One Big Week, part II

All the while during the week we had three classes looming for further preparation. Two of them involved the Common Ground Garden Supply and Education Center in Palo Alto, CA. A project of Ecology Action, Common Ground sells garden supplies and also has a series of Saturday classes on everything from composting to beekeeping. John Jeavons, Carol the EA Garden Manager, Margo and I all take turns teaching the Grow Biointensive classes. For two years or so Margo and I have been teaching the Intro to Grow Biointensive, composting, seed propagation, and bed preparation classes. There is nothing like teaching to get a better grasp of what you think you know. Anyway, this past weekend I taught a new class of my own design: "Amaranth to Wheat, and All Points Between" about small-scale grain cultivation. It went very well, and many comments alluded to a desire for a longer class including more information. Now Margo and I are plotting one that will include processing and cooking.

Margo's class was on composting, and was also successful. Here she is at Common Ground's demo garden, preaching to the masses about layering and mature material (in the plant sense).

The third class of the weekend was also a new experience. A friend of ours who has attended Ecology Action's 3-Day Workshop, 5-Day Teachers Workshop and 6-month internship (hmmm... can we talk her into the 3-Year Apprenticeship next?) worked with some other very motivated individuals to create the Pacifica Gardens project in Pacifica, CA. The work they've done since breaking ground in April is astounding, and speaks volumes about the drive their volunteers bring. One of these volunteers got the inspiration to ask for a class on seed saving, which our friend then came to ask us about. So here I am presenting part of a two-hour lecture and hands-on class based on the principles of saving seed on a small scale. Pacifica blessed us with warm sun for the first time in three or four visits, turnout was great, and we all had a good time. It is inspiring to us to see the projects that so many communities have going on, and the constructive energy those projects involve.