Education — Community Gardening

Windy City Harvest

Workshops in Sustainable Vegetable Production

Crop Planning January 23
Cabin fever is setting in. It’s time to grab your seed catalogs and start dreaming about the growing season. Let’s plan your veggie garden early!

Seed Starting February 27
Learn different techniques for starting your own veggie transplants. Learn to blend your own seed-starting mix and use a soil-block maker, a sustainable method for starting seeds.

Season Extension March 27
Learn how to extend your growing season with low tunnels and cold frames.

Window-box or Container Gardens April 24
Discover space-saving ways to grow your own vegetables.

Building Healthy Soil May 22
Learn about composting, early spring cover cropping, and other soil-building techniques. Healthy soil is the key to healthy plants!

Organic Pest Control June 26
Organic pest control remedies will help you keep those pesky pests in check.

Harvest Techniques July 24
Learn proper harvest and handling techniques for your summer veggies.

Cover Cropping August 28
Discover the best cover crops to use for the fall and winter months. This is a follow-up to spring’s “Building Healthy Soil” workshop.

Seed-Starting: Cool-Season Crop Planning September 25
Learn about fall crops to extend the growing season. Start your own seeds for your fall garden.

Season-Extension Techniques October 23
Extend your growing season to Thanksgiving. What could be better than harvesting your own veggies for your holiday feast!

Troubleshooting Cool-Season Production November 27
Learn about different pests and diseases, and effective control methods for extendingthe growing season.

Fruit Tree Pruning December
A farmer’s work is never done. Now is the time to prune your fruit trees. Learn about proper pruning techniques to maximize fruit production.

Workshop Time, Location, and Registration Information
All workshops are held Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon in the greenhouse classroom at the Arturo Velasquez Institute, 2800 S. Western Avenue (enter the south parking lot at 31st St.). The cost is $30 each or $25 for five or more courses. All materials and handouts are provided. Workshops are taught by Chicago Botanic Garden and Windy City Harvest staff.