Series of 6 sessions plus field trip

Tuition: $185 + 10 lab fee

Total of 6 Saturday Mornings

10am-12:30pm

Feb 21, 28, March 7, 14, 21, 28; Field trip Apr 12 from 1:30pm to 4pm

Class limit: 17

Description:

The focus of this course is how to:

-- grow ecologically, regeneratively, organically

--optimize soil health

--adapt to Alaska conditions

With lively labs, instruction, and an armload of hands-on materials, you’ll learn how and why to:

--build nutrient-dense vegetables and fruits

--choose which fertilizers, microbes, and organic matter to apply (vs. guessing),

--manage pests and diseases non-toxically

--select your site, seeds, varieties, and methods of extending the season

--wisely apply crop rotations, cover crops, compost, compost extracts, biochar 

--develop a working plan and a composting system

NOTE A:  This is less expensive than my MatSu College course was.  Yay!

NOTE B:  It’s nice to watch free YouTubes, but let me save you the time & disappointment of copying strategies that don’t work here. I’ll be bringing my 36 years of Alaska experience.

NOTE C:  This course is so jam-packed with information that it’s recommended that you have at least one year of growing experience before jumping into this course. Watch for it again next year during Feb-March.

What participants say:

I phoned the office of Johnny’s Selected Seeds because my tomato variety from this company did not fruit.  An expert talked with me at length, and asked about my soil, organic matter, soil amendments, growing conditions, dates, spacing, etc.  He was very impressed when I pulled out my garden plan and recited all the specific information.  He said, “Wow, you know a lot.  Where did you learn all that?” “Oh, from Ellen’s class”, I said.

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My garden and greenhouse kicked ass this summer.  Organic gardening really does pay off.  My veggies did so much better than my Miracle Grow friends’ veggies.   Thanks for being such a good teacher.   --Susan L

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My 1st radish tasted like pure sugar.    How do I thank you for the education on growing the sweetest spicy thing I have ever eaten? —Jessica M

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We learned so much from you and the class these past few weeks.  The topics you covered were things we had some familiarity with already, but didn’t necessarily know how to more fully incorporate into our gardening process.  We now better understand these concepts, and feel more confident about applying them to what we do and taking our soil-building to a higher level.

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Many, many, thanks to you, Ellie V., for sharing your resourcefulness with us.  I’ve been implementing many fertilizer, compost, cover crop, companion planting, and gardening strategies gleaned from your teaching. 

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As i am planting my garden—i refer to our class handouts/readings frequently. I can look up just about everything I need.  Thank you many times over for preparing and handing out such a great resource.