You can use a rain barrel to capture rainwater from the roof of your house or shed. It’s an affordable energy efficiency project that anyone can accomplish. Your garden will benefit and so will your water bill once the rain has stopped. Learn how to build your own and where to get materials locally at a free library program.
CGC member gardeners, come get some transplants of cool season plants like cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli. Distribution will occur at the Claudell Garden Saturday, April 6, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. and Sunday, April 7, 12-4 p.m. No one will be denied plants for lack of contributing, but a donation of 50¢ per plant is requested to help cover CGC costs.
A variety of seeds, and row cover fabric (for protecting plants from insects like cabbage worm) will also be available. Row cover fabric is being sold for 25¢ per linear foot.
While we’re all waiting for spring to finally arrive for real, it seems like a good time to remind all community gardeners to fill out the annual Gardener Household Information Form. We ask all individual gardeners to fill this out (1 per household) each year you garden in a member garden. Your answers will be kept private, but the data we collect helps us get our funding from year to year.
Our annual Spring Thaw organizing event is happening Saturday, February 23, 2-4 p.m., at the ARC (1701 W. Ash).
Drop in to find out about community gardens near you and sign up for a plot to grow your own food this summer. For new or returning gardeners, we will have seeds available for a small donation. Most of our public community gardens will have representatives there to tell you about their gardens or help you confirm a plot to grow in this year.
Growing Peppers, From Seed to Salsa
Monday, February 18 › 1-2:30 p.m.
Columbia Public Library, Friends Room
Get the details here.
Gardener Steve Donofrio is an expert at growing all the best ingredients to make some of the best salsa you’ll ever taste. If you’re planning to grow peppers, either sweet or hot, this year, don’t miss his free class at the public library. He’ll cover everything from starting seeds to harvesting. Warm-weather plants like peppers should be started from seed indoors in late winter in our area, so this class is very well-timed.
Learn how to prune young fruit trees and shrubs and this low-cost workshop offered by the Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture as part of their Urban Orchards program.
Saturday, February 16, 2-4 p.m.
at Kilgore’s Giving Garden, 700 N. Providence Rd.
Local extension expert James Quinn will demonstrate pruning strategies for apples, pears, peaches, raspberries, and blackberries. All participants of the Urban Orchards program (those who received trees or bushes in last two years) will receive a fee waiver. All other people are invited to attend and asked to contribute $5 to cover printing costs for publications and other workshop costs. Register here.
One thing that’s always bothered me about traditional food drives is the emphasis on processed food. It makes sense, of course, because it’s easier to distribute shelf-stable food items, but many food products that are non-perishable are also not as nutritious and all-around good-to-eat as fresh foods prepared in your home kitchen. Stepping right up to the plate to fix that problem is the MLK Day Fresh Food Drive sponsored by Americorps Vista and the Missouri River Communities Network.
It’s happening this weekend, January 18, 19 & 20, so stop by the Clover’s Natural Foods on E. Broadway or the Columbia Farmer’s Market (Saturday in Parkade Plaza
) to contribute. All food collected will be donated for cooked meals at the Salvation Army Harbor House, the Catholic Worker Houses of Columbia, and the Loaves and Fishes Soup Kitchen. Though the emphasis will be on fresh produce, packaged food donations will also be gratefully accepted.
As we finish putting our summer beds to rest and harvest our fall greens, it’s time to start thinking about the first planting for next season: garlic.
This hardy crop, planted in the fall for an early summer harvest, is easy to grow in Mid-Missouri. Just follow these few simple steps.
The third annual Harvest Hootenanny will be held on Saturday, September 29, 2012 from 3-8 p.m. The Hootenanny is a celebration of the growing season and a fundraising event at CCUA’s Urban Farm, there is a suggested donation of $5-20 at the door. There will be plenty to do for the whole family, so bring ‘em all! The entire Urban Farm will have interpretive signs and volunteers to help you learn about our fruit, vegetable, herb, flower, egg, and chicken production. Also, while you’re at the farm you can sign up to become a CCUA member, buy a “Food is Good” t-shirt and talk to staff and volunteers about CCUA’s different programs. There will be live music, a Missouri-grown meal (free), a live and silent auction (6 p.m.), kids games, roasted chestnuts, free t-shirt drawings, local beer and wine (free), and tons of fun!
This weekend’s Edible Columbia tour offers a chance to visit some community gardens, an urban farm and other local food projects. The tour happens Sunday September 16 from 2-5 p.m. For the cost of a small donation, you’ll also get dinner at Comedor Popular.
Tickets available at the Peace Nook. For more information, visit the Center for Sustainable Living or call 573-875-0539.
Community Garden Coalition 
