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Book an Adult Workshop

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 one hour-long “lunch and learn” format.

Workshops

  • Seedling Starting

    Contact for price quote · 1-2 hrs

    Learn simple techniques for analysing your soil quality through this hands-on workshop

    We’ll measure the physical and biological quality of soil using the following practical tools you can also use at home:

    • Soil texture test
    • Soil aggregation test (slake test)
    • Water infiltration rate
    • Earthworm count
    • Rizosheath assessment
    • Nodulation of legumes

    Knowing these details can help inform next steps for stewarding your soil, and provide important baseline information for your gardening journey.

  • Practical Tools for Measuring Soil Health

    Contact for price quote · 1-2 hrs

    Learn simple techniques for analysing your soil quality through this hands-on workshop

    We’ll measure the physical and biological quality of soil using the following practical tools you can also use at home:

    • Soil texture test
    • Soil aggregation test (slake test)
    • Water infiltration rate
    • Earthworm count
    • Rizosheath assessment
    • Nodulation of legumes

    Knowing these details can help inform next steps for stewarding your soil, and provide important baseline information for your gardening journey.

  • 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 

  • Container Gardening

    Contact for price 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.

  • Sustainable Site Tour

    $175 · 1-1.25 hrs

    We offer guided tours during which participants will gain an in-depth understanding of the many ecological gardening techniques and processes at work on the Compost Education Centre’s site.  Topics covered include attracting pollinators, permaculture guilds and food forests, organic vegetable growing, soil stewardship and rainwater harvesting.

  • Grow Your Own Food 101

    Contact for price 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.

  • Soil Life: Really Important Tiny Lives

    $200 · 1-2 hrs

    The soil under our feet is teeming with a web of microscopic life, whose complex interactions support all other terrestrial life. Healthy soils feature an intact and diverse microbial food web, which sustain nutrient cycles and maintain soil structure. We’ll finish by discussing the most effective ways to steward this living medium, and come away with aan inspired understanding of the intricate ways life in the soil, supports all life on earth.

  • 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.

  • Composting Basics

    $200 · 1.5 hrs

    What is the recipe for compost success and why does composting matter? This workshop will explore the answer to these questions, and will offer instructions on what it takes to produce an amendment for your garden that is rich in beneficial microorganisms and nutrients! We’ll cover the 6 factors for composting success, how to choose the best composting system for your needs and how to increase the rodent resistance of your compost pile.