Garden Planting Bee on May 21, 2012 at 10 AM

A number of members of the Grow Forward Grovenor team will be meeting at the community garden on Monday May 21st at 10 AM to finish planting this season's veggies and herbs. Please feel free to pop by to lend a hand. If you have any seeds or seedlings that you would like to contribute, please bring them along as well. We're looking forward to gardening with you soon!

Join Us on May 5, 2012 for Seedy Saturday!

It looks like spring has finally arrived, which means that one of Grovenor's biggest community events of the year is just around the corner... Seedy Saturday! Join us on Saturday May 5th between 2 and 5 pm for a fun-filled, family-friendly afternoon in the Grovenor Community Hall (14325-104 Avenue).

Plant some seeds in the community garden; swap seeds and seedlings with other community members; make a craft with your kids; enjoy home baking; and much more. As always, this event is free!

The Grow Forward Grovenor team is currently looking for volunteers to help us prepare for this event. If you are able to donate an hour or two of your time on May 5th to assist us with set-up, help out at the kids' table, or even donate some home baking or other treats, please email us at growforwardgrovenor@gmail.com.

 

Thank you to our Community Garden Sponsors!

We would like to thank all of the kind sponsors who helped us build the community garden.  There have been many, and we appreciate everything these companies and individuals have given.  Some of the major sponsors in 2011 included:

The Black Dirt Company - donated 10 yards of Garden Mix for raised bed (supplied and delivered).  Thank you!

If you're looking for good black dirt, contact Darren Hinkel: darren.hinkel@blackdirtcompany.com, 780-962-8220.

Willowspring Construction - donated 36 1' x 6' x 8' tongue and groove cedar boards for raised bed construction.  Thank you!

If you're looking for construction materials, contact Rick Holyk: rholyk@wspring.com, 780-438-1990.

Blanchett Neon - donated the new Community Garden Sign (supplied and installed).  Thank you!

If you need a gorgeous sign, contact Daryl Blanchett: dblanchett@blanchettneon.com, 780-453-2441.

 Red Pepper Concrete Design Ltd - donated our concrete bench.  Thank you!

If you need a concrete fixture, contact Dennis Hymanyk: redpepperconcrete@gmail.com, 780-554-1231.

2012 Planning Meeting on March 22

Grow Forward Grovenor will have an open meeting at the Community Hall on Thursday, March 22, at 7:00 PM.  We'll discuss our plans for the new growing season.  All are welcome!

2011 Spring & Summer Sustainability Series

Grow Forward Grovenor has a number of exciting presentations and workshops lined up for March and April, and in May, the community garden will re-open with twice as much growing space as before... plus some exciting new additions!

For up-to-date information on our upcoming events, please email growforwardgrovenor@gmail.com to be added to our newslist. We will also continue posting new information on this website as it becomes available. Please note that dates and times are subject to change, due to the availability of our guest speakers.

Community Garden Bed Raising (Phase Two) on Saturday, May 21st

11 AM at the Grovenor Community Garden

Join us in raising three new garden beds, planting them with vegetable seeds, and installing two rain barrels. Please email growforwardgrovenor@gmail.com if you are planning to attend. (Note that this event will be re-scheduled if it rains.)

Community Garden Bed Raising (Phase One) on Saturday, May 14th

11 AM at the Grovenor Community Garden

Lend a hand to get the community garden's existing beds cleaned up and planted, and join us for a potluck picnic lunch afterwards. Please email growforwardgrovenor@gmail.com if you are planning to attend. (Note that this event will be re-scheduled if it rains.)

Seedy Saturday on Saturday, April 30th

1-5 PM at the Grovenor Community Hall

Join us for a fun-filled, family-friendly afternoon at the Grovenor Community Hall! Meet local gardeners; see the new community garden plan revealed; swap seeds and seedlings with other community members; make a craft with your kids; enjoy home baking; win door prizes; and much more.

Special Guests

At 1:30 pm, Dustin Bajer—a local permaculture designer and master gardener—will deliver a special presentation. Here's a peek into what Dustin has in store...

Ecosystems are the most resilient and successful communities on the planet, and for billions of years, have been refining and perfecting the patterns and principles that make them function. Learn how lessons taken from ecology can be applied in the design and implementation of gardens, agriculture, social relationships, marketing, community building, and sustainability, and how one Edmonton high school is working to create a self-maintaining, self-regulating, food-producing, life-honouring landscape. http://permaculture.jasperplace.ca   

Following Dustin's presentation, Anita Gregoire will deliver a short talk on Community Supported Agriculture.

And all afternoon, the Edmonton Horticultural Society will be on hand to answer your questions, and discuss their upcoming initiatives.

Home Retrofitting Workshop on Saturday, April 9th

1-3 PM at the Grovenor Community Hall

Drop by the Grovenor Community Hall to learn the easy and cheap steps you can take to make your home more energy efficient. Save money while taking care of our planet.

Grovenor Gardeners' Meet-and-Greet on Saturday, April 2nd

1-3 PM at the Grovenor Community Hall

Meet other gardeners in the community, ask questions, and share tips over tea, coffee, and homemade treats in the Grovenor Community Hall. Experienced gardeners from Grovenor will be on hand to meet the newbies. (Green thumbs of all experience levels are encouraged to attend.)

"The Way We Green" Presentation on Tuesday, March 15th
 (NEW DATE!)

7-9 PM at the Grovenor Community Hall 

The City of Edmonton is getting serious about sustainability! The first draft of their environmental strategic plan “The Way We Green” is ready. And wow! It really is an excellent read!

In their vision of the future, they write:

"Edmonton, 2040, is a sustainable and resilient city. In our quest to live within the limits of nature, we have become a leader in energy efficiency and energy conservation. A carbon neutral city, rich in biodiversity, Edmonton is prepared for disturbances that could result from climate change and peak oil."

You can find the full document here:

http://www.edmonton.ca/city_government/city_wide_initiatives/environmental-strategic-plan.aspx

Representatives from the Office of Environment will be here to talk about energy and climate change. There will be discussion about community action – what we can do at the community level, and what the best ways are to raise awareness and spread the word.

Come and join us to talk about:

- Where we are.
- Where we want to be.
- How we will get there.

 
Film Screening & Discussion on Saturday, March 5th 

1-3:30 PM at the Grovenor Community Hall

Come out to meet your neighbours and talk about the sustainability issues affecting our community... and be part of a Grovenor-grown solution.

 

 

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"Fall Harvest Festival" - Saturday,September 18th, 2010

Get ready for a rip-roaring, hoe-down, time!

"Operation Fruit Rescue Grovenor and the Art of Preserving" - Saturday, August 21st, 2010, 9-11 am (fruit rescue- meet at league hall)/1-3pm (preserving- League hall ktichen)

Join a team of community residents picking fruit at local homes. We will keep some of the apples for our preserving demonstration. If you want someone to come to your home on this day to pick your fruit, email growforwardgrovenor@gmail.com

Please RSVP!

"Stonework in your garden" - Saturday, August 7th,2010, 1-3pm @st. Paul's Church (10127-145 St.)

Learn witha professional how to bring the rustic beauty of stone into your garden or yard landscape. This workshop requires an RSVP. Email growforwardgrovenor@gmail.com

"Summer Garden Crawl" - Saturday July 24th, 2010, 10am-12pm. Meet at League Hall

Grovenor is home to some of the most interesting and beautiful gardens in the city. RSVP in advance for this Garden Crawl. Participants will be touring backand front yards in bloom here in the Grovenor neighbourhood.

"Native Plant Scaping Workshop" - Tuesday June 15th, 2010 at 7pm @ St. Paul's Anglican Church (10127-145th St).

Want to water less and enjoy your garden or front yar more? Come to this workshop and get information and materials provided by the Native Plant Producer Society of Alberta. The first 10 registrants will walk away with 100 small seedlings (this fill a space about 8 X3 feet). To register email growforwardgrovenor@gmail. Admission is free but donations to the community garden will be accepted.

 

"Bed Raisin" - Saturday, May 1st - 10am - 12pm

The Grovenor Community Garden "Bed Raisin" will be taking place during the morning of May 1st. All Grovenor residents are welcome to lend a hand or come find out how the Garden will work for you.

Grow Forward Grovenor Summer Program

For up to date information on the summer program feel free to download the attachment here. All events are FREE but some do require an RSVP to growforwardgrovenor@gmail.com  or call 780 862 2237

April 18th, 2010

SEEDY SUNDAY - Noon - 3:30pm

Come join us for a fun, family friendly afternoon in the Grovenor Community Hall. There will be a talk by Ron Berezan "The Urban Farmer", kids activities including free seeds and pots, home baking, information for your garden and of course seeds available to take home and get started.! We look forward to seeing you there!!  If you want to know more don't hesitate to contact us on   growforwardgrovenor@gmail.com   

See Grow Forward Grovenor on Youtube!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CD9N1mNRk8

Seedy Sunday was a fantastic success, thanks to Apache Seeds for their support and to the people of Grovenor involved in the event. We had around 80 people of all ages come to meet their neighbours and hear about Permaculture garden techniques whilst browsing for seeds and more.

The Urban Farmer Makin PotsSeedsGFG TeamListeningMeet your neighbours

 

 

 

March 18th, 2010

"The Power of Community" was in Grovenor on this Thursday evening, as a group of people (from as far as Sherwood Park) came out to watch how Cuba survived "Peak Oil" at the end of the 90's.

As an insight into how Cubans have gone from a heavy reliance on imported goods to widescale organic urban agriculture it is a real eye opener and wonderful motivation as we move closer to opening the Grovenor Community Garden.

 

February 21th, 2010

Our first sustainability series was fantastic! Thank you to all those residents from the Grovenor community who came out - all 25 of you!

I have been living in Grovenor for almost five years now and never knew such wonderful people lived almost on my doorstep. This was probably my own fault for not getting involved earlier. It was a pleasure to met you all!

For those of you who didn't come out or had to miss it, here is s small recap:

 

• We screened the film "In Transition 1.0" which is about the Transition model many communities are adapting. There seems to be an acknowledgment that a community using much less energy and resources than currently consumed could, if properly planned for and designed, be more resilient, more abundant, more pleasurable than the present.
• It seemed that a Grovenor Community Garden would be a good place to start
• "Involvement" was the buzz-word in the feed back from the event
• Feedback was given on "post-it"s as responses to a series of questions. Please down load the "document at the bottom of this webpage to see what "Grovernians" had to say.

 

A planning meeting for those who want to be intimately involved with the community garden is tentatively planned for Sunday March 14th from 12-2pm in the Community Hall (pending availability confirmation). It is a potluck so bring something to share in a meal at the start of the meeting (lunchtime!).

For those who were not able to attend the meeting I have attached the Grow Forward Grovenor project proposal through to the end of the summer. You should find it available for download at the end of this webpage (scroll down).

Please feel free to come out to the planning meeting even if you didn't make it out to the first sustainability series. However...beware...you may get roped into getting "involved". There is that buzz word again. If you have a specific role in mind for yourself in the garden planning- this is the meeting to come to.

For those who are interested in COMPOSTING and RECYCLING:

Consider applying for the FREE City of Edmonton 40 hour certificate (doable even if you have a full time job.

It is the MASTER composter/recycler program. Starting April 13th you will learn about the art of composting and be able to bring it back to your community (hint, hint) and to complete the full certification you will need to build up some volunteer hours in your community (hint, hint).

To find out more visit: http://www.edmonton.ca/for_residents/garbage_recycling/master-composter-recycler-program.aspx

If you want to do this, apply now!!!!

February 15th, 2010

As I have been delivering brochures I noticed that there are many home owners or renters in who must be comfortable working with native Albertan plants. This was great to see and I look foward to seeing these front yards in the summer.I will be taking this course and look forward to seeing other Grovenorians there:)

If you are interested in native plantscaping here are details for a great workshop coming up on Tuesday, March 23rd at Woodcroft Library( Westmount Mall).

"Naturally Beautiful":Balancing Aesthetics with Ecology and Sustainable Landscaping.

Your instructors are Bruce Bashforth, co-owner of Bedrock Seed Bank, and Michael Rawson Clark, a Masters student in Plant Ecology at the University of Alberta.  Bruce has been wild-crafting, growing and installing native plants for over 15 years.  Michael has studied the impacts of bison, elk, deer and cattle on the prairie, plus climate change, invasive species and the behavioral changes required to shift to sustainable actions.  Both bring extensive knowledge and practical skills to support you to incorporate “Nativescaping” principles in your yard!

This course will assist homeowners in creating a native plant garden in their yard.  It will cover the aspects of soil and plant ecology, ecosystem functions, plant species, integration, physical installation and the ongoing care of the site.

Participants will receive extensive course material on all aspects plus receive up to150 native plant plugs delivered to their location in June/July.  Retail value of the plant plugs is $337.00.

http://www.nativescapealberta.com/New_Folder/workshop.htm

February 13th, 2010

 Yes, it's true! Grovenor is going to have its very own community garden this summer. We do have to make sure we clear it with the city, but it looks good for moving forward...or should I say "growing forward".

 If you are interested in getting on board with the Transition Garden Team email growforwardgrovenor@gmail.com or call 780-862-2237. Dates for the first preliminary garden planning meetings will be posted here soon.

 This is where we are right now:

1. The Community League has sanctioned the project and the Sustainability Director is working hard to see the project begin to take off

2. We are applying for our permit to proceed with the garden which would ideally be located between the unfenced ice rink and the road

3. Grovenor School is on board with the project and look forward having their students learn and use the gardens once it is up and running

4. Some funding has been applied for and local businesses are being approached to see if they would like to participate in different ways

5. The Grow Forward Grovenor brochure has been dropped of in most Grovenor mailboxes

6. The Grovenor Sustainability Series is moving forward and will offer ample room for discussion about community renewal, gardens, resilience and more!

Visit http://www.grovenor.ca/news/whats-new/grovenor-sustainability-series-0

 

The Grow Forward Grovenor delivery volunteers

 

Grow Forward GrovenorHand delivery