Events & Workshops

Upcoming events

• The Urban Farmer Field School: Full-Season Registration

  • Start
    28 Mar 2013
  •  
  • End
    14 Nov 2013
  • Location
    Various

  Register

  The Urban Farmer Field School: Full-Season Registration

  
  

  Learn all the skills you need to become a successful urban farmer! Register for the full curriculum of the Urban Farmer Field School. Registration includes the following courses:

  • Succession Planting
    
  • Organic Soil Management
    
  • Growing Food In Small Spaces
    
  • Fruit Tree Pruning/Canopy Management
    
  • Grassroots Bioremediation
    
  • Seed Starting
    
  • Marketsafe Certification
    
  • Seed Saving: Basics
    
  • Seed Saving: Advanced
    
  • Urban Farming On a Budget
    
  • Herbal Medicine
    
  • Pest Management
    
  • Disease Management
  • Urban Foraging
    
  • Chickens In The City
    
  • Beekeeping For Beginners
    
  • Beekeeping Intermediate
    
  • Carpentry for Gardeners: Chicken Coop
    
  • Carpentry for Gardeners: Garden Structures
    
  • Season Extension
    
  • Preserving The Harvest: Home Canning
    
  • Lacto-Fermentation
    
  • Planning a Climate Change Resilient Farm
    
  • Solar Greenhouses

  For details on each class, Visit The UFFS Course List.
  
  Cost: $900
  

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• Carpentry for Gardeners: Chicken Coop Building

  • Start
    25 Jun 2013
  •  
    6:00 PM
  • End
    27 Jun 2013
  •  
    9:00 PM
  • Location
    Community Lab Society
  • Spaces left
    4

  Register

  Carpentry for Gardeners: Chicken Coop Building

  

  Finally build that luxury chicken coop you've been dreaming of! Some basic carpentry skills open up a world of possibilities in the garden, from space-saving techniques like arbors, to creating raised beds for improved accessibility.  This practice-based course is offered in partnership with the Vancouver Community Lab, where students will build a simple project while gaining experience with design, hand tools, and shop tools.  Emphasis on safe, sustainable, and reclaimed materials.

  Learning Goals:

  • How to use a variety of tools and source materials
  • Understanding carpentry design
  • How to make a chicken-coop and soil sifter (soil sifters to be taken home by participants)

  Register for the course package along with 'Chickens in the City' for a 25% discount and a chance to learn more. Email fieldschool@spec.bc.ca with your name for the discount code. 
  

  Instructor: 

  Duncan Martin moved to Vancouver from Vermont in 2003 to go to UBC. After an English degree and some years of teaching, he began drawing on other interests such as design, agricultural outbuildings, and visual art to form the fledgling chicken coop business that he now runs at www.DailyEggs.com. It is a work in progress that thrives on educating, connecting, celebrating, and most of all, getting people started with a flock of healthy, happy, and productive egg-laying hens. When he’s not building coops, Duncan is either baking bread, mushroom hunting, tinkering, or out and about with family and friends.

  June 25th & 27th

  6-9 PM

  $78.00

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• Chickens In The City

  • When
    13 Jul 2013
  •  
    1:00 PM - 4:00 PM
  • Location
    East Vancouver Home, Location TBA
  • Spaces left
    11

  Register

  Chickens in the City

  Interested in fresh eggs but not sure how to care for chickens? Learn about backyard chickens, including where to source your hens, pest and disease management, feeds and bedding, choosing the right coop design, winter care, and of course, being a good neighbor.

  Learning Goals:

  • The philosophy of raising a backyard flock
  • Vancouver chicken bylaw & regulations: Coop size, cleaning etc.
  • Chicken management: Health, feed, behavior etc.

  Register for the course package along with 'Carpentry for Gardeners: Chicken Coops' for a 25% discount and a chance to learn more. Email fieldschool@spec.bc.ca with your name for the discount code. 
  

  Instructor: 

  Vicky Baker has over 10 years of experience gardening in urban centres, both in Montreal and Vancouver. As an advocate for food sovereignty, she practices urban agriculture both as the coordinator of the Cambie Communal Garden, and at her home in East Vancouver. Her passion for chickens was ignited as soon as she knew it was a possibility in Vancouver, and she has been exploring that world ever since.  She keeps three chickens at her family home.

   $39.00

  1-4 PM

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• Carpentry for Gardeners: Garden Structures

  • Start
    16 Jul 2013
  •  
    6:00 PM
  • End
    18 Jul 2013
  •  
    9:00 PM
  • Location
    Community Lab Society
  • Spaces left
    0

  Registration is closed

  Carpentry for Gardeners: Garden Structures

  Learn to make a variety of garden-related carpentry projects. Some basic carpentry skills open up a world of possibilities in the garden, from space-saving techniques like arbors, to creating raised beds for improved accessibility.  This practice-based course is offered in partnership with the Vancouver Community Lab, where students will build a simple project while gaining experience with design, hand tools, and shop tools.  Emphasis on safe, sustainable, and reclaimed materials. Go home with your own hand-build planter box and/or cold frame!

  Learning Goals:

  • How to use a variety of tools and source materials
  • Understanding carpentry design
  • How to make specific, garden-related carpentry projects (planter box & cold-frame to be taken home by participants)

  Register for the course package along with 'Growing Food in Small Spaces: Summer Edition' for a 25% discount and a chance to learn more. Email fieldschool@spec.bc.ca with your name for the discount code. 
  

  Instructor: 

  Duncan Martin moved to Vancouver from Vermont in 2003 to go to UBC. After an English degree and some years of teaching, he began drawing on other interests such as design, agricultural outbuildings, and visual art to form the fledgling chicken coop business that he now runs at www.DailyEggs.com. It is a work in progress that thrives on educating, connecting, celebrating, and most of all, getting people started with a flock of healthy, happy, and productive egg-laying hens. 

  
  

  July 16th & 18th 

  6:00-9:00PM
  

  $78.00

  Show details
• Beekeeping For Beginners

  • When
    27 Jul 2013
  •  
    10:00 AM - 1:00 PM
  • Location
    TBA
  • Spaces left
    10

  Register

  Beekeeping For Beginners:

  
  

  Join this course to meet a queen! After discussing bee ecology and safety, we’ll slip on protective clothing gather around to inspect a hive of 10,000 bees. Finally, we’ll sample honey from a variety of sources and discuss the importance of bees and the environment. This course is meant to only whet your appetite. Please attend an advanced course before starting your own hives.

  
  Learning Goals:
  

  • Bee ecology
    
  • Beekeeping safety
    
  • Basic hive management
    

  Register for the course package along with 'Beekeeping (Intermediate)' for a 25% discount and a chance to learn more. Email fieldschool@spec.bc.ca with your name for the discount code. 

  Instructor: 

  Norm Kaethler is a beekeeper, community gardener, and science teacher. He has worked at a boy’s school in Vancouver since 2008, where he cofounded a beekeeping and gardening club in 2011. In the 6 years between his BSc (2001) and BEd (2007), Norm worked at Pesticide Action Network North America and the BC Centre for Disease Control, where he learned the value of advocating for environmental and public health issues. He lives in Vancouver with his wife and 2 daughters.
  

  $39.00

  July 27th

  10:00 AM - 1:00 PM

  
  

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• Plant Disease Management

  • When
    30 Jul 2013
  •  
    6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
  • Location
    YWCA
  • Spaces left
    12

  Register

  Plant Disease Management:

  Vancouver's cool and humid weather can be an invitation for a variety of devastating plant diseases, causing even the most experienced food growers to scramble. Don't let your hard work go to waste - get savvy about plant diseases!
  
  In this workshop, participants will learn to identify common plant diseases that impact food crops in Metro Vancouver, how to prevent plant diseases through simple practices, and how to minimize the impact if disease does occur.

  Learning Goals:

  • Identify plant diseases/pathogens (fungi, bacteria, viruses, etc.) that impact food crops in Metro Vancouver. 
  • Explain best practices for preventing plant diseases from affecting their growing space. 
  • Describe the procedure for containing and eradicating plant pathogens that occur in their growing space. 
  • Discuss the resources available to them for disease diagnostics and further exploration of workshop topics 

  Instructor:

  Molly Campbell holds a B.Sc. in horticulture from the University of Wisconsin, and is currently focused on completing a M.Sc. degree in the Faculty of Land and Food Systems at UBC. As a professional horticulturist she has worked in a variety of settings, including an award winning botanical garden, agriculture research greenhouses, and horticulture education. Molly is passionate about community based adult education and would like to start a career in cooperative agriculture extension after completing her degree work. She personally values gardening and growing her own food, and is interested in innovative ways to incorporate food production into the urban landscape.

  
  

  
  

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• Beekeeping Intermediate

  • When
    10 Aug 2013
  •  
    10:00 AM - 1:00 PM
  • Location
    TBA
  • Spaces left
    13

  Register

  Beekeeping (Intermediate):

  
  

  Join this course to care for your queen! After discussing common diseases and integrated pest management, we’ll slip on protective clothing gather around to inspect a hive of 10,000 bees. Finally, we’ll sample honey from a variety of sources and discuss the challenges and rewards of tending bees in the city.This course is meant to prepare you to consider operating your own beehives in the city.

  Learning Goals:

  Join this course to care for your queen! After discussing common diseases and integrated pest management, we’ll slip on protective clothing gather around to inspect a hive of 10,000 bees. Finally, we’ll sample honey from a variety of sources and discuss the challenges and rewards of tending bees in the city.This course is meant to prepare you to consider operating your own beehives in the city.

  
  

  Register for the course package along with 'Beekeeping for Beginners' for a 25% discount and a chance to learn more. Email fieldschool@spec.bc.ca with your name for the discount code. 
  

  Instructor:

  Norm Kaethler is a beekeeper, community gardener, and science teacher. He has worked at a boy’s school in Vancouver since 2008, where he cofounded a beekeeping and gardening club in 2011. In the 6 years between his BSc (2001) and BEd (2007), Norm worked at Pesticide Action Network North America and the BC Centre for Disease Control, where he learned the value of advocating for environmental and public health issues. He lives in Vancouver with his wife and 2 daughters.

  
  

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• Seed Saving: Advanced (Plant Breeding)

  • When
    20 Aug 2013
  •  
    6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
  • Location
    YWCA
  • Spaces left
    19

  Register

  Seed Saving: Advanced (Plant Breeding): 

  Learn how to improve crops through seed saving practice. This workshop will demonstrate the general principles behind plant breeding. Topics such as isolation distance, varietal purity, and selection techniques will be covered throughout the session. Given the decline of some open-pollinated crops, more advance seed savers are needed to preserve the biodiversity our food crops. This workshop will allow the participants to develop the skills needed to create more resilient crops able to withstand some of the ongoing effects of climate change.

  Learning Goals:

  • Develop capacity to improve lines of specific plant cultivars
  • In-depth understanding of the biology of plant breeding
  • The politics of plant breeding (and breeding for climate change)

  Instructor: 

  Mel Sylvestre has been a small-scale organic farmer for 10 years. She spent 6 years on Vancouver Island working with Saanich Organics and ran a small acreage of mixed vegetables called RiseUp Organic for 4 years. She is currently working at UBC Farm while finishing her degree in plant and soil science at UBC. She has been a seed saver for the last 4 years and is currently focusing on developing organic plant breeding project at UBC Farm. She has taught several seed saving courses over the years.

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• Season Extension

  • When
    26 Aug 2013
  •  
    6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
  • Location
    YWCA
  • Spaces left
    19

  Season Extension:

  

  Want to get the most out of your garden this year? Vancouver's climate is perfect for getting the most out of your garden growing in the spring and fall 'shoulder' seasons. Learn how to choose cool season varieties, when to plant them, and how to take advantage of urban microclimates to keep your garden thriving all year long. Students will learn various season extension techniques, and will get hands-on experience building a cold frame in class.

  Learning Goals:

  • Cold season varieties
  • Planning a garden for the shoulder seasons
  • Season extension methods

  Instructor: 

  Lis Thomas is a horticulturist who worked in community greening in NYC before moving to Vancouver. She is currently running the YWCA Metro Vancouver Rooftop Food Garden and is also studying post-industrial soil remediation as part of a MSc. in Plant Science. Lis is passionate about urban agriculture, bicycling, native plants, metal fabrication, and circus arts.

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• Managing a Direct Market Small Farm

  • Start
    03 Sep 2013
  •  
    6:00 PM
  • End
    17 Sep 2013
  •  
    9:00 PM
  • Location
    YWCA
  • Spaces left
    12

  Register

  A 3-SESSION CLASS: SEPTEMBER 3, 10, & 17 6-9 PM

  Managing a Direct Market Small Farm

  One of the biggest challenges for a new farmer is having a sound business plan. We'll go through the steps from defining your business model to raising start-up funds, estimating your income and expenses and tracking results. Having a realistic picture of what you can achieve gives you and your investors confidence and greatly improves your chances for success.

  Learning Goals:

  • Understanding the fundamentals of starting a small-scale farm business plan
  • Gaining clarity of what marketing model students wish to employ
  •  Crop planning for a farm business

  Instructor: 

  Grant Watson operates Grant’s Gourmet Gardens, an edible landscaping business in Greater Vancouver. He has been involved in local organic agriculture since 1994 in a number of roles, including production, marketing, and advocacy. He serves on the certification committee of the Biodynamic Agriculture Society of BC, is manager of the Oak Street Farmers’ Market and a shareholder at Glen Valley Organic Farm Co-op. Grant is also a co-founder of NOWBC Food Co-op. He has been teaching food gardening to children and adults since 2003.

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• Preserving the Harvest: Home Canning

  • When
    13 Sep 2013
  •  
    6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
  • Location
    YWCA
  • Spaces left
    11

  Register

  Preserving the Harvest: Home Canning

  

  Canning is a fun, practical, and economical way to eat local, seasonal food all year round.  Practice canning summer fruits and learn about other methods of preservation including freezing, drying, pickling, and pressure canning. Participants will leave armed with a homemade jar of preserves and recipes for pickles, sauces, jams and more.

  Learning Goals:

  • Safe Canning Practices
  • Understanding of other methods of preservation (pressure canning, freezing, drying)
  • Hands-on canning session

  Instructors: 

  Marnie Newell is a SPEC staff member and passionate food preserver with hundreds of cans under her belt. She has been trained by food preservers from such diverse backgrounds as Backwoods Homesteader to Big City Chef and is Food Safe certified.

  Caitlin Dorward is a food systems researcher at the Institute for Sustainable Horticulture and is pursuing a Masters of Science in Integrated Studies in Land and Food Systems. She has seven years of experience working in the food systems field, including two years as a SPEC Director. Caitlin has been sharing her love of canning through workshops like this one since 2009, and is Food Safe and Market Safe certified. She is passionate about sustainable agriculture, food security, and absolutely loves cracking open a jar of home-canned peaches in mid-January.

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• Lacto-Fermentation

  • When
    17 Oct 2013
  •  
    6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
  • Location
    YWCA
  • Spaces left
    11

  Register

  Lacto-Fermentation

  Fermentation is a poetic science - artful and experimental at its best. During this workshop we will discuss the health benefits and basic chemistry of lacto-fermentation, why bringing bacteria back into culture is exceedingly important now more than ever, and tips and techniques to demystify this practice. We will get our hands (the best kind of) dirty and come away with jars of seasonal produce ready to bubble on your counter, and hopefully the confidence to toss out all of what you’ve learned and jump into the unknown with your own experiments.

  

  Learning Goals:

  • The Science and Nutrition of Lactofermentation
  • Different kinds of fermentation (krauts, kimchi etc.)
  • Hands-on fermentation project, and how to experiment with bacteria!

  Instructor: 

  Fiona de Balasi Brown is a self-taught fermentation enthusiast. She currently runs a home fermentation exchange based on the CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) model, and fluidly moves through life trying to blur the lines between work and play. Fiona started experimenting with fermentation in 2012 and is proud to say she is not, and never will be, an expert. She is self-studied in nutrition, food arts and life, and is keen on skill -sharing and -demystification to build resilient communities.

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• Growing Food In Small Spaces (Fall Edition)

  • When
    22 Oct 2013
  •  
    6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
  • Location
    YWCA
  • Spaces left
    19

  Register

  One of 3 of the same class, repeated seasonally. 

  Growing Food in Small Spaces (Fall Edition):

  

  Learn to grow fresh fruits and veggies the city dweller's way, with containers!  Participants will learn about container design, companion planting, choosing appropriate varieties, and creating a fertile soil mix for optimal yield. 

  Learning Goals:

  • Site & crop planning for small spaces (Containers, varieties, companion planting)
  • Water conservation & pest management
  • Creating fertile soil mix for optimal yield

  Instructors: 

  Carole Christopher has a doctorate in Nutrition with particular focus on nutritional ecology and food policy. She has developed and taught university courses, was a consultant to the US Federal Trade Commission's attempt to regulate food advertising to children, and has over 25 years experience as an activist in food and environmental issues. Carole speaks frequently on the role of technology and marketing in creating an industrial food system that is nutritionally hazardous and ecologically unsustainable. She advocates supporting regional and urban agriculture by eating locally and seasonably whenever possible and is an avid organic gardener and seed saver.  Carole is Co-Chair of SPEC's Food Committee.

  Dr. Tara Moreau is SPEC’s Vice-President and Food Committee Co-Chair. For 10 years, she has been involved with the study and promotion of sustainable agriculture at both local and international levels. She holds a PhD in integrated pest management and is currently evaluating agriculture and climate change as postdoctoral research fellow with the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions, the University of British Columbia and Kwantlen Polytechnic University.

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• Planning a Climate Change Resilient Farm

  • When
    05 Nov 2013
  •  
    6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
  • Location
    YWCA, 535 Hornby Street, Vancouver
  • Spaces left
    14

  Register

  Planning a Climate Change Resilient Farm
  

  
  Farming is based on weather. Come learn how climate change will affect regional food production and how you can build resilience of your garden. Join presenter Tara Moreau who will introduce the science of climate change, examine the projected impacts on farming and highlight solutions for urban agriculture.
  
  

  Learning Goals: 
  

  
  

  Site assessment Climate moderating techniques Planting for resilience Monitoring and planning ahead
  

  Instructor: 

  
  

  Dr. Tara Moreau is SPEC’s Vice-President and Food Committee Co-Chair. For 10 years, she has been involved with the study and promotion of sustainable agriculture at both local and international levels. She holds a PhD in integrated pest management and is currently evaluating agriculture and climate change as postdoctoral research fellow with the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions, the University of British Columbia and Kwantlen Polytechnic University.
  
  Cost: $39
  

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• Solar Greenhouses

  • When
    14 Nov 2013
  •  
    6:00 AM - 9:00 PM
  • Location
    TBA
  • Spaces left
    14

  Register

  Solar Greenhouses:

  

  Greenhouses can be valuable tools for growing food all year round. However, conventional greenhouses designed to extend the growing season are heavy energy users. In fact, as part of the recent announcement to review the Carbon Tax, the BC government pointed to the greenhouse industry as being hard hit by the tax. But do greenhouses have to be such high-energy users? This workshop will focus on the design of "solar greenhouses." These greenhouses use passive design features to collect and store energy from the sun rather than from other sources. This allows you to extend the growing season with little or no external energy inputs other than the sun. In the workshop we will discuss passive design features, active solar technologies and methods of greenhouse food production.

  Learning Goals:

  • Structure & design (including materials)
  • Collecting & Storing Energy
  • Plants to use in your greenhouse

  Instructor:

  Rob Baxter is a co-founder and a director of the Vancouver Renewable Energy Cooperative and Chair of SPEC's Energy Committee.  He teaches a course in renewable energy for Langara College Continuing Studies. He is an advocate for renewable energy, specifically solar energy as well as sustainable transportation.  Rob believes in practicing what he preaches and has constructed a solar greenhouse for his family's use. 

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