August Plant Sale and Celebration
July 13, 2023
July 13, 2023
June 15, 2023
Summer is here and we are so happy to welcome our newest staff member! Celia has been a longtime volunteer in the garden and the Healing City Soils program. We are fortunate to have her on our team this summer. Below are some get to know me questions.
What’s your favorite dish? Tabbouleh! So fresh and delicious.
What’s your favorite summer activity? Riding my bike to the lake.
What do you like about the Compost Education Centre? I like feeling connected to food, the land, and growing out food responsibly with reciprocity for the beings around us. I love sharing that education with everyone in our community who wants to learn. It’s been great working with the CEC and feeling connected to food and flowers!
What’s your favorite berry? I love strawberries, but when it comes to flavor, raspberries have my heart.
What do you do in your free time? I like to garden, sew, and read. Currently, I’m rereading the Lord of the Rings.
Posted in Announcement, Blog, Featured, News
April 5, 2023
The Compost Education Centre (CEC) is hosting our annual all-organic Spring plant sale on May 13th from 10AM-2PM!
The plant sale will take place for the first time in Haegert Park (1202 Yukon St.) one block from our site on North Park street. Bring a blanket or a picnic so you can enjoy the music in the shade of the giant Sequoia tree. Entry by donation or free for CEC members. Dogs welcome.
The Spring Organic Plant Sale features local farmers offering a wide variety of organically grown vegetable, flower and herb seedlings to get you off to a successful start this growing season.
There will also be a Parent-Child workshop ‘Spectacular Seeds’ taking place during the sale, so bring the whole family and learn about seeds while you’re here!
What you can look forward to:
• The largest selection of organically grown heirloom tomato varieties all in one place for easy shopping
• Organically grown vegetable starts from arugula to zucchini
• Native plants for your low maintenance garden
• Perennial edibles like berry bushes and other fruiting shrubs
• Medicinal herbs like English lavender, chamomile and yarrow
• Culinary herbs like Genovese basil, dill and chives
• Companion plants like marigolds, sweet cicely and comfrey
• Live music!
Thank you to the City of Victoria and Cold Comfort Ice Cream for generously sponsoring this event.
Posted in Announcement, Events
March 4, 2023
This new factsheet will walk you through: How to build the best soil; what time and money you’ll need; easy & productive plants to grow; and how to care for your plants throughout the growing season.
All factsheets are free on our website and onsite thanks to funding provided by the CRD.
Click here to read the factsheet
Posted in Announcement, BlogMarch 1, 2023
Claire Remington has joined the Compost Education team as the Executive Director.
She is a settler with German, British, and Irish ancestry who has lived on Lekwungen and W̱SÁNEĆ territories for the past five years. She was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota and grew up in Nairobi, Kenya where her parents worked for an international humanitarian agency. She holds a BA in Chemistry from Reed College in Portland, Oregon and a MASc in Civil Engineering from the University of Victoria.
Claire is an interdisciplinary researcher with a decade of work experience focused on improving communities’ sustainability and resilience. Before working for the CEC, Claire spent 8 years working for SOIL, a non-governmental organization that operates a household sanitation and thermophilic composting waste treatment service in Haiti. Her strengths include project management, financial analysis, stakeholder consultation, and technical communication. She has also taught university-level courses with a focus on sustainable natural resource management, public health engineering, and sustainable cities.
In her free time you’ll find Claire playing ultimate frisbee, reading a book, hiking, or playing board games with friends.
Posted in Announcement, Blog, NewsJanuary 13, 2023
2023 seeds are $4.75, pick them up at our retail space at 1216 North Park St.
Annual Veggies
Arugula, annual; Arugula, sylvetta; Beets, Winterkeeper; Broccoli, Purple Sprouting; Carrot, Berlicumer; Kale, Siberian; Leek, Unique; Lettuce, All Weather Blend; Lettuce, Arctic King; Lettuce, Hot Weather Blend; Mixed Mustards; Peas, Sugar Snap, Pole; Spinach, Giant Winter; Squash, Waltham Butternut; Summer Squash, Trio of Summer
Herbs
Basil, Genovese; Parsley, Italian Flat Leaf; Cilantro Sorrel, French
Flowers
Nasturtium, ALM; Mix Sunflower, Mixed; Sweet Pea, ALM Mix
Tomatoes & Peppers
Sweetie (cherry, indeterminate), Matina (medium sized, indeterminate), Ardwyna Pepper
Posted in Announcement, Blog, NewsNovember 3, 2022
We are grateful to be this years recipients of the Good Food Champion Award in the Food Literacy Category. This recognition of our work is motivation for us to continue our mission and work closely with our communities as we build resiliency in the face of food insecurity, top soil depletion, and the other issues seen by climate change. We do not do this work in isolation! Congratulations to the other award winners: Iye Creative, Welcome Gardens, Community Fridge, Wild Mountain Restaurant, and Sandown Centre for Regenerative Agriculture. May we all continue to cultivate resilient communities for years to come.
Posted in Announcement, NewsSeptember 30, 2022
The Compost Education Centre (CEC) is a charitable, not for profit organization that provides composting, organic gardening and conservation education to residents of the Capital Regional District (CRD).
The CEC is seeking an Executive Director. The ideal candidate will have leadership experience in the non-profit sector, strong communication skills and a great capacity for innovative and strategic thinking.
Work Week: 32 hours per week to start, work week Tuesday – Friday, 9:00am – 5:30pm. After 3-month training and probationary period, potential to expand the role to 40 hours per week, Monday-Friday 9:00am – 5:30pm. Occasional weekend and evening work.
Job Start Date: November 9th, 2022
Job Applications Due: October 17, 2022, 11:59PM
For More Details, Click the Link Provided Below.
Executive Director Job posting September 2022 – Compost Education Centre
Posted in Announcement, Blog, Job Posting, NewsJuly 20, 2022
The Compost Education Centre (CEC) is a project of the Victoria Compost and Conservation Education Society, a not-for-profit, charitable organization. Since 1992, the CEC has provided in-school and community-centred educational programs for people of all ages throughout Greater Victoria and our Capital Regional District (CRD). The CEC is mandated to provide practical, hands-on education around composting, waste diversion, soil conservation and environmental stewardship while also promoting organic and ecological gardening practices as a means of reducing the health and environmental effects of chemical gardening practices, which can be harmful to natural systems, as well as promoting the environmental and social benefits of local food production.
Benefits of Participating
Helpful skills and experience:
Responsibilities
How to Apply: Please submit a PDF to Board Chair, Lisette Chevalier ([email protected]) containing a concise Letter of Interest, outlining skills, experience or interests you possess that could benefit the Compost Education Centre’s Board of Directors by Saturday, November 12th.
If you are interested in learning more about the CEC’s Board of Directors or about the organization before applying, please email Lisette Chevalier at at the previously listed contact.
To learn more about the Compost Education Centre and its programs visit our website www.compost.bc.ca
What is the Board of Directors? The Board ensures that the Compost Education Centre is fulfilling its purpose and vision and oversees the society’s finances & human resources.
What do Board members do? They attend meetings every other month and join 1-3 committees: Policy, Finance & fundraising, Board Development – each with their own goals.
Can anyone become a Board Member? Yes! Anyone can buy a membership ($30) and express interest in being nominated to the Board of Directors at our AGM on Thursday, November 17, 2022. If cost is prohibitive to membership, please reach out, bursaries are available to cover membership cost.
What are the perks of joining the Board? Volunteering with a charitable non-profit org provides practical work skills. It’s also a way to meet like-minded folks from other professions and disciplines.
Are Board Members paid positions? Unfortunately, no. The BC Societies Act prohibits us from paying Board Members. These positions are volunteer.
What is the orientation like? CEC board members are oriented to the society’s board work through a facilitated session led by Volunteer Victoria. Board Members have access to society docs that outline their roles and may also take free workshops. We also recommend reading the BC Societies Act.
Posted in Announcement, Blog, NewsJuly 14, 2022
The Compost Education Centre (CEC) is hosting our 11th Annual August Plant Sale! This event features local farmers offering a wide variety of organically grown annual overwintering vegetables and perennials to keep you eating through the winter. And to celebrate our 30th birthday as an organization we’ll also have live music, cake, artisan vendors, an e-bike raffle, a bean counting contest, and more!
The plant sale will take place for the first time in Haegert Park one block from our site on North Park street. Bring blanket or a picnic so you can enjoy the music under the giant Sequoia tree. Entry by donation or free for CEC members. Dogs welcome.
There will also be a Parent-Child workshop ‘Composting 101’ taking place during the sale, so bring the whole family and learn about composting while you’re here!
Posted in Announcement, Blog, Events, News