Homesteading Arts Festival

Sunday's Homesteading Arts Festival was a brilliant success!  You can view all of the images on our Facebook Album. Did you miss today?  We have our Fall Homesteading Arts Festival on Saturday, October 20th from 9am-4pm.  Vendors can learn more here.

[gallery]

Edible Magazine Shows us Serious LOVE

 

Are you a reader of Edible San Diego?  The delightful, earthy magazine that  showcases local cuisine, business and keeps a current tally of every farmers market in the city?

In their Spring issue, the wonderfabulous folks at Edible gave City Farmers some serious content coverage.  They talk about Bill's start, the changes in owning a nursery for nearly forty years, and a good tour of the CFN property.

{Read the full article}

Seed Starting Workshop - Great Growing Opportunity

If you’ve dreamt of starting seeds, or struggled with seeds in the past, this workshop is for you. San Diego garden expert, author, teacher, and designer Nan Sterman is offering seven seed starting workshops at locations throughout San Diego County this March.

This workshop focuses on seed starting basics.  You'll start with how to read seed packages and which seeds to start in which seasons. Learn about containers for starting seeds and the best soils, too. Everything a hoping-for-green-thumb needs to raise a summer full of vegetables, fruits and herbs will be covered. Then, you'll literally dig in and getplanting!

Participants end up with:

• dirty fingernails

• smiles on their faces

• an entire garden of tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, zucchini, cucumbers, basil, pumpkins and more... seeded and ready to sprout!

IMG_1742lr

From Nan, 

"For the price of a trip to the grocery store, participants start several hundred dollars worth of plants, which can, over the course of the summer, produce hundreds of dollars worth of produce. Once they gain those skills, they’ll know how to produce that value again next summer, the summer after that, and for years to come."

These intimate, hands-on workshops are limited to 15 – 20 people... and advance registration is required.

March 4, 2012, 1 PM to 3 PM, at a private home in La Mesa, ticket info

March 10, 2012,10:00 AM to 12:00 PM, at Southwest Boulder and Stone, Pacific Beach, ticket info

March 11, 2012, 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM, at The Olive Branch Green Building Supply, North Park, ticket info

March 17th, 10 AM to noon, at a private home in Encinitas, ticket info

March 18, 2012, 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM, at The Cosmopolitan Hotel and Restaurant, Old Town, ticket info *for this special event, The Cosmopolitan Hotel and Restaurant's Chef Andrew Sasloe will be serving tasty treats made with the same vegetables we'll be planting.

March 31, 2012, 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM at Southwestern College in Chula Vista, ticket info

For more information on the series, visit www.plantsoup.com

About Nan Sterman:

California native Nan Sterman is dedicated to the transformation of planted landscapes from overly thirsty and resource intensive to climate appropriate and sustainable. Her efforts combine age-old techniques with modern technologies.

Nan has worked towards this goal since the 1970s when she was involved in the first wave of the sustainability movement. Her initial training was at the Integral Urban House, a demonstration retrofit Victorian home in Berkeley, California. She went on to earn a botany degree from Duke University, a Masters in biology from UC Santa Barbara, and a Masters in instructional design from San Diego State University.

Nan parlayed her early experiences in sustainability to address modern day issues. She is author of California Gardener’s Guide vol II, the only book about low water, Mediterranean climate gardens written specifically for California home gardeners. In 2010, she added Waterwise Plants for the Southwest to her publication list.

Nan has a monthly water-wise garden column in the San Diego Union Tribune and is the gardening expert for San Diego public radio’s Midday Edition talk show. She also writes for publications such as the Los Angeles Times, Sunset, Better Homes and Gardens, and Organic Gardening. She Nan co-produces, co-writes, and hosts A Growing Passion, a television show that takes viewers on tours of beautiful, inspiring home gardens.

Nan speaks, teaches, and writes about low water, sustainable and edible gardening, all of which she designs for client’s homes and school gardens. She seeks out plants, methods, and technologies that ensure client gardens are as water-efficient, low maintenance, and beautiful as possible.

Nan is a board member of the Garden Writer’s Association and a founding board member of the Association of Professional Landscape Designers, San Diego District.

Nan Sterman’s website is www.PlantSoup.com