBQ!!!

Everyone is welcome at this year's ECGS Fall Harvest BBQ! Whether you're an ECGS member, a fellow gardener or a hungry member of the public, you’re invited to Anderson Park on Saturday, September 24th, where we will be serving up free hot dogs and burgers!
Now remember it's a Harvest BBQ, so to complement the meat, we are asking people to share with us something they've grown, picked, caught or bought locally. Raw, grilled, baked or otherwise, everything is welcome! We are also going to be collecting any garden fresh or non-perishable food donations as part of the ECGS's commitment to Victoria Grow-a-Row, a program which provides healthy food to those in need.
Please help us plan by clicking ‘attending’ to this event on Facebook!
Thanks, and good luck with the harvest!