Workshops

Beekeeping Workshops: January 28th – 1pm

Mark your calendars for Saturday, January 28th, as popular and inspiring Vancouver Island Apiary inspector David MacDonald returns to Galiano to share his knowledge. A Beginner’s Tutorial will be from 1-3pm, followed by a more Advanced Class from 3:30-5:30pm at the South Hall, but all levels of knowledge/experience are welcome. If you are interested in participating please RSVP Colleen at galianofoodprograms@gmail.com or 250-539-2737. All are welcome. $10-15 per workshop, sliding scale, or, $20 for two classes.

Saturday, January 21 1:00-3:00 at the South Hall. Please RSVP to register. $15-$25 sliding scale.

Did you know that you can grow citrus on Galiano, without a greenhouse or any special equipment? Our increasingly mild winters mean that the list of Mediterranean plants that can survive our winters is growing.

Bob and Verna Duncan have dedicated the last twenty years to pushing the envelope on what we can grow in our region. They own a nursery and demonstration orchard in North Saanich, where they grow over 400 varieties of fruit trees, including citrus, olives, avocadoes, figs, olives, and pomegranates. They’re experimenting with exactly which conditions these plants need to thrive, and they travel to the colder regions of Israel, Turkey and Greece to learn what local farmers there are doing. They have brought back hardy varieties and cultivated them here, so they have plant varietals that are most likely to succeed in our conditions. Bob trained as a botanist and entomologist and worked with the Canadian Forest Service.

But it’s the citrus that gets me really excited. Available from their nursery are Meyer lemons, oranges, limes, grapefruit, variegated Pink Lemons, yuzu, kumquats, and sudachi. While some of these do need a greenhouse, the lemons, limes and sour oranges are hardy enough to survive our winters along the south wall of a building with a bit of floating row cover to trap the heat and a string of Christmas lights on the coldest days. The yuzu, a fragrant Japanese lemon, is especially cold-hardy. And citrus ripens through the winter, when fresh, ultra-local, pesticide-free fruit at the peak of ripeness is a real treat.

The Food Program is hosting Bob and Verna for a presentation in January – join us to learn all about cultural requirements and variety selection for success in growing citrus & sub-tropical fruit trees (such as avocado, pineapple guava/feijoa, pomegranates, and loquats) in South Coastal BC.

And next time you are in Victoria visit, visit Fruit Trees and More, just a 5-minute drive from Swartz Bay, and see what Bob and Verna have done on a third-acre suburban lot. It really has to be seen to be believed. See http://www.fruittreesandmore.com for more info.

Please join us at the Community Greenhouse at the school garden for a hands-on session, led by Galiano Conservancy Food Forester Cedana Bourne and the Food Program’s Barry New, to prepare some of our seed harvest. We will get together for threshing, winnowing and learning to process some difficult-to-save seeds. Please bring your gatherings and some containers for the seeds. Paper bags and envelopes are best. All are welcome, even if you didn’t grow any seeds this year: just bring your questions and curiosity. Free for SLOG, GCA, or Greenhouse Community Members. By donation otherwise. Any questions? Please contact Barry at galianofoodprograms@gmail.com or Cedana at cedana.bourne@galianoconservancy.ca

Apiary Inspector David MacDonald will be coming to Galiano to share his knowledge on beekeeping, with specific focus on the varroa mite and its impact on honeybee populations. This course is for all levels of beekeepers, from novice to experienced, and will combine a morning tutorial with a field inspection at a local apiary. If you are interested, please RSVP to Colleen at galianofoodprograms@gmail.com. Details have not been confirmed but the course will likely run from 9am until 2pm. Entrance fee is by donation, a sliding scale of $10-15, with proceeds going to the Food Program.

Often in food gardening, we try to emulate nature’s cycles. But trees in the wild don’t require pruning. Why do we need to prune cultivated fruit trees? Pruning is done for lots of reasons, including:

• Safety for people and structures
• Aesthetic preference
• Removal of dead, diseased, or weak structures to increase the health of the tree
• Keeping the tree small enough that fruit is easy to access and the tree is easy to care for
• Encouraging root growth in young trees to ensure water supply
• Encouraging a branch formation that allows sunlight to reach more fruit

The Food Program is pleased to host Manon Tremblay for a workshop on pruning and grafting. Manon is a Certified Horticulturist (ITA) and Landscape Designer. She has been living on the West Coast for the past 16 years, and is passionate about edible and native gardens, organic and permaculture gardening, pruning, propagation, land reclamation and Ethnobotany. She works as a gardener, landscape designer, consultant and horticulture instructor.

The workshop will cover basic pruning methods and their effect on plant growth and development, and an introduction to winter fruit tree pruning. In the morning, we will cover pruning theory, how to maintain healthy trees and enhance crop production. The afternoon will be a hands-on supervised pruning session where participants will practice their newly-acquired skills, and a grafting demonstration as well.

Saturday, February 20th 9:30am-3:30pm

Morning at the South Hall and afternoon at a mid-island orchard.

Car-pooling will be organized. Please bring a bagged lunch.

Sliding scale $25-$35. RSVP is required. galianofoodprograms@gmail.com

Are you afraid of your Pressure Canner?

It’s the safest way to can tomatoes – let us teach you how to use it!

This is a hands on class for beginners (and everyone else). You’ll get to take home a jar of tomato sauce

Sunday – September 20th – 5pm-8pm at the S. Hall. Sliding scale $10-$20

Come join us for a fun afternoon of pickling. We’ll be putting up whatever’s ready – probably beans and beets. Sunday August 23rd at 1pm at the South Community Hall. Beginners and experienced picklers are welcome. Kitchen has sliding scale of $10-$20. Please bring at least 4 500ml canning jars. Please RSVP to attend this class

Galiano summers yield an amazing variety of tree fruits and berries, available from our farmers, through our Gleaning program and in your own backyard. Making jam is a great way to capture the taste of summer in a jar to brighten up those dark winter days.

Making jam can be daunting if you’ve never tried it. But there are different methods, and some are very easy. In this class we will be using commercial pectin and the only skills needed are the ability to measure a few cups of fruit, and the ability to time a boil—skills everyone has. That’s it. No thermometers, no wrinkle tests. Using some commercial pectins also gives you the freedom to use honey or skip the sugar all together—things not possible with traditional long boil jams.

Class costs $15 sliding scale. Register at galianofoodprograms@gmail.com