2023 Class Schedule for Community Seed Exchange

 

Feb 25: Seed-Saving Basics 

(Click here to read class notes)

If you are new to seed saving, this is a perfect class to learn how to successfully grow your own seeds. Learn about plant families, integrating seed saving into a home garden, and preventing cross-pollination.

Sara McCamant, Garden Manager at Ceres Community Project, will teach important information on seed-saving basics.

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Mar 25: Integrate Seed Saving into your Backyard Garden

(Click here to read class notes)

If you attended the class in  Seed-Saving Basics you’re going to be inspired to learn how to grow both seeds and crops in your backyard gardens.

Learn how to design your garden for maximum production of both from longtime seed advocate Electra de Peyster

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Apr 22:  Wide World of Heirloom Beans

 We love heirloom dry beans at the Community Seed Exchange. If you are not yet a fan - come learn more about the diversity of shelling beans that are easy to grow in our area. Nothing better than jars of beautiful dried beans for the pantry.

Taught by Laurel Anderson.

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May 27:  Growing Soil

Explore new ideas and age-old approaches to growing healthy soil:  soil that supports plant life, microbes, and sequesters carbon. Let nature model our approaches and learn how key photosynthesis is to soil and microbial life. Recommit to the increase of organic matter in the garden and get some basic approaches to prepping beds. Class will include practical applications, as well as theories and ideas that gardeners can adapt to their own gardens.  Let’s look at approaches that aren’t full of hard rules but explorations as to how can we work with nature and make it work for us.    

Taught by Sara McCamant, Garden Program Manager at Ceres Community Project.

Sara has been gardening professionally, running large scale educational gardens for 30 years, learn from her experiments, explorations, and recent thinking. 

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June 24: Garden Tour

Come see the Community Seed Garden in all of its end of June glory! Everything in the garden is being grown for seed for our seed library. We’ll talk about the varieties we’re growing and discuss seed saving in the home garden. Bring your seed questions and your curiosity.  

 

July 22: Fall and Winter Harvests

This is the time to plant fall/winter crops.  Learn what to plant and when so you can eat from your garden year-round.  This is also the time to prepare for cover-cropping and sinking the winter rains, to protect and nurture your soil.  Start now to sync your garden into the regenerative cycle. 

Taught by Peggy Rose.

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Aug 26: Garden Roundtable/Summer Harvest Potluck

Come join us for the end of August harvest potluck celebration and roundtable discussion with your friends at the CSE.

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Sept 23: Dry Seed Processing

Once you start growing your own seed it is important to know how to separate the seed from the chaff! In this hands-on class, learn seed processing techniques that utilize simple items you have at home. 

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Oct 28: Growing Great Garlic

Sara McCamant will offer her popular class on growing great garlic in Northern California. Everything you need to know to grow and save tastier garlic will be presented, followed by the 7th Annual Great Garlic Swap! Help care for the Chester Aaron Garlic Collection and adopt a variety.

 

No class in November and December.