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By Bellamy Crawford<\/p>\n
This spring, Organic Growers School (OGS) will host a four-part Gardening Series with Peace Gardens & Market in West Asheville. The Spring Gardening Series provides high-quality, affordable, hands-on, sustainable gardening instruction specifically for the Western North Carolina bioregion.<\/p>\n
\u201cSince the Gardening Series was first introduced as part of OGS\u2019 annual programs in 2014, we have tried to ensure that the series is a community-centered event, focusing not just on grower-to-grower education but the overall ways local growing enriches our lives, our neighbors and our neighborhoods,\u201d says OGS program coordinator Megan Krintz. \u201cTo that effect, we are excited to partner with Peace Gardens & Market to have this year\u2019s series center on community-building. By hosting the Gardening Series with Peace Gardens, OGS hopes to contribute to the ongoing community-based social justice work, resource-building and gardening education that Peace Gardens has led for years.\u201d<\/p>\n
Safi Martin, Peace Gardens co-founder, with local activist DeWayne Barton, has been a part of NC\u2019s agricultural legacy for as long as she can remember. \u201cFrom my childhood on the farm to today, I\u2019ve always gardened wherever I\u2019ve lived,\u201d Martin says. \u201cI know the power of growing food\u2014no cash register at the end of the row, sharing the harvest with friends and neighbors, getting creative in the kitchen and developing new recipes for using and preserving the harvest.\u201d<\/p>\n
While the Gardening Series primarily focuses on introductory gardening, intermediate gardeners will find opportunities to observe helpful techniques including Peace Gardens\u2019 tiered beds, gravity-fed water catchment, greenhouses, composting systems and native and perennial integrations. In addition, gardening instructor Laura Ruby of Ruby Ranch will be offering participant-led workshops focusing on starting seeds, planting schedules, soil amendments and sustainable pest control.<\/p>\n
Like Martin, Ruby has been gardening since she was a child. \u201cI moved to Asheville ten years ago and started teaching through Wild Abundance,\u201d she says. \u201cOGS reached out last year and invited me to teach at the Spring Gardening Series, and I loved it. It\u2019s great offering workshops for four weeks in the spring, when everyone is ready to get their gardens going. The excitement participants bring to the series is wonderful.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Gardening Series class dates, topics and locations are as follows: Garden Planning and Prep (Peace Gardens & Market) on Saturday, April 13, 2-4 p.m.; Soil Management and Care (Peace Gardens & Market) on Saturday, April 20, 2-4 p.m.; From Lawn to Garden: Making the Most of Your Space (Laura Ruby\u2019s home garden in West Asheville) on Saturday, April 27, 2-4 p.m.; and Summer Garden Management and Preservation (Peace Gardens & Market) on Saturday, May 4, 2-4 p.m.<\/p>\n
No gardening experience is needed. Classes are $25\/session. Participants can sign up for one, a few or all of the sessions; however, attending all classes is encouraged for full benefit. Registration is required. For more information about the series and to register, visit OrganicGrowersSchool.org<\/a>. For more information about Peace Gardens & Market, visit UrbanPeaceGardens.org<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Organic Growers School (OGS) will host a four-part Gardening Series with Peace Gardens & Market in West Asheville. The Spring Gardening Series provides high-quality, affordable, hands-on, sustainable gardening instruction specifically for the Western North Carolina bioregion.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":68036,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[102,57,62],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-68034","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food","category-lifestyle","category-outdoors"],"yoast_head":"\n