Whether you’re an experienced gardener, taking your first steps into gardening, or newly relocated to Cochrane and realizing you may need a few tips for gardening in this zone – this event will get you excited about digging in the dirt.
The Cochrane and Area Gardening Expo will run from 11 am to 3 pm at the Lion's Centre Sunday, April 28.
What you will discover at the Gardening Expo
- Vendors: 30+ vendors selling seeds, seedlings, and gardening related products
- Experienced Local Gardeners: take time to chat with subject matter experts about your gardening challenges.
- Seed Exchange Table operated by the Cochrane & District Horticultural Society: bring your extra seeds to add to the exchange and/or purchase seeds (by donation) to fill the gaps in your garden.
- Guest Speaker Presentations: throughout the event you can take a seat in the speaker’s zone and have the opportunity to hear local gardeners share their knowledge, tips and tricks for making their gardens flourish.
- 11:30 am – SEEDS TO SUPPER: ADVENTURES IN GROWING YOUR OWN FOOD. Rising food costs, diminishing food quality, and the environmental impacts of log haul transportation are all motivating factors to seek out homegrown solutions to our food crisis. Being able to grow your own food to supplement your family’s meals empowers you to address these concerns and gives you access to unparalleled flavour and freshness for your meal ingredients. We do face weather and soil challenges with gardening in Cochrane. Join Andrea Blonsky, local gardener and founder of the Cochrane Community Garden Society, for an information packed session on what and how to grow to optimize your harvest.
- 12:30 pm – GROW A FOOD FOREST IN YOUR BACKYARD. Learn the secrets of transforming a part of your urban or rural yard into a flourishing perennial food forest. Join Callandra Caufield, Founder of the Backyard Harvest Project blog, as she shares insights on designing, plant selection, and the installation process for your very own cold-climate food forest. Whether your space is vast or compact, this session promises to ignite your excitement for perennial food cultivation and give you the practical tips to get started.
- 1:30 pm – YEAR ROUND GARDENING WITH MICROGREENS. Join Christina Ambrock of Super Donkey Acres for a session on how to garden 365 days a year with mighty, mighty microgreens. These veggies are micro versions of their larger counterparts and packed with nutrition. Come learn tips and tricks to growing these year round in the comfort of your home.
