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Articles
08/23/2011 - 17:00 in MGABC | Read more
STOP TREATING THE SOIL LIKE DIRT!
Ever heard the saying “Oh, I was treated like dirt!” Well, really it should be a compliment! If you treat your soil the way it is supposed to be treated - like a living organism - you would treat it with care, love, and respect. A good soil is alive, thriving, and teaming with...08/23/2011 - 17:00 in MGABC | Read more
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08/23/2011 - 17:00 in MGABC | Read more
NEW BOOKS - VanDusen Library
Here is a small sample of some of the new books that have recently been purchased for VanDusen Library’s collection. The books’ call numbers and how many copies available are listed. The Global Forest GR785 .B47 2010 (2 copies circ.) Beresford-Kroeger, Diana. New York : Viking...08/23/2011 - 17:00 in MGABC | Read more
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08/23/2011 - 17:00 in Okanagan | Read more
WHAT IS "INTERGENERATIONAL LEARNING"?
Ten years ago, Linda Peterat co-founded the ‘Intergenerational Landed Learning’ Program at Vancouver’s UBC Farm. When she retired to Vernon four years ago, she shared her program with those at the Okanagan Science Centre. ‘Intergenerational Learning’ is the creation of...08/23/2011 - 17:00 in Okanagan | Read more
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08/23/2011 - 17:00 in MGABC | Read more
WHAT ARE NATIVE PLANTS?
In the broadest sense, every plant is a native plant. That is, it co-evolved somewhere with other plant species, animals, fungi, and microbes to form a complex network of relationships. Native plants are the foundation of native ecosystems, or natural communities. Over time, a...08/23/2011 - 17:00 in MGABC | Read more
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08/23/2011 - 17:00 in MGABC | Read more
DIY COMPOSTER
Are you always looking for projects that are cost saving and "re-using" what is around the house? Check out this Do It Yourself (DIY) composter solution. No muss, no fuss!08/23/2011 - 17:00 in MGABC | Read more
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08/23/2011 - 17:00 in Vancouver | Read more
1001 WEIRD FACTS FOR CANADIAN GARDENERS
The author defines "weird" as involving or suggesting the fantastic or bizarre. With that in mind, enjoy this fact-filled compilation of Canadian gardening information, seen largely from an Eastern Canadian point of view. It covers the development there of early varieties of...08/23/2011 - 17:00 in Vancouver | Read more
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08/23/2011 - 17:00 in Vancouver | Read more
THOUGHTS ON CHANGE
Change, the one constant of life, is certainly true of the dynamic orchestra of plants that makeup our gardens. It can be very easy at the planning stage and beyond not to give sufficient consideration to this all important factor. Change can come in many forms from macro, as in...08/23/2011 - 17:00 in Vancouver | Read more
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08/23/2011 - 17:00 in Vancouver | Read more
GARDENING WITH COLOUR: Creative Design Ideas for Canadian Gardens
Rob Sproule’s second book is vibrating with enthusiasm about taking container gardening ‘to the next level’. Plant combinations, called recipes, promote the elements and principles of design to make successful planting easy. This guide includes basic container recipes along with...08/23/2011 - 17:00 in Vancouver | Read more
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08/23/2011 - 17:00 in Vancouver | Read more
NATURE COLLABORATIONS
Justin Stephenson is a Master Gardener in Training, Vancouver Chapter. He has chosen to live on Galiano Island with his family and "commute" for his real job. He has shared some of his most precious moments caught through his camera lens, of Mother Nature's world, where plants...08/23/2011 - 17:00 in Vancouver | Read more
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08/23/2011 - 17:00 in Vancouver | Read more
COMPOSTING FOR CANADA
When I was a little guy helping my Dad on his farm I used to get stuck with some of the routine tasks around the place. One of them was to take all the organic refuse down to a large pile he kept out back and throw it on the top hoping for nature to take its course and turn the...08/23/2011 - 17:00 in Vancouver | Read more
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08/23/2011 - 17:00 in MGABC | Read more
DOG GONE FARM
My son gave me a sign he had hand carved for Christmas. “Dog Gone Farm,” it reads, in jaunty red letters (inspired by our fence jumping dog). With the sign hung proudly on the front door, it was official. We were farmers. We grow fruits and vegetables, build soil, and raise...08/23/2011 - 17:00 in MGABC | Read more
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08/23/2011 - 17:00 in Vancouver | Read more
POPPIES AND ME
The poppy, in all its varieties, is a quite wonderful flower. Huge and soft as a landmark blossom, or delicate and small and scattered through a field of cornflowers and daisies, even among the crosses in Flanders’ fields - the poppy gives me intense pleasure. Many things do,...08/23/2011 - 17:00 in Vancouver | Read more
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08/23/2011 - 17:00 in MGABC | Read more
A JOURNAL ENTRY FROM THE PRESIDENT
As I write my first message, I am reflecting on notes jotted down in my daily journal when I was first elected to serve you beginning in January 2011. Initiate better communications with our members and the general public At our November 2010 AGM, that was one of the key issues...08/23/2011 - 17:00 in MGABC | Read more
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08/23/2011 - 17:00 in Vancouver | Read more
GARDENING FROM THE HEART
A Tribute to Margaret Church. In 1987, a most remarkable woman became my next door neighbour. My first introduction to this inspiring lady was when 4 cubic feet of compost was deposited in her laneway and the neighbourhood witnessed her single-handedly carrying it to her...08/23/2011 - 17:00 in Vancouver | Read more
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08/23/2011 - 17:00 in MGABC | Read more
BEAUTIFUL, BUT HARMFUL BULLIES OF BIODIVERSITY
Avid gardeners are always searching for new, eye-catching plants to add to their backyard collections. Among these attractions, however, lurk invasive plants that pose a hazard to the environment, the economy, and our health. The enjoyable tradition of sharing plants and seeds...08/23/2011 - 17:00 in MGABC | Read more
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08/23/2011 - 17:00 in MGABC | Read more
SOME THINGS TO THINK ABOUT.........
'Live like you'll die tomorrow. Garden like you'll live forever.'...Old Shaker proverb 'Spread the word, not the weed! '...Invasive Plant Council of BC 'In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous.'...Aristotle 'The love of gardening is a seed once sown that...08/23/2011 - 17:00 in MGABC | Read more
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08/23/2011 - 17:00 in Vancouver | Read more
WINTER ROOTS
Roots define the taste of winter: they are roasted, boiled, sautéed. They give 'bottom' and sweetness to soups and stews. Whereas the New World and the tropical climates have given us summer's annuals, like potato, sunchoke, and sweet potato, the winter garden's roots are all...08/23/2011 - 17:00 in Vancouver | Read more