As the weather begins to cool and as the days grow shorter, our staff are reminded to relish the last weeks of warm sunny weather. From walks by the river, bike rides in the evening, outdoor barbecues with friends, to time spent tending our gardens, our staff often greet each other in the morning with stories and musings of how we filled our evenings and weekends.
At this time of year, many of these conversations are centred around food. Most of us garden, and all of us love to eat. Inevitably, we end up sharing our recipes, tips, and tricks for either freshly serving or putting away our garden's bounty. Additionally, as the fruits and vegetables at CGC's Community Urban Food Forest and the Kin Park Youth Urban Farm continue to flourish, and as our stockpile of FruitSave apples grows in our cooler, our staff and volunteers have been busy perfecting our favourite jam, jelly, relish, pickle, and sauce recipes. Our office has never smelled more inviting!
In keeping with this tradition, we thought it would be fun to share some of the recipes that have made our personal and work priority lists. Each article has been paired with a seasonal recipe that has been sourced from some of our staff's favourite food blogs. We hope you enjoy.
In Gratitude,
CGC Team
Ceres Edible Landscaping - Food Forest Salad
My favourite dish to make lately has definitely been the ‘food forest salad’.
When the inspiration comes, I head to the kitchen and grab one small, one medium, and one large lightweight mixing bowl and some scissors.
Harvesting from a garden is such a heart-warming adventure, especially here at CGC’s Urban Food Forest as we have no deer! Read more...
Sharing Our Seed Stories - Project Update
A new initiative of the Cowichan Green Community, the “Sharing Our Seed Stories” project will document the historical seed saving practices of the Cowichan Region and share this knowledge with the greater community. Read more...
FruitSave - Over 3500 lbs of Fruit Picked in 2014
This season, CGC's FruitSave volunteers have completed a total of 26 picks and harvested over 3,500 lbs of fresh produce. Of this, approximately 1,803 lbs have been donated to local emergency food providers.
We have now exceeded the total amount of fruit picked in 2013 and, as we have many weeks (if not months) of FruitSave harvests ahead of us, we anticipate this year to be one of our most successful seasons on record. Read more...
Garden Pantry Thrift Store - Inspired by Canning Jars!
In the Garden Pantry Thrift Store, the most donated and quickest item to fly off the shelves every fall is our selection of canning jars.
This year has been no exception, thanks to all who have been donating their extras and especially to Providence Farm for their huge storage stash! Read more...
Kin Park Youth Urban Farm - Bean there, Done that!
As the Kin Park crew works to develop our year-round drop-in centre at the park with a full schedule of urban farm-focused programming for children, youth and families in our region, we are still also focused on skill-building around food with the young folks (interns, volunteers, and members of our youth outreach (YO) team) who have been hanging out and working with us since Spring and beyond. Read more...
Kin Park Kids Camp - A Summer Well Spent
As a fun-filled summer comes to an end, we look back on a truly magical time spent on the KinPark Youth Urban Farm! Countless memories and friendships were made, a sign of a summer well spent! Read more...
Producer Profile: The Fern and Feather Garden and Studio
The Fern and Feather Studio and Gardens features a colourful market garden, food forest, wildlife water feature, and several edible display gardens, all surrounded by a beautiful woodland forest in scenic Yellow Point. Visit the funky art studio, and stroll through the shady forest trails filled with edible native plants. The gardens are an excellent example of sustainable and natural gardening methods, and are the location of an exciting variety of gardening workshops throughout the year! Read more...
CGC is looking for volunteers to join us for Work Party Wednesday at the CGC's Community Urban Food Forest. If you are new to food forests or gardening, this is a great opportunity to learn lots about plants and ecosystems! When there is a substantial harvest, all food forest volunteers are offered a free bag of fresh produce.
Volunteers can anticipate weeding, mulching, planting, seeding, cover cropping, harvesting, adding soil amendments, and pathway maintenance. Tools and gloves are provided.
Date: Every Wednesday (for the month of September)
CGC is once again partnering with Gaia College to host a fall intake of this very popular organic gardening program.
This 8-week comprehensive course, taught by Gaia College, is for the experienced gardener, budding farmer, or professional landscaper. Course topics include: soil biology, botany, composting, permaculture, soil fertility, water-wise gardening, tree pruning and garden design. Learn to create fabulous food and ornamental garden organically.
Course dates are October 14 - December 6, and the course fee is: $695 + GST (Tuesday and Thursday evenings, and a few Saturdays). Registration is open now. You can register in-person at the Garden Pantry Thrifty Store at 360 Duncan Street, or register online. Seats are limited so please don't delay! For details, contact Nora @ nora@cowichangreencommunity.org or 250-748-8506.
Join us on Saturday, October 4th from 11am-2pm in tasting local food recipes prepared by the Cowichan Community Kitchens team, in partnership with Cowichan Green Community. Held within the Savour Cowichan Festival, this free family-friendly event will take place at the Centennial Park cob oven. Aside from profiling the best ingredients from Cowichan Region farms, this festival will feature live music, kids' activities, and demonstrations by local chefs.
We at Harmony Yoga and Wellness Center feel so blessed to share this beautiful space with the Cowichan Green Community. We planted the seeds of our yoga garden in the spring and now we are ready to share a variety of styles of yoga with the community. We will be starting our first classes on September 6th and will host our grand opening at our new location at The Station on September 13th. Free classes throughout the day and an evening of music are on the program (Marimba, chanting, and 5 Rhythms Dance Journey).
Date: Saturday, September 13
Location: Harmony Yoga and Wellness Centre (103-360 Duncan Street, Duncan)
Time: Classes run from 9:30am-4pm, and the party and music starts at 5pm.
Website:www.harmonyyogaduncan.com
St. John's Church September Festival
Date: Saturday, September 13
Location: St. John's Church, 3295 Cobble Hill Road, Cobble Hill
Time: 10am-2pm
Contact: 250-743-3095 or online
Glenora Farm - Music on the Green
Date: Sunday, September 14
Location: Glenora Farm, 4766 Waters Road, Duncan
Time: 3pm-6pm
Cost: By donation, suggested $5.00 per person, or $20 for family
Contact: Annette, 250-701-0687
Yoga for the Coast
Date: Saturday, September 20
Location: The Hub @ Cowichan Station, 2375 Koksilah Road
Time: 9:30am-12pm
Cost: Suggested $20 donation
Contact: Swarn, 250-709-3744
Food Forest Workshop
Date: Friday, September 26-Sunday, September 28
Location: Mossy Banks Farm, 8000 Richards Trail, North Cowichan
Time: Friday 7pm-9:30pm; Saturday & Sunday 9am-5pm
Cost: $200, lunch included
Contact/Register: www.mossybanks.ca or 250-597-3513
Aluxut Traditional Foods Event - Bentwood Box Cooking Demonstration
Date: Sunday, September 28
Location: Qw’umiyiqun’ Reserve, 1350 Tzouhalem Road, Duncan
Time: The day starts with building the fire at 8am, a traditional plant walk at 10am, cooking beginning at 10:30, and lunch at 1pm
Contact: Jared “Qwustenuxun” Williams at 250-746-6184, or jared.williams@cowichantribes.com
Sustainability: Food and Water Security in Our Valley (Community Discussion)
Date: Wednesday, October 1
Location: Duncan United Church Hall, 246 Ingram St., Duncan
Time: 6:30pm-9pm
Cost: Free, coffee & tea provided. Please bring food to share.
Contact: Contact Donna Cameron at 250-748-2444 or email CofCevent@gmail.com
3rd Annual Cowichan Travelling World Community Film Festival
Date: Friday, October 3 & Saturday, October 4
Location: VIU, Cowichan Campus, 2011 University Way, Duncan Time: Friday 7:3opm-9:30pm; Saturday 1:00pm-9:30pm Cost: $25 for full festival pass/$8.00 individual movie. Discounts for early bird, seniors, and students. More info:www.cowichanvalleyfilm.ca
Aluxut Traditional Foods Event - Preparing Pi’kwun Salmon
Date: Sunday, October 5
Location: Qw’umiyiqun’ Reserve, 1350 Tzouhalem Road, Duncan
Time: Fire starts at 8am and lunch will be served at 12pm
Contact: Jared “Qwustenuxun” Williams at 250-746-6184, or jared.williams@cowichantribes.com
For Rent
For more information, or to book an appointment, please contact Judy at 250-748-8506 or judy@cowichangreencommunity.org
Thank you
CGC would like to send out a special thank you to the following individuals and businesses for their support during the month of August:
Danielle Theberge and Sarah Finch, Ethos Work Experience Participants.
Aleksandra Legwand, a VIU intern, who patiently revolutionized our promotional systems.
The Kin Park Kid’s Camp staff would like to extend a huge thank you to all of the awesome campers who joined us week to week to make the summer truly unforgettable! It was truly a joy spending our summer outside celebrating the wonders of nature, friendship, and adventure. Another big thank you to the Kin Park Camp parents and to the community for all of their support in coordinating this program.
