Special Workshops for Gardeners

A sample of grafting knives - the key 
to all of them is "sharpness." The proper style
is the one that feels good in your hand! 

March is a glorious month to do some very special gardening and we are offering two special classes on plant propagation! All classes, unless specified otherwise are held at The Learning Garden, a non-profit on the grounds of Venice High School - please enter from Walgrove Avenue.

First class is on March 14th, 1:30 to 3:30. In this class, we will cover growing from seeds, air-layering (I can hear you say, "what's that?") and taking cuttings from perrenial plants. We will cover some California Natives, though the main concentration will be on ornamental plants and food plants. This class provides easily accessed data that can serve novice gardeners as well as experts - in fact, this class is about what makes an expert gardener. Cost for the class is $20 and a $5 materials fee. You can pay by PayPal to greenteach@gmail.com or by check or cash at The Learning Garden



We do another Propagation class on March 28th, 1:30 to 4:00 - it may not last that long, but I will work with folks to make sure they have everything down so I want you to be prepared to stay, if needs be. This class is $20 with a $10 material fee.  This class is on grafting. It is not hard to do, but it does require understanding of how plants work and attention to detail. Grafting is the reason I became interested in gardening as my employment. I'll tell the story in class!

If you have a grafting knife, bring it. I will have Victorinox knives for sale for those who wish to commit to grafting. These are not top of the line, but they are well made and will serve well. There are many knives in the world that do not come close to being usable for grafting. You should keep the grafting knife for grafting only and bring another knife for all other cutting work.  The first topic is safety! You can pay by PayPal to greenteach@gmail.com or by check or cash at The Learning Garden

Apples on a tree grafted about 15 years ago (the tag is long gone!), these are
Dorsett Golden , a low chill variety that produces grate apples..

Respond here with your questions and I'll see you at The Learning Garden on the 14th or 28th!

david

What To Do And When To Do It, March 2020

March is the month we delve into soil and what we need to make a good garden. Without all the hubbub and technical talk, we'll explore the soils we have in our gardens – there are few inherently bad soils. Most soils can be made garden worthy with a little help and attention.

No work is done, unitl the paper work is
done. Grateful to have help in finishing up. 

We'll also show you why you cannot depend on garden books from Europe and the US East Coast. Also I want to help you take a hard look at the coming summer garden which is going to be here in short order, whether we are ready or not! It's a good time of the year to be a gardener, but take a break to learn a few new things that will make your garden better! 

And, as always, your questions answered!

It's the same scheme, still only $20 (cash, check or PayPal), 10 to noon at The Learning Garden on the Venice High School campus, enter through the Walgrove gate.

david