Guided work party report April 10th

We had a real mix of weather today, sunshine, cool winds, hail and rain! However, our keen volunteers laboured away at pruning and clearing away foliage from the Rewilder and Pollinator beds, weeding as they went.  Some more compost from the huge heap on the car park was spread on the Espalier Orchard and some of our own compost around the replanted strawberries and blueberry bushes. Next to the blueberry bushes there are two large clumps of comfrey growing, some fo which is destined for the compost bin as it is an excellent accelerator.  A large group worked on the vegetable beds, turning and digging in the cover crop to prepare the beds for root crops and potatoes which will go in as soon as the soil warms up a bit. Angela Hoy

Be sure to sign up for our guided work parties - click through on the event calendar on our home page - and get in touch to learn of other volunteer opportunities in the gardens.

We are also looking for a gardener or farmer to run our guided work parties. This is a part-time paid opportunity. Email Joanne for more information.

April 6th guided work party report

We had more new volunteers today, and we had perfect gardening weather! The drip irrigation system lines were re-installed in several of the beds, although we still don't have the water turned on at the Garden and the water butt is almost empty. Several more of the beds were cleared of cover crop and weeds, and reshaped ready for planting.  Spinach, Cilantro and flat- leaf parsley starts were planted in the accessible beds, and radishes, Asian greens, turnips and beet were sown in the Four Season Bed.  Further pruning was carried out on the blueberry bushes, and the central strawberry bed was tidied up, with new young plants transplanted into the median strip; this job will need to be finished on Sunday.
Angela Hoy, guided work party lead

Sign up for guided work parties for Wednesdays and Sundays 11-1. All welcome. We also have volunteer needs outside of gardening for hands-on and leadership roles. Contact Joanne for more information.


Garden season is opening!

Volunteer in the Riley Park Community Garden. Sign up for Guided Work Parties. 

Welcome as we start a new season in the garden. RPCG has a communal model of community gardening which means we share the work and the harvest. Following organic gardening practices, gardeners come together to plan, plant, weed, and harvest. Harvests are shared among volunteers and produce is donated to the LMNH programs and to our community fridge. Novice gardeners work alongside experienced gardeners, sharing customs and stories around the food we grow and eat together. We grow a variety of culturally specific foods and have garden beds dedicated for Middle Eastern, Japanese, Asian, and Latino veggies. Regular formal and informal educational sessions also take place in the garden on growing seasonal food. There are no waitlists to join this community garden, just a willingness to show up and join in the fun of growing food!

At this  time, we have work parties for up to 10 people. We want to make sure our garden volunteers have a great experience and are able to ask questions and get support to grow food in your own gardens. You can also check the event calendar and click on the day you want to join us in the garden and for other events! .

Click here to sign up for our Garden Work Parties.   Email Joanne if you have any questions or would like to support our work in other ways that gardening. We have opportunities to help us with communications, marketing and other ways. 


Apply online for a Neighbourhood Small Grant

Neighbourhood Small Grants (NSG) provides grants of up to $500 for projects that connect people socially or involve sharing skills or talents with each other. Grant streams are for Youth, Greenest City and NSG. Watch the slideshow for ideas! Apply online until April 30th for projects to be completed by November 30th. If you are applying for the first time, sign up for the grant writing workshops. S u n . , M a r c h 2 7 a t 1 0 a m or March 31 at 7:30pm. For more information email Joanne at LMNH or Susan NSG Coordinator - Central Vancouver info.nsgp@gmail.com