It is with much gratitude that we launch the Worm Poop Centennial Project! This project is in partnership with the Victoria Horticultural Society who is celebrating 100 years of hands-on gardening education. Through the VHS’ generous donation we are able to give away 100 worm bins to interested non-profit and educational groups when they book a worm composting workshop with us. Get in touch with Elora, to learn more about this initiative at education@compost.bc.ca
The Royal Roads University Student Team, GVA Soil Solutions, has wrapped up their work with Healing City Soils for 2019. This year the team continued their focus on testing and mapping soil quality in the West Shore Communities, but also received many applications from all over the CRD. Their final report, with many illuminating results, can be read in our office located at 1216 North Park.
Applicants can expect to receive their test results this fall as well as notifications on how to access to the free workshop “Understanding and Addressing Soil Contamination for Gardeners”. This workshop, led by soil remediation and mapping expert Steeve Deschenes, assists applicants in making sense of their test results and then making a plan for their gardens should they have higher-than-normal levels of heavy metals in their soils.
We are thrilled to be hosting two great rainwater harvesting workshops, as well as a stormwater management specialist from the City of Victoria who will be on-hand to answer questions!
But that’s not all — our wonderful friends at Van Isle Water are offering all workshop attendees a coupon that can be redeemed for 15% off all rainwater harvesting materials!
INTRO TO RAINWATER HARVESTING, 10:00am-12:00pm, $20.Register here.
This introductory workshop is perfect for people who are keen to start learning all about rainwater harvesting. The workshop will define and explain watersheds, lay out the principles of rainwater harvesting, define terms such as greywater and blackwater, and go over the laundry to landscape system of rainwater containment using techniques such as cisterns and earthworks.
RAINWATER HARVESTING INTEGRATED DESIGN, 2:00-4:00pm, $20. Register here.
This workshop will help you get started designing a rainwater harvesting system for your household. We will cover site assessment, water budgeting, design work, and evaluation of different systems. Please bring a plan/overhead view of your site if possible, as we will be doing hands-on work.
Soil Testing Underway For Healing City Soils Project
April 6, 2016
It was a successful first day of soil testing for the Healing City Soils Team! The team will be taking samples from residential yards and boulevards for the next two months around Victoria and Esquimalt and the information collected will be uploaded into an interactive soil health map. Learn more about the project here.
We are very excited to announce that we have partnered with Royal Roads University and Danielle Stevenson of DIY Fungi to launch a new project called Healing City Soils. Bridging urban agriculture, composting, food literacy, ecological restoration and bioremediation, this initiative brings together the municipalities of Victoria and Esquimalt, local post-secondary institutions, food security organizations and people who are interested in growing food and building the soil beneath their feet.
This project is about getting to know the soil beneath our feet, and building community around healing it. Ensuring the soil is healthy is a first step to any urban agriculture project; from backyard growing to community and boulevard gardening. Urban soils can sometimes contain heavy metals and other contaminants as a result of our industrial past and present. This is not so great for our urban food gardens as the contaminants can get into or onto our veggies and fruits. Soil testing can be expensive, and the results can be confusing or disheartening, which ends up being a barrier to getting more folks growing.
The goal of Healing City Soils is to analyze the health of Victoria’s soils and create a virtual soil map of Victoria highlighting areas where heavy metals need to be addressed before growing food. This map will be paired with factsheets and workshops to empower people with the knowledge and skills to grow food safely or to heal the soil with compost, plants and mushrooms.
We continued our passion for fungi from Mushroom Education Day with a great workshop on how to create permanent mushroom pathways in the garden. And we installed them right here in the Teaching Garden, so you can come on by and take a look at your leisure!
If the rainy days of early spring are getting you down, try thinking about rainwater as your friend and ally in the garden! In Victoria, we receive an average of 2 feet of rainfall each year. Most of the rain that hits our properties and streets is flushed away through a complex stormwater collection infrastructure and pours into harbours, lakes and river systems, often taking harmful pollutants and heavy metals with it. By collecting and storing rainwater in your property, you can help prevent these pollutants from entering our waterways and treat rainwater as the precious resource it is.
Rainwater collected from a rooftop can be a high quality water source, as it contains none of the chlorine found in centralized water supplies and is the perfect temperature for plants, which makes it ideal for use in the garden. Stored rainwater provides an ideal source of readily available water, particularly during long dry summers or in locations facing declining groundwater levels. Rain gardens, permeable paving, green roofs, rain barrels, cisterns and infiltration chambers are all examples of rainwater management methods. They can create natural, beautiful landscapes and public spaces.
Join us in our fabulous demonstration gardens to learn more about rainwater harvesting systems and practices in your community. In partnership with the CRD, we’ll be bringing together community and municipal groups involved in rainwater management, as well as hosting two free workshops about stormwater education, rainwater harvesting, and choosing the right systems. You will be entered to win a free rain barrel too!
Rainy Days has received generous support from RBC and is proudly supported by the CRD.
Subsidized rain cisterns will be available on a first come first serve basis, with 10 of each size available for purchase. Limit one per household, payment options include credit card, debit, cash or cheque. Pick-up of the cisterns will be at Van Isle Water Systems with proof of purchase – 461 Dupplin Road, Victoria Store Hours: 7.30am-5.00pm Weekdays, 8.00am-Noon Saturdays.
100 Gallon (455 Liters) Rain Barrel complete with easy to install Diverter System with Overflow and Drain Kit. Cost $202.92 Savings of over 60%!
400 Gallon (1818 Liters) Slimline Rain Tank complete with All-in-One Downspout 400 Gallon (1818 Liters) Slimline Rain Tank complete with All-in-One Downspout Diverter with 6’ of Flex Pipe and easy to install Overflow and Drain Kit / Cost $587.72. Savings of over 60%!
