Upcoming Events
2017
WHAT: 100 in 1 Day - Guided Food Forest Walk, Tree Labeling & Strawberries!
WHEN: Saturday June 3 2017 1:00pm - 3:00pm
WHERE: South Branch Park, follow the bike path beside 61 Dillabough St. down into the park
DETAILS: We
will have a guided tour of the food forest, tree labeling and fresh strawberries to eat!Past Events
2017
WHAT: Food Forest and Park Cleanup
WHEN: Saturday April 22 2017
WHERE: Chelsea Bridge on Adelaide (where
the small chip truck is).
DETAILS: We
will be working with Hamilton Rd. Community Association through Adopt a
Park to cleanup South Branch Park and the Carolinian Food Forest2016
WHAT: Carolinian Food Forest -Work Bee - pruning, weeding
WHEN: Tuesday June 7 2016, 9:00am to 12:00pm
WHERE: South Branch Park, follow the bike path beside 61 Dillabough St. down into the park
DETAILS: We will be pruning dead branches and clearing competition around some of the plant we put in in the past 4 years. Bring proper footwear, clothes you don’t mind getting
dirty, work gloves and shovel (and pruning/weeding equipment if you have some). 2015
WHAT: Carolinian Food Forest - 1st Annual South Branch Park Social
WHEN: Saturday May 23 2015, 11:00am to 3:00pm
WHERE: South Branch Park, at the south end
of Dillabough Street
DETAILS: Come on down for free trees, free fun! There will be music, and a fruit tree giveaway.
We will be doing a spring planting as well so bring proper footwear, clothes you don’t mind getting dirty, work gloves and shovel if you want to get involved!
WHAT: Carolinian Food Forest -Work Bee - tree planting, mulching and competition reduction
WHAT: Carolinian Food Forest -Work Bee - tree planting, mulching and competition reduction
WHAT: Carolinian Food Forest -Work Bee - mulching, competition reduction and apple harvest
WHAT: Carolinian Food Forest - Harvest Celebration
We are having a fall event down at the food forest on Saturday Oct 31st from 10am-2pm! This is a free event.
There will be
- Lunch (soup and bread)
- hot chocolate
- warming station
- Park garbage Clean Up
- Drum circle
- dress up for Halloween
- Info about food security distributed
- Tour of food forest
- Weeding and tree collaring
- Milk carton gardening demo
We will be doing a spring planting as well so bring proper footwear, clothes you don’t mind getting dirty, work gloves and shovel if you want to get involved!
WHAT: Carolinian Food Forest -Work Bee - tree planting, mulching and competition reduction
WHEN: Friday June 12 2015, 11:00am to 12:30pm
WHERE: South Branch Park, follow the bike path beside 61 Dillabough St. down into the park
DETAILS: We
will be working with students from a neighbouring school to plant trees
and shrubs, as well as mulching and reducing competition. Community
members are welcome to join us. Please bring a water bottle,
work gloves and proper footwear. WHAT: Carolinian Food Forest -Work Bee - tree planting, mulching and competition reduction
WHEN: Saturday July 4 2015, 9:00am to 12:00pm
WHERE: South Branch Park, follow the bike path beside 61 Dillabough St. down into the park
DETAILS: We
will planting a few trees
and shrubs, as well as mulching and reducing competition. Please bring a water bottle,
work gloves and proper footwear. WHAT: Carolinian Food Forest -Work Bee - mulching, competition reduction and apple harvest
WHEN: Saturday August 15 2015, 9:00am to 12:00pm
WHERE: South Branch Park, follow the bike path beside 61 Dillabough St. down into the park
DETAILS: Mulching, weeding and apple harvest. Please bring a water bottle,
work gloves, proper footwear and something to carry your apples home in :) WHAT: Carolinian Food Forest - Harvest Celebration
WHEN: Saturday Oct 31 2015, 10:00am to 2:00pm
WHERE: South Branch Park, follow the bike path beside 61 Dillabough St. down into the park
DETAILS:We are having a fall event down at the food forest on Saturday Oct 31st from 10am-2pm! This is a free event.
There will be
- Lunch (soup and bread)
- hot chocolate
- warming station
- Park garbage Clean Up
- Drum circle
- dress up for Halloween
- Info about food security distributed
- Tour of food forest
- Weeding and tree collaring
- Milk carton gardening demo
2014
WHAT: Carolinian Food Forest -Work Bee - main path enlargement and mulching
WHEN: Friday July 18 2014, 9:00am to 12:00pm
WHERE: South Branch Park, at the south end
of Dillabough Street
DETAILS: We will be enlarging and mulching the main path. Bring proper footwear, clothes you don’t mind getting
dirty, work gloves and shovel (and a wheelbarrow if you have one).
WHAT: Carolinian Food Forest -Work Bee - mulching and competition reduction
WHAT: Carolinian Food Forest -Work Bee - erecting signs and building deer fencesWHAT: Carolinian Food Forest -Work Bee - mulching and competition reduction
WHEN: Friday Aug 8 2014, 9:00am to 12:00pm
WHERE: South Branch Park, at the south end
of Dillabough Street
DETAILS: We will be laying mulch and clearing competition around some of the plant we put in in the past 2 years. Bring proper footwear, clothes you don’t mind getting
dirty, work gloves and shovel (and a wheelbarrow if you have one).
WHAT: Carolinian Food Forest -Work Bee - mulching and competition reduction
WHAT: Carolinian Food Forest -Work Bee - mulching and competition reduction
WHEN: Sat Aug 16 2014, 12:00pm to 3:00pm
WHERE: South Branch Park, at the south end
of Dillabough Street
DETAILS: We will be laying mulch and clearing competition around some of the plant we put in in the past 2 years. Bring proper footwear, clothes you don’t mind getting
dirty, work gloves and shovel (and a wheelbarrow if you have one).
WHEN: Friday Sept 26 2014, 9:00am to 12:00pm
WHERE: South Branch Park, at the south end
of Dillabough Street
DETAILS:
We will be installing signs around the food forest and building deer protection around as many plants as possible before winter
sets in. Bring proper footwear, clothes you don’t mind getting
dirty and work gloves. If you have a sledge hammer you
could bring that would be most helpful. Also there is always mulching
that could be done so if you have a wheelbarrow and shovel you could
bring that would be great as well.
WHAT: Crouch Fruit Tree Guild site
preparation and tree planting
WHEN: Saturday April 20 2013, 10:00 to 14:00
WHERE: South Branch Park, at the south end
of Dillabough Street
DETAILS: We will be digging a ditch on
contour (a swale) to capture rainwater for the trees, planting three fruit
trees and sheet mulching around each tree to prepare the ground for more
planting in the fall. Bring proper footwear, clothes you don’t mind getting
dirty and work gloves if you have them. There will be a light lunch served at
12:00. Please bring your own water bottle.
WHAT: Carolinian Food Forest -Work Bee - installing tree collars
WHEN: Tuesday Nov 25 2014, 11:00am to 2:00pm
WHERE: South Branch Park, at the south end
of Dillabough Street
DETAILS:
We will be installing deer protection around as many plants as possible before winter
sets in. Dress for the weather in case it is cold. Please bring your own bottle of water (or hot beverage!).2013
WHAT: Carolinian Food Forest site preparation
and tree planting
WHEN: Monday April 22 2013, 13:00 to 15:15
WHERE: South Branch Park, at the south end
of Dillabough Street
DETAILS: We will be working with several
classes from the neighbouring schools to plant trees and shrubs, and prepare
the ground for planting herbaceous perennials in the fall by sheet mulching new
areas. Community members are welcome to join us. Please bring a water bottle,
work gloves and proper footwear.
WHAT:
Buckthorn Removal
WHEN: Saturday April 27 2013 (rain date May 4), 13:00 to 16:00
WHERE: South Branch Park, at the south end of Dillabough Street
DETAILS: Bring your muscle power to help us keep the invasive European Buckthorn under control in the Food Forest. You will also learn how to deal with this pernicious shrub so you can extirpate it from your own property if you have it.
WHEN: Saturday April 27 2013 (rain date May 4), 13:00 to 16:00
WHERE: South Branch Park, at the south end of Dillabough Street
DETAILS: Bring your muscle power to help us keep the invasive European Buckthorn under control in the Food Forest. You will also learn how to deal with this pernicious shrub so you can extirpate it from your own property if you have it.
WHAT: Building Homes for Native
Pollinators
WHEN: Saturday May 4 2013, 10:00 – 11:30.
WHERE: TBD
DETAILS: There are hundreds of native pollinators that keep our gardens, farms and wild spaces productive. Without them we would have little to eat and little colour to admire in the flower beds. Joins us to build habitat for mason bees, native bumblebees, ladybugs and solitary wasps. Each participant or family will get to take one insect home home with them. All ages welcome! You must register in advance so that materials can be purchased.
WHEN: Saturday May 4 2013, 10:00 – 11:30.
WHERE: TBD
DETAILS: There are hundreds of native pollinators that keep our gardens, farms and wild spaces productive. Without them we would have little to eat and little colour to admire in the flower beds. Joins us to build habitat for mason bees, native bumblebees, ladybugs and solitary wasps. Each participant or family will get to take one insect home home with them. All ages welcome! You must register in advance so that materials can be purchased.
WHAT: Foraging walk
WHEN: Thursday June 13 2013, 19:00 – 20:00.
WHERE: Carolinian Food Forest, (South Branch Park at the south end of Dillabough Street)
DETAILS: Join us for a walk in London’s first food forest to harvest wild foods and learn the art of wild crafting. We will pick seasonal edibles, talk about preparation and cooking techniques and discuss those we come across that are not in season. The process of plant identification and best practices while foraging will be emphasized so that others in the present and in the future can continue to wild craft.
WHEN: Thursday June 13 2013, 19:00 – 20:00.
WHERE: Carolinian Food Forest, (South Branch Park at the south end of Dillabough Street)
DETAILS: Join us for a walk in London’s first food forest to harvest wild foods and learn the art of wild crafting. We will pick seasonal edibles, talk about preparation and cooking techniques and discuss those we come across that are not in season. The process of plant identification and best practices while foraging will be emphasized so that others in the present and in the future can continue to wild craft.
WHAT: All About Guilds
WHEN: Tuesday June 18 2013, 19:00 to 20:00
WHERE: South Branch Park, at the south end
of Dillabough Street
DETAILS: This workshop will go over the
design and theory of plant guilds. You will learn how a purposeful guild of
species around a tree helps to maintain health and save you work as well as how
to design your own guilds for your home garden.
WHAT: Introduction to Food Forests
WHEN: Tuesday July 9 2013, 18:00 to 19:00
WHERE: South Branch Park, at the south end
of Dillabough Street
DETAILS: Come explore the elegant design of
a food forest. In this workshop you will learn what a food forest is, their
history, how they work, and what the different layers and elements are that
make up a good design.
WHAT: Foraging walk
WHEN: Friday August 16 2013, 10:30 – 11:30 PLEASE NOTE TIME CHANGE.
WHERE: Carolinian Food Forest, (South Branch Park at the south end of Dillabough Street)
DETAILS: Join us for a walk in London’s first food forest to harvest wild foods and learn the art of wild crafting. We will pick seasonal edibles, talk about preparation and cooking techniques and discuss those we come across that are not in season. The process of plant identification and best practices while foraging will be emphasized so that others in the present and in the future can continue to wild craft.
WHEN: Friday August 16 2013, 10:30 – 11:30 PLEASE NOTE TIME CHANGE.
WHERE: Carolinian Food Forest, (South Branch Park at the south end of Dillabough Street)
DETAILS: Join us for a walk in London’s first food forest to harvest wild foods and learn the art of wild crafting. We will pick seasonal edibles, talk about preparation and cooking techniques and discuss those we come across that are not in season. The process of plant identification and best practices while foraging will be emphasized so that others in the present and in the future can continue to wild craft.
WHAT: Introduction to Food Forests
WHEN: Wednesday August 21 2013, 18:00 to 19:00
WHERE: South Branch Park, at the south end
of Dillabough Street
DETAILS: Come explore the elegant design of
a food forest. In this workshop you will learn what a food forest is, their
history, how they work, and what the different layers and elements are that
make up a good design.
WHAT: Carolinian Food Forest AND Crouch
Fruit Tree Guild celebration and site planting
WHEN: Saturday September 28 2013 (rain date Sept 29),10:00 to 15:00
WHERE: South Branch Park, at the south end
of Dillabough Street
DETAILS: We will have a community gathering
and feast to celebrate both of these great projects and get all of the
herbaceous perennials in the ground before winter. Local talent will ply us
with music while we plant.
WHAT: What Do I Do With
All This Fruit!
WHEN: Saturday October 19 2013, 13:00 – 14:30.
WHERE: TBD
WHEN: Saturday October 19 2013, 13:00 – 14:30.
WHERE: TBD
DETAILS:
Do you have a fruit tree in your yard that produces more than you can handle?
Or do you want to purchase bulk fruit to save for winter? In either case, join
us to learn the many ways you can preserve your fruit for the colder months.
Techniques to be demonstrated include canning, juicing, drying, and freezing.
There will be some interactive components to the workshop, some observation,
and definitely some taste testing. You must pre-register for this workshop.
WHAT: Holistic Fruit
Tree Health Primer
WHEN: Sunday October 27 2013, 13:00 – 14:00.
WHERE: South Branch Park at the south end of Dillabough Street
DETAILS: If you have a fruit tree or are thinking of getting one you will want to come to this workshop. Holistic fruit tree health is all about making the soil and tree as strong as can be so that any diseases or pests can’t establish themselves. We will demonstrate several holistic health practices on the trees in the Crouch Fruit Tree Guild Project to get them ready for winter.
What: Community members got together to remove buckthorn from the food forest site as the initial first stage of site preparation.WHEN: Sunday October 27 2013, 13:00 – 14:00.
WHERE: South Branch Park at the south end of Dillabough Street
DETAILS: If you have a fruit tree or are thinking of getting one you will want to come to this workshop. Holistic fruit tree health is all about making the soil and tree as strong as can be so that any diseases or pests can’t establish themselves. We will demonstrate several holistic health practices on the trees in the Crouch Fruit Tree Guild Project to get them ready for winter.
2012
Buckthorn RemovalWhy: Buckthorn is an invasive species that chokes out native growth and can rapidly take over an area.
How: A Weed Wrench and hand pulling were used to remove small buckthorns, while larger ones were girdled. Girdling means that a 2"-3" strip of bark is removed around the whole trunk near the ground. This stops the flow of nutrients from the leaves back to the roots and will slowly kill the shrub over 2 years.
Apple Tree Pruning
What: Davey Tree Services pruned the half dozen neglected apple trees on the site.
Why: The trees are left over from an old apple orchard that used to be on the site. They have been untended for over 50 years. Pruning them will help keep them healthy and make them more productive.
How: It will take several years to bring the trees back to significant production. Hard pruning like this must be done when the tree is dormant in winter and generally takes around 3 years to complete. Community members were not allowed to participate in the pruning but were invited to watch and learn.
Site Preparation
What: Areas that were to be planted with herbaceous ground covers in the first year of the project were prepared using a technique called sheet mulching with the help of students from Lester B Pearson School.
Why: Sheet mulching is a way to suppress the plants we don't want to have on the site without tilling or disturbing all of the life in the soil and potentially stirring up weed seeds. It enhances soil fertility, while tilling can damage the soil and disturb nutrient cycling.
How: Pitch forks were used to poke holes in the soil to make it easier for air and water to get in. Cardboard was laid over the site making sure there was a good overlap between sheets so that no grass and plants could wiggle through gaps. Compost was spread over top of this and then it was covered with wood chip mulch to prevent weeds from colonizing the bare soil.
Spring Planting
What: Several species of trees were planted in the spring of 2012 on the northern portion of the site with the help of community members and students from Lester B Pearson School.
Why: Trees should be planted in early spring or late fall when temperatures are cooler and wetter than in mid-summer. This is less stressful for the trees and they adapt better to their new home.
How: Holes were dug a few inches wider and deeper than the pot the tree was growing in. These were filled with a mix of compost and native soil to bring the tree up so that it was level with the ground. Mycorrhizal fungi was rubbed on the roots to help them access nutrients in the soil and the hole was filled with a mix of compost and soil from the site. Trees were watered well and the soil lightly pressed in around the roots.
Fall Planting and launch party
What: In the fall of 2012 more trees were planted as well as many shrubs and herbaceous perennials. Community members, young and old, came to help. A delicious lunch of locally grown food was served by The London Training Centre. Dan and Mary-Lou Smoke held a blessing ceremony for the trees and plants.
Why: Fall is a good time for planting because it is cooler and wetter - which makes it easier for the plants to establish themselves in their new home.
How: The event started with a First Nation ceremony to bless the site and the plants and thank the elements for all that they do. Volunteers then spread out across the site and found trees, shrubs or perennials they wanted to plant. The Steering Committee members were there to assist and ensure that plants were being planted correctly. People took a break to enjoy lunch as they needed and then did some more planting. We planted over 600 plants!!
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