Workshops for green thumbs
Thumbs are about to get greener, thanks to new workshops being offered by Sustainable Concordia and greenhouse staff.
The free clinics, presented from October through December, will cover urban agriculture to sustainability. Students, faculty and friends of the university are welcome to attend.
The Concordia greenhouse is on the north-west side of the Henry F. Hall Building roof (1455 De Maisonneuve W). The space is accessed via stairwell No. 1285 of the 12th floor.
Compost workshop
6 p.m., Tuesday October 5
Hoping to send less food and garden waste to landfills? Learn how to make nutrient-rich fertilizer by composting. The session will examine how composting works, how to build a backyard composter, what to put into it and how to keep a composter in top shape.
Colour collective: growing dye plants
5:30 p.m., Tuesday, October 12
Three graduate students from the Faculty of Fine Arts will present on colour botany and invite their audience for a hands-on workshop to identify propagated and foraged plants that make beautiful colours: sumac, indigo, marigolds and other botanical wonders. In this workshop the collective will focus on printing and the creation of design’s used from the plants they grew and harvested.
Urban mushroom growing
4 p.m., Tuesday, October 19
Learn about the benefits of oyster mushrooms: How to grow them at home and how to use them to clean damaged soils or as water source. The workshop will also examine the relationships between plants and fungus to make forests vibrant ecological spaces.
Film screening: Flow (for love of water)
7 p.m., Wednesday, October 20
Flow (for love of water) examines the privatization of water infrastructure, a business that prioritizes profits over the environment or over making clean water available for people. Companies depicted in the film are Nestle, Coca-Cola, Suez and the International Monetary Fund.
Botany 101: With Francis Lovett
5 p.m., Tuesday, October 25
This workshop will review plant life cycles, provide botany notions and techniques. The session will be given by Francis Lovett of the non-profit organization, La Croisée de Longueuil, who has collaborated with the World-Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms, a network of organizations that facilitates volunteer placement on organic farms. In the summer of 2009, Lovett interned in Bamako, Mali, with Alternatives on rooftop gardening. This year, he designed and installed the garden at the TOHU in Montreal.
Aquaponics: An introduction
3 p.m., Wednesday, November 3
The aquaponics project at the greenhouse has been running since April 2010, where fish and vegetables coexist in a maze of plumbing and containers. This workshop will offer a basic overview of aquaponics and explore how Concordia set up its system. Participants will be given a peak at some basic concepts of the chemistry and biology that keep aquaponics functioning.
Cultivating dye plants: colour collective
5:30 p.m., Tuesday, November 9
Three graduate students from the Faculty of Fine Arts will present on colour botany and invite their audience for a hands-on workshop to identify propagated or foraged plants that make beautiful colours: sumac, indigo, marigolds and other botanical wonders. The collective will focus on printing and creation of design’s used from the plants they grew and harvested.
Herbal / medicinal teas
4 p.m., Wednesday, November 17
Learn how to grow, dry and steep herbal teas. Participants will get to taste such products and make salve from herbs that have been grown in the Concordia greenhouse. The session will also review the medicinal properties of plants and attendees will take home a sample of the lotion they produce during the workshop.
Film screening: Earthlings
6 p.m., Wednesday, November 17
Earthlings is a feature-length documentary about humanity's absolute dependence on animals –for pets, food, clothing, entertainment, and scientific research – and disrespect for so-called non-human providers.
Vermicompost at home
3 p.m., Wednesday, November 23
Participants will be taught how to compost using worms, how to set up, upkeep and troubleshoot systems. Learn how to build a home worm composting system and how to keep worms happy, what to feed them, how to keep pests out and how to get the best compost possible from a kit.
Film Screening: Our Daily Bread
6 p.m., Wednesday, December 1
Welcome to the world of industrial food production and high-tech farming. The film examines without commenting, to the rhythm of conveyor belts and immense machines, the places where food is produced in Europe. It will explore the monumental spaces, surreal landscapes and bizarre sounds of an industrial environment that leaves little space for individualism.
On the Web:
• Concordia Greenhouse
• Sustainable Concordia