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Book an Adult Workshops

Gain new skills and knowledge with the Compost Education Centre! Learn more about our classes. Looking register for one of our public workshops? Click here.

We are happy to come to your organization and share knowledge about the topics listed below. Online options are also possible and workshops can be delivered to your group on Wednesdays through Saturdays. Daytime offerings are preferred but evenings are also possible.

Custom workshops are also available, please be in touch using the form below to share what you are looking for. Composting Basics, Worm Composting and Soil Life workshops can be shortened for a 1 hour long “lunch and learn” format.

Workshops

Putting the Garden to Bed

Contact for price quote · 1-2 hrs
Fall is the time to put the garden to rest. Whether you have overwintering crops in the vegetable gardens, perennials that need pruning back and tucking in, autumn is the time to ensure the soil is protected from winter winds and rains.

In this workshop we’ll cover the following:
- the best techniques for building soil all winter long
- preferred mulches to protect soils
- vegetable crops that overwinter well
- which crops need which type of insulation and winter care
- making compost in cooler temperatures
- wintertime garden maintenance
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Cultivating Healthy Soil in the Garden

Contact for price quote · 2 hrs
In this workshop we’ll explore the basis of all life on earth: Healthy Soil! We’ll explore what soil is made of and the vast importance of soil microbes. We’ll answer these questions and many more:
- What is soil made of and why does soil chemistry matter for growing healthy gardens?
- What is the function of beneficial soil microbes?
- What are some gardening methods that can help my garden thrive with beneficial soil microbes and healthy soil chemistry?
- How can I compost like an expert, mulch like a superstar and build soil organic matter every day of the year?
- Check out on site composting operations in the demonstration gardens: Earth machines, hot compost, tumblers, sheet mulches and worm bins! Together we will build a compost pile.
Come learn why soil is so important for plant growth and how to build incredible soil.

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Plan & Prepare Your Garden

Contact for price quote · 2 hrs
It’s the time of year when gardeners get excited about plotting and planning what they will be planting in their garden. Here on Southern Vancouver Island, good planning makes it possible to harvest produce from our gardens during every month of the year. In this workshop we will cover:
- Why garden in the first place?
- Get to know your garden site, sun, soil, temperature
- Time and money budgeting
- Choosing what to grow, when to plant it, and when to transition to other crops for year-round growing
- Draw a garden plan!
- Take a mini tour of the Compost Education Centre’s annual veggie garden to see how we’ve planned things out for the season
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Gluten-Free Sourdough

Contact for price quote · 2 hrs

Learn the basics of how to make a successful gluten free sourdough starter, which flours are the best for gluten free bread baking, and methods for how to make wholesome home-made loaves of bread. We’ll start by discussing the background of what fermentation actually is, and perhaps even taste some yummy delicacies.

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Fermenting Vegetables

Contact for price quote · 2 hrs

Did you know that you can not only preserve vegetables, but also make them into sources of healthy bacteria, simply by adding salt? At this workshop, we’ll talk shop about the basics of fermenting vegetables and there will be a demo of how to make sauerkraut. Go away with a recipe and method to make your own batch!

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Container Gardening

Contact for cost quote · 1-2 hrs

Growing veggies, flowers and fruits is not only for the garden – growing in containers can be an incredibly rewarding and abundant way to add nourishment and local veg to your meals. In this workshop, learn about what types of containers are the best to use, how to replenish nutrients and choose the right soil, and what varieties of fruit, veg and flowers are best grown in containers.

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Food Preservation Basics

Contact for price quote · 1-2 hrs

Come learn the basics of how to preserve the summer and autumn abundance. We will learn the basics of dehydrating, we’ll cover how best to freeze foods, store foods, and we’ll learn the science behind hot water bath canning and fermenting too. Preserving foods is not only a delicious way to taste summer in the dark rainy days of winter, but it is also an act of sustainability and creates more security in the food system.

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Resilient Lifestyles: Permaculture 101

Contact for a price quote · 2 hrs

Resilient Lifestyles are necessary in these times of climate change, forest fires, and a pandemic. Learn about how you can model your garden, home and life after nature, using the permaculture principles. Permaculture is a sustainable design theory modeled on natural ecosystems. With attention paid to where these practices and where this knowledge originated, come and learn about the ethics and principles of permaculture, and scale-able ways to apply the theory to your garden, home and life.

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Planning Your Year-Round Veggie Garden

Contact for price quote · 2 hrs

Here in Victoria good planning makes it possible to harvest produce from our gardens during every month of the year. Knowing when to sow seeds is important. But it’s just as crucial to know when and how to transition one crop to another. This presentation will show you how to plan to grow year-round, care for your soil, protect your crops in winter, and we’ll even touch on pests and diseases!

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Grow Your Own Food 101

Contact for cost quote · 1-2 hrs

Want to grow your own groceries but not sure where to even start? This tip and info rich workshop is designed for beginners who want to get their hands dirty and start producing fresh produce in their backyards or in containers. We’ll cover soil health, basic gardening techniques like watering, weeding and mulching and so much more.

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Soil Life: Really Important Tiny Lives

$200 · 1-2 hrs

Soil is capable of supporting plant life and is vital to life on earth, yet we understand very little about its complexities. Dig deeper with this introductory soil science workshop where we’ll look at the soil ecosystem and the microbiology that helps us grow nutritious food.

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Advanced Composting

$200 · 1-2 hrs

Advanced Composting aims to broaden the scope of participants’ knowledge of composting methods. Topics covered will include dynamic accumulators and hot composting, compost tea, in-situ composting methods and humanure.