Photos from the Garden Tour

Wellington School Garden

Kelly's Dye Garden

University of Winnipeg Bike Lab

Before I die wall at the Broadway Neighbourhood Centre

Sunflower at the Broadway Neighbourhood Centre Community Garden

Inner City Garden Tour

Tuesday, August 28, 2012
5:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.

Tour starts at Orioles Community Garden (corner of St. Matthews and Burnell). Take the low-floor bus or ride your bike to 8 inner city community gardens. Enjoy an evening of garden wisdom, inspiring stories and seeing first hand some of the changes that come with greening the community.

For more information, contact Robyn at 204-774-7005 ext. 104 or greening(at)dmsmca.ca.

Orioles Community Garden Pictures

Upcoming Workshops in West Broadway and Spence

Vermicomposting Workshop
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
7:00 to 8:30 p.m.
West Broadway Development Corporation, 608 Broadway

Learn how to compost indoors using red wriggler worms at this FREE workshop. To register call 930-9989 or email composting@westbroadway.mb.ca. For more information, visit the West Broadway Development Corporation Events page.

Food Mapping in Spence Neighbourhood
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Beginning at 5:00 p.m.
689 Maryland Street

Learn where our food comes from and how it gets to our tables; share stories of growing your own food; and help create a food map of Spence neighbourhood. This workshop will be a fun chance to share stories about food and participate in an art activity about food and community.

Workshop is FREE and snacks will be provided!

Orioles Maintenance Bee

Calling all Orioles gardeners!

The gardens are looking great, but the grounds need some love. Please join us between 5:30 and 7:30 on Tuesday, July 31st for weeding, painting and general clean-up.

Farmer's Markets Near the West End

Gas Station Village Farmers' Market
Days: Thursdays
Time: 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Where: Outside the Gas Station Theatre at River and Osborne
Features: 100 mile food options; local artisans; food vendors; live music; Half Pints beer garden

Good Food Club Veggie Van Market
Days: Wednesdays
Time: 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Location: Thompson Funeral Home parking lot at Broadway and Sherbrook
Features: Fresh produce from Wiens Family Farm

Main Street Farmers Market
Days: Fridays (June 19 to September 14)
Time: 2:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Where: Neechi Commons parking lot at Euclid and Main
Features: Produce; crafts; baked goods; buskers from the North End and around Winnipeg

Wolseley Farmers' Market
Days: Tuesdays & Thursdays (June 19 to November 1)
Time: 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Where: R.A. Steen Community Centre, 190 Palmerston
Features: Local food; home-spun artistic products; live music; workshops; kid friendly environment

Pallet Garden

Not many of us West Enders are fortunate enough to have big yards. Julie, inspired by this site, has recycled shipping pallets to create a vertical veggie garden along her garage. A great way to add more space!

The Red Menace

The red lily leaf beetle is a big problem in Winnipeg this summer. The invasive insect has no natural predators in Canada and is difficult to control. Here are some suggestions from the Manitoba Regional Lily Society:

• Handpick the adult beetles (6-8 mm ¼ inch in length) as soon as they appear on the emerging lilies.
• Spray the adults with any pyrethrum based (0.5%) insecticide or any other registered pesticide. Rotenone may also be effective.
• Destroy the egg cases on the underside of the leaves.  Eggs are in yellow/orange clusters or in irregular rows. The eggs are quite small, approximately 1 mm.
• Remove the larvae.  Can be very messy.  Use rubber gloves.
• Dust or spray with Rotenone or any pyrethrum based pesticide.
• Spray the larvae and the underside of the leaves with Neem Oil at 5-7 day intervals throughout the season.  Neem is ineffective on adults.
• Adults over winter in the surrounding soil or under plant debris.  Some adults may survive over two seasons.  Stir up the surrounding soil or the mulch in early spring and kill any emerging beetles before they have a chance to lay their eggs.
• It is up to each gardener to check their lily plantings at least weekly for signs of the beetle.  Because the beetles are strong fliers and can move around the neighborhood, inform your neighbors and help them to control this pest.

Lily beetles in a West End garden

Lily beetle larvae

Although the suggested controls include both chemical and natural  methods, no particular products have been approved for use on the red lily beetle. Gardeners should choose the method that they are comfortable with and which work best for them.

Mow Better and Sharpening Clinic

Wednesday, June 20 from 6:30 - 7:30p.m.

DMSMCA will be holding a FREE lawn mower clinic in partnership with the Manitoba Eco-Network. Bring your push / reel mower and learn to sharpen it yourself. Receive information about how to get an optimal cut of your grass and how to recycle lawn equipment.

Please contact Robyn with questions or to register at: greening@dmsmca.ca or 774-7005.

Composting for Beginners

Tuesday, June 19 from 7:00 - 8:30 p.m.

Want to start composting but need a little help? DMSMCA will be holding a FREE workshop that will cover the basics of composting from bin selection, what you should and shouldn't put in your bin and the ever crucial ratio of greens to browns.

Please contact Robyn with questions or to register at: greening@dmsmca.ca or 774-7005.

Garden Openings and Maintenance Bee

Orioles Community Garden
Saturday, May 26 from 11a.m. to 3p.m.

Lipton Community Garden
Sunday, May 27 from 11a.m. to 3p.m.

The opening is a time for gardeners to find out their plot number, sign the Gardener Guidelines form and to begin planting. This is also a time for gardeners to volunteer some time towards the upkeep of the garden. This includes painting (with non-toxic milk paint), topping up beds with soil, weeding and turning the compost bins.

Jane's Walk

There are two Jane's Walks coming up in our neighbourhood this weekend. These are free walking tours that help people get in touch with their communities and with each other.

So You Think You Know the West End? Think Again!
Guided by: Gloria Cardwell-Hoeppner, West End BIZ
Sunday, May 6th at 2 p.m.

Burnell Street
Guided by: Christian Cassidy, history buff West End Dumplings blogger
Sunday, May 6th at 2 p.m.

Orioles Community Garden will be featured as part of the Burnell Street walk. Hope to see you!

Massive West End Spring Clean-Up

The clean-up was cancelled last weekend due to predictions of rain, which never happened. But no matter... This weekend is supposed to be nicer anyway! See you Saturday, April 28 from 1 - 4 p.m.

Gather at the location of your choice:
DMSMCA Offices - 823 Ellice Ave.
Magnus Eliason Rec Centre - 430 Langside Street
West Central Women's Resource Centre - 640 Ellice Ave.
Ma Mawi Spence Site - 443 Spence Street

Come out and help clean up your neighbourhood! Garbage bags, gloves and snacks provided.

For more information contact Robyn at 774-7005 or greening(at)dmsmca.ca.

Great Gardening Websites

Treehugger has an article on the best gardening websites. A little something for everyone, from houseplants to micro-farms, from the Netherlands to the U.S. to Canada. Check it out!

We Need Your Old Windows!

DMSMCA will be holding a cold frame workshop and needs old windows for building the frames. If you have a window to donate, please call Robyn at 774-7005 or email greening(at)dmsmca.ca.

5th Annual Gardening Saturday

March 13, 2012 form 9am to 4pm
Canadian Mennonite University, North Campus.

Check out the Friends of Gardens Manitoba website for more details!

Compost Bin Sale

Call DMSMCA today to pre-order your backyard compost bin!

Phone: 774-7005
Pick-up: 823 Ellice Ave.

Some inspiration before tomorrow's Seed Starting Workshop

"If you'd rather not buy plastic flats or peat pellets for your seed starting, it's very easy to make seed starting pots out of items that were destined for the recycling bin or compost pile (or, worse, the trash!) Here are three easy, free ideas that work very well."


Read the full article.

My favourite idea is the toilet paper rolls!

girlingearstudio/CC BY 2.0

Seedy Saturday

A celebration of seeds and prairie gardeners!
March 3, 2012 10:00am to 3:00 pm
Canadian Mennonite University, South Campus

At Winnipeg’s 12th annual Seedy Saturday, find inspiration for your garden, learn about local biodiversity and global conservation issues, and take part in the community seed exchange. Lots of seeds for sale too!

Volunteers from The Friends of Gardens Manitoba, the Winnipeg Community Garden Network and Seeds of Diversity Canada join forces to present our local version of this national phenomenon.

Our Seedy Saturday brings together gardeners, farmers, seed growers and seed savers, native plant enthusiasts, conservation groups, horticultural societies --- anyone ready to dream about spring in the company of friends --- for a day of great connections and new ideas.

Details on the presentation schedule and the display and vendor lineup will be posted as soon as they are available.

At the heart of every Seedy Saturday is the seed swap. Bring your seeds, roots, plants and stories to share.

Admission is by donation.

Indoor Seed Starting Workshop

When: Tuesday, February 28 from 7 - 8:30pm
Where: DMSMCA, 823 Ellice Ave.

Seedlings can be expensive to purchase from the store or nursery, so come and learn the basics of growing your own seedlings from scratch.

This is a FREE hands-on workshop and each participant will leave with a few started seedlings. Please bring your own reusable containers to take your seedlings home.

For more information, contact Robyn at 774-7005 or greening(at)dmsmca.ca.

Fruit Share Manitoba TEDx Talk

Getty Stewart of Fruit Share Manitoba will be doing a TEDx talk on February 9, 2012. Only 100 lucky people get to be there in person, but TEDx Manitoba will be available to everyone online in real-time. Whether you just take in a few talks or the full day, watch it alone or gather a group, it’s really simple. Just log on to TEDx Manitoba. The live stream will be there for you.

Want to plan out your day in advance? Check out the complete schedule.  Fruit Share is one of 15 topics that will be part of the event. Check it out at 9:20 am.

Community Gardens 2012

Are you interested in community gardening this year?  It may seem a little early but DMSMCA is accepting applications for the Lipton, Orioles and Central Mosque Community Gardens.  DMSMCA manages over 70 garden plots that are available anyone who lives in the DMSM neighbourhood, regardless of skill level.  Each plot is free and priority is given to community members who don’t have a yard and those who have volunteered their time in the garden in the past. 

Lipton Community Garden: was created two years ago with the help of a hardworking committee of volunteers.  This garden is located in a former vacant city park on Lipton near Yarwood and has eleven plots for community members.

Orioles Community Garden: located in front of Orioles Community Centre at 444 Burnell this garden has around 30 individual plots and demand for plots has exceeded available space since its creation.  Orioles also has a number of indigenous prairie plant beds, including a butterfly garden, planted with local children last year. The Orioles Garden has its own message board and this will used to communicate more information about events with gardeners.

Central Mosque Community Garden: DMSMCA created a new garden space in the parking lot of the Winnipeg Central Mosque at 715 Ellice. There are a few plots open to community members who live nearby.

If you have any further questions or would like to get a 2012 garden application please contact Robyn at 774-7005 or greening(at)dmsmca.ca

All the Dirt: Reflections on Successful, Cooperative Organic Farming

A Reading and Discussion with Farmer Robin Tunnicliffe
Monday, January 30, 7:00 p.m.
Canadian Mennonite University (500 Shaftsbury Avenue, Winnipeg), in the Great Hall

*Free Admission *

Come meet Robin Tunnicliffe – Farmer, USC Canada Board Member, a founder of Saanich Organics, and author of the brand new book, All the Dirt.

Join Robin as she reads from her book and relates the experiences of three young women following their dreams to become successful organic farmers and business partners. Copies of the book will be available for purchase and signing.

This is a free event, sponsored by USC Canada. For further information, please contact Kenton Lobe.

Growing Local Conference

Registration is now open for the 5th annual Growing Local Conference, which will be held February 23 - 25, 2012. Check out the website for all the details on speakers, workshops, displays and social events.