October 15th Presentation

Program : Front Yard Farms by Aiden Silzer-Hooker guest speaker.

They do edible landscaping in the city. They are full service and will design, install and maintain food gardens. They also are organic grow guides, personal farmers, and do consulting and education.  

Their goal is to bring food production back to the city – local and at home.

There are many reasons for this. It’s more sustainable, increases food diversity, less waste, lower carbon footprint, increased food availability, saves money, conserves water, and better quality/nutritious food.

Community building.  Their motto – ‘Grow anywhere’. Rooftops, walls, boulevards, commercial buildings, condos, common spaces etc. 

Some organic methods they use are listed below.

1. Companion planting can create a healthier garden overall. Intercropping because some plants play well together whilst others do not = allelopathy.
2. Crop rotation of the main food types. Legumes, leafy and other greens, fruiting plants and root crops. Helps manage soil nutrients, water, and controls bad insects.
3. Green manure or cover crops. Clover, oats, winter wheat, fava beans are grown to enrich and protect the soil and then are dug in as compost. Dandelions have tap roots that can bring nutrients up from deep soil to the surface.
4. Composting – for example the 3-bin method. Be sure to mix and balance different plant material – Three parts brown for carbon and one part green for nitrogen. Make sure to aerate, turn the compost regularly so it gets hot.
5. Seed saving. Pick from the best plants to get the best seeds, seeds that sink in water are viable.
6. Succession planting. Stagger planting so that things ripen in succession and not all at once. Maximizes growth in a small space. Allows companion planting and crop rotation during the growing season.

Aiden gave a very interesting and energetic presentation. They have been going for 6 seasons and are talking with landscapers, developers and strata about rooftop and other gardens. They donate produce to food banks and are trying to bring food production into new developments in the planning stage.