Thank you to all the Thursday food garden volunteers who helped take care of the Community Gardens this summer! The food forests are thriving better with your help!
There will be no Thursday volunteering today, or for the next two weeks. We will resume again on Thursday, October 18th from about 1-4pm. And there’s a leaf mulching work party on Sunday, October 21 from 11am-3pm. Hope to see you again 
11am-3pm – Sunday, October 21st
Banfield Community Orchard & Commons
521 Craigflower Road
Volunteer help is needed in the Community Food Gardens of Banfield Park to spread mulch and winterize the gardens!
Enjoy pizza and snacks!
Please bring a wheelbarrow, forks, rakes, gloves and be prepared with rain gear.
Do you have questions about volunteering? Contact Stephanie, Community Garden Volunteer Coordinator, at foodgardens@victoriawest.ca
Four classes left! Drop ins are welcome.
Each week will focus on different in season plants. We’ll head outside and tour Vic West gardens ready to harvest, and learn in-depth properties about each plant. Then we’ll bring it back to the kitchen for some tasty fun.
Vic West Community Centre. Register: http://www.victoriawest.ca/
Thursdays 6:00-7:30pm (no class Oct. 11) 5 classes for $75 Drop-ins $20
Latifa Pelletier-Ahmed is an instructor of Phytotherapy at Pacific Rim College. She has a Master’s of Science in Herbal Medicine and a Bachelor of Science in Botany. She is particularly interested in reconnecting people to nature.
More info: http://www.latifasherbs.com
Sunday September 16th, noon to 4pm
Raynor Street at Craigflower Road
Come join the community celebration on Raynor Street with local music, food and fun for the whole family! The corn will be hot and the juice is as local as you can get!
Volunteers are needed to help make the day a big success! Contact vicwestgarden@yahoo.ca if you can help.
Hosted by the Victoria West Community Association – Food Security Collective..
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Apple Pie Contest
Time to show off your baking skills by entering your home-baked apple pie to win the blue ribbon. Bring your pie to the Vic West Corn Roast by 1pm, judging is at 2pm. Prizes for the top three pies.
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Zucchini Car Race
What to do with all those zucchini?? Race them at the Vic West Corn Roast! The car building and racing is always a blast for kids of all ages. Build a car at home or at the event. Racing all day.
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Scarecrow Contest
It’s time to get your scary on…get creative and make a scarecrow at home any size or style using any material and bring it to the Vic West Corn Roast by 2pm to win prizes, judging is at 3pm.
5pm, Thursday, August 16th, 2018
Meet in the Orchard next to the Vic West Community Centre at 521 Craigflower Road
Enjoy a guided tour of Banfield Commons and the Community Orchard with Latifa Pelletier-Ahmed. There are numerous edible and medicinal plants planted around the garden. Some plants are native and others are introduced, but all grow well with minimal support from humans.
All are welcome, suggested donation $5.
The garden will be hosting volunteer hours between 1pm and 7pm. Please feel free to drop by any time to learn more about the community gardens, horticulture, permaculture and native pollinator observation. Stephanie our volunteer coordinator will be happy to help you get involved in the garden. Feel free to contact her: foodgardens@victoriawest.ca
Let us know if you are going on Meetup! or facebook!
Some photos from the Spring Plant Walk:
Please email foodgardens@victoriawest.ca as soon as possible if you can help so we can orient you with this fun task!
Volunteer help is needed! If you enjoy having a local community food forest and orchard in the neighbourhood of Vic West, your help is needed to give back and help with maintenance! There are many benefits to volunteering in the gardens, including getting to know all the plants better, and tasting the berries as they ripen. You can gain and practice skills in horticulture, permaculture and community building!
The Vic West Food Security Collective needs help in all kinds of ways… from weeding, watering, spreading leaf mulch, making signs and posters, and getting the word out to attract more volunteers. These gardens belong to the community, but need more people involved in their stewardship! Please send a message to foodgardens@victoriawest.ca to let us know you want to help!
Drop by the gardens on Thursday afternoons and evenings anytime between 1-7pm to lend a hand.
Invite some friends and family and make it even more fun!
