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We continue to work through the Natural Farming ideas of Masanobu Fukuoka and consider practical applications for this knowledge in an urban area like Toronto.

From Fukuoka’s book, The One-Straw Revolution, I was able to glean the following quotes which I found to be particularly meaningful for my studies in horticultural therapy:

“Ultimately it is not the growing technique which is the most important factor, but rather the state of mind of the farmer (46).”

“Food and medicine are not two different things:  they are the front and back of one body.  Chemically grown vegetables may be eaten for food, but they cannot be used as medicine (100).”

“If a sick person returns to a healthy environment often the disease will disappear (144).”

We have an “in the garden” session set-up for April and in the meantime an opportunity to consider how to unite the body, the heart and the mind through our garden practices.

At this year’s Organic Conference in Guelph, Ontario, Zora introduced me to a fabulous container for growing vegetables on roof top gardens. The product is from Alternatives, an international cooperative network, in Montreal. The special recycling box design uses irrigation by capillary which reduces the amount of watering required.  The design includes the following: a filling top (for watering), submerged soil mixture column, water reservoir and a false bottom (which you plant on top of).  This method was successfully experimented on the Roof Top Garden at the Big Carrot health foods store.  A great idea, just in time to get us excited about the upcoming growing season.

*For more information about the product see:  The Rooftop Garden Project.

Today I am starting my first course, Cultural Practices for Plants, towards the Horticulturalist Certificate offered by the University of Guelph through the Office of Open Learning. Despite having a blog and being generally comfortable with technology, this is my first on-line course and I was surprisingly nervous the first time I accessed the class website.  Unlike going to a class, where the teacher distributes the syllabus and walks you through the procedure, this is a lot more self directed as you discover the different components carefully organized on the site.

To balance my computer learning with more direct human contact, I am following a discussion group offered by Jane Hayes of Garden Jane.  Tomorrow will be our second in-person meeting to discuss our assigned book the One-Straw Revolution by Masanobu Fukuoka, a Japanese farmer who developed a “natural farming” method.  I always find it a shame to read a great book and not be able to discuss the ideas with others who have similar interests.  I am therefor very much looking forward to the discussion tomorrow.  The Fukuoka Farming Website is also a great resource.

I wonder how my horticulture course will address alternative methods of growing and environmental practices?  Will I be able to put the different aspects of my learning and experience into conversation with each other or will contradicting lessons challenge me to draw my own conclusions?

“Just as I have found the world full of trees that my grandparents planted for me, I am planting for future generations.”  (Babylonian Talmud, Ta’ anit 23a)

Planting a Carob tree at Neot Kedumin, the Biblical Landscape Reserve in Israel.

Taglit-Birthright, Israel Canada Experience Winter 2008.

I was asked at a workshop what I liked most about November and I automatically responded by saying I did NOT like November. I am not really sure what I meant by this reaction because in truth, I did not know November very well. That was before I took Tanzie our dog for an early morning walk along the Rouge River and experienced the first serious frost covered landscape of the season. In this moment, I came to appreciate how magnificent this month really can be. Perhaps November gets ignored as it is overshadowed by the dramatic period before, when the leaves on the trees are on fire with colour, and the period afterwards, when if we are lucky, we get a major dumping of snow. On this particular November morning, every grass blade was transformed into glass, every leaf shape accentuated by a white outline and the Sedam had taken on a magical new colour. The land presented as a confectionery wonderland surrounded by glistening light. It was as if we had found ourselves to be in Wonka’s Woods.

October brought its own set of lessons as I had the chance to take part in a number of community garden fall clean-ups and urban harvest festivals which represent an exciting new trend of reconnecting cities with their food. My main garden maintenance contribution seemed to be working the mulch, an essential component in organic gardening. I learned about the value of adding mulch at this time of year to ensure the soil remains at a more consistent temperature during the winter, especially important with our current freeze-thaw patterns. At the Children’s Garden in High Park we moved compost into the raised beds and covered them with straw mulch. In a few needy spots we included a layer of comfrey leaves that will release plant nutrients.

At the The Julien Project I had the opportunity to lead two fall horticultural therapy sessions with the adults with autism group. We could not escape raking activities in the courtyard. This type of manual work was a new experience for some of the participants and I was not sure they would be too happy with the assignment. It was very apparent however, that the opportunity to give back to the program was appreciated, that the work provided a sense of accomplishment and that new life skills were being learned in the process. In an effort to salvage remnants of the season, we also went on a walkabout to collect fallen leaves throughout the Ignatius Jesuit Centre property. This was followed indoors by filling the presses with our favorite finds.

As for December’s recent arrival, I have felt pushed into accepting that the season is changing, despite being ahead of the official winter solstice. It is a reality check when the tools get lost below a foot of snow because you could not bring yourself to admit you might not have another day of outdoor gardening for some time. As the children from the High Park Children’s Garden know, it is all in the hands of the Garden Protectors now.

I’ve been hearing a lot of interest in seed balls lately and wanted to post some information on my blog. I was first introduced to the neat concept at an introductory workshop on permaculture offered by Garden Jane. During the summer I was fortunate to have the first-hand opportunity to view people of all ages, especially children, interact with seed balls at various community events. I found people to be generally inspired by the concept and that they had a lot of fun getting their hands into the mixture to form the little truffle like balls. Seed balls are a method for distributing seeds by encasing them in a mixture of clay and compost. They are great because you don’t have to do any digging to get planting.  The clay protects the seeds from animals and also ensures there is enough moisture available before the seeds germinate. You can also use-up old seeds when you are unsure about the rate of germination. By having a denser crop, this approach encourages the strongest plants to thrive. Masanobu Fukuoka, a Japanese farmer and author of the One-Straw Revolution is considered a pioneer of no-till farming methods. He is credited with re-introducing the ancient technique of seed balls (direct translation “Earth Dumplings”). On the Evergreen Forum you can download a recipe for seed balls & read or join the discussion on seed ball experiments in Canada.

Above we have a unique boat design for a raised bed which includes a ledge for sitting. To the right we have a square raised bed. These beds, planted with native plants, are part of Ecology Park Community Garden in the Annex neighborhood (Madison and Spadina), Toronto. The revitalized space is a volunteer project of the Annex Residents’ Association with support from the City of Toronto.

This week marked the final session for this year of the Community Stewardship Program at Nordheimer Ravine. We had a small but hard working team out, including visiting stewards from other sites and a very large slug who drew considerable attention. Our job was to dig in 30 plants (native species): Red Maple, Grey Dogwood and Purple Flowering Raspberry. This planting converted a previously mowed grass area into a small extend naturalized space. After planting we added mulch mats (to keep the weeds down), two buckets of mulch (to retain moisture around the plants) and trees guards where appropriate (to protect from nibbling animals). Working together we finished just before it got too dark to be in the park. The rapidly disappearing sunlight a reminder that autumn has arrived.

Tree Tenders was an ideal starting point for a beginner like myself. It provides participants the confidence and knowledge to make a more meaningful contribution when it comes to trees. There is important information for citizens who want to volunteer by planting trees or organize a planting, are interested in maintaining and or planting tress on their own property and want to be able to protect trees by following the tree policies and bylaws. Also, if you need to communicate with an arborist, you will know what questions to ask and be able to make a more informed decision. For my own studies, I believe having an understanding of trees is important to the practice of horticultural therapy because the experience of participants is greatly benefited by having healthy trees in their outdoor workspaces.

With the recent drought conditions in the city there has been plenty of concern generated over the loss of trees. The Don Watcher blog, recently posted encouraging citizens to “Adopt a Street Tree” they pass regularly and to provide it with water, even if only the content of your water bottle. I was fortunate to pick-up at the Riverdale Library book-sale (for 50 cents), a copy of The National Wildlife Federation Book of Family Nature Activities by Page Chichester. It’s an extremely practical guide with step-by-step instructions for working with kids creatively and includes a section on Trees, with an “Adopt a Tree” in your neighborhood activity plan. They suggest activities that encourage young people to observe a selected tree carefully over an extended period of time and to develop their skills by measuring the height of their tree, trying to determine the age of their tree, creating a model of their tree and keeping a tree journal. I would add to this list basic tree maintenance, including watering and mulching. Would it not be wonderful if each school class adopted a tree each year and students followed the life of the tree next to their own school journey through the changing seasons. Reading the storybook The Giving Tree can always be included with any lesson about trees. The key lesson I gained from LEAF was related to on-going observation, how knowing your trees is key to keeping them healthy. Giving young people an early start in developing these skills may ensure that trees planted today will still be around as this group of children grows-up.

Activity idea:  At the High Park Children’s Garden, participants painted pine cones and created butterflies from coffee filters in order to decorate and celebrate the oak tree’s contribution to the garden.