Plant Sale 2015

Posted on May 2, 2015 by

plant saleCome out this Saturday and get your herb and veggie starts now ready for your exness south africa.  Rayn or Shine Community Gardeners and Vic West Urban Farmers have lovingly seeded and tended starter plants for our annual Plant Sale at Vic West Fest.  Visit the Plant Sale, the Vic West Food Security display and Banfield Orchard information tables all at Vic West Fest on Saturday, May 9th between 11:00am and 3:00pm.  

Seedling prices range from 50 cents to $5.  All proceeds go towards https://exness-trade.co.za of the Vic West Food Security Collective.

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Vic West Urban Wild Food Walk

Posted on April 17, 2015 by

Katie teaching about wild plants

Katie leading the plant identification talk

On March 15th and again on April 12th, the  Collective hosted a wild food foraging walk and gourmet wild food buffet dinner to learn about  the www.exness-trade.co.za in our ‘hood. Continue reading →

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Lovin’ Our Volunteers

Posted on March 6, 2015 by
Vic West Food Security Collective Volunteers

Vic West Food Security Collective Volunteers Photo: Dar Purewell

 

On Saturday night, February 21st, the Vic West Food Security Collective held an event to show appreciation for all the volunteers who help the Collective develop and sustain it’s 18 projects.  Folks help out by setting tables for Community Potluck Dinners, watering Banfield Commons, growing food in Rayn or Shine Community Garden, pruning the trees at Evans Orchard, growing seedlings for the annual Plant Sale, cleaning up the street following the Corn Roast, and agreeing to be the Queen or King of the Wassail.  Here are the volunteers that came out that night.  Thanks to everyone for growing our Collective.

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Lovin’ Our Hood

Posted on February 6, 2015 by

NEWSLETTER PNGLovin’ Our ‘Hood

The Vic West Food Security Collective invites you to join us on Saturday, February 21st, 7:00-9:00pm at the Vic West Community Centre,  for a celebration to honour our food security volunteers. Past, present and future volunteers are all welcome.

If you volunteer with Rayn or Shine garden, Banfield Commons, Community Dinners, Banfield Community Orchard, the Tour de Coop, or belong to the Urban Farmers group or any of our many other projects, come and celebrate with us.  If you’ve been wondering who we are, what we do and how to get involved, we welcome you.

There’ll be appetizers made with veggies from our ‘hood, a community art project, an inspiring food film, displays, information, thank you gifts and presentations. Come share our passion for growing and sharing food.

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Banfield Park Community Orchard Wassail, Jan 17

Posted on January 10, 2015 by

wassail poster

Saturday, January 17, 2:30pm

Wassail – Waes Hael – means “be of good health”. The Olde English tradition of wassailing, dating back to the 1500s, is a ceremony to wake fruit trees from their winter slumber and scare away evil spirits, ensuring a good harvest.

Join us at the Banfield Park Community Orchard Saturday, January 17th at 2:30 pm. This is an outdoor celebration so dress warmly and bring a lantern or candle in a jar to light the orchard. If it rains, the activities will move inside the Community Centre.

2:30pm – Crowning the Wassail King and Queen

3 pm – The Island Thyme Morris Dancers will lead us in the tradition of singing and toasting to the health of the orchard trees. Hot mulled apple cider (non-alcoholic) will be served for the toast so please bring a mug.

4pm – Feast – Soup and bread will be served.

Volunteers needed, contact Patti banfieldcommunityorchard@gmail.com

Check out our pictures from last year.

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Songs of the Season Community Potluck Dinner and Christmas Caroling

Posted on December 11, 2014 by
Songs of the Season, December 2014

Songs of the Season, December 2014

Friday, December 19th

Vic West Community Centre

Everyone is invited to “Songs of the Season”, a Vic West community potluck dinner and Christmas caroling evening hosted by the Vic West Food Security Collective and High Point Church on Friday, December 19th.

Dinner starts at 4:30 at the Vic West Community Centre, followed by caroling around the neighbourhood led by the Salvation Army Brass Band and ending with hot chocolate at High Point Church.

Please bring a dish of food to share (savory or sweet).  Bring your family, your new neighbours, your singing voice, and warm clothing for caroling.

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A Note For Egg-nablers

Posted on December 4, 2014 by

chickenThe Vic West Correggtions Department has recently received numerous incident reports involving inmate violence. An errant jailbird has been leading a group of offenders into trouble. The disturbances began in the yard of a McCaskill Street facility where Correggtions Officers witnessed several instances of assault towards one particular victim. The violence included pecking and preventing the victim from reaching water fountains or the cafeteria. The group then went on a wholesale laying strike, although that is to be eggspected this time of year.

The eggstreme nature of the circumstances, however, called for an appropriate coreggtive action. Correggtions Officers have placed the insteggator into seggreggation. With the insteggator removed from the population, the remaining inmates have gradually allowed the victim to reinteggrate and grow back a few feathers. It is believed that the incidents began when the victim molted all her feathers at once, revealing her actual diminutive size.

Unfortunately, until a sleeping unit can be devised in the segg unit, all inmates must sleep in a common facility, which allows the insteggator to further traumatize the victim.

Seggreggation of the victim is never considered in these circumstances as it only leads to greater violence from the perpetrators when the victim is reintroduced to the pecking order. Meanwhile the laying strike continues.

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Crocus Bulbs in Banfield Orchard

Posted on November 30, 2014 by

Banfield crocus bulbsToday Ms.Carrico’s grade three class (assisted by E.A. Nada and parent volunteers) planted over 100 crocus bulbs in the garden beds at Banfield Orchard.

Please go to www.vicwestpac.com to read the full post.

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Stinging Nettle Pesto Recipe

Posted on November 9, 2014 by

pesto and cucumber roundsHere’s my recipe for Stinging Nettle Pesto.   Stinging nettles are found in the corner of Banfield Commons Garden closest to Craigflower Road and the parking lot.  As the nettles can sting, it’s advisable to wear gloves while gathering them. This recipe will give you about one cup of pesto. Continue reading →

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The Winter Gardens

Posted on November 9, 2014 by

Winter SeedlingsI came back to Victoria in the first days of October thinking it would be too late to put in anything for the winter. But the warm, sunny weather stretched on and since gardening is all one big experiment, I decided to plant some winter seeds anyway. Continue reading →

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