The average last frost date for the Twin Cities usually happens around mid-May. But that has not stopped a few of our co-op community gardeners from starting a few things right now in their garden plots—yes, our community gardens are now officially open! Plot reservations filled up quickly for the 2012 season, however  four plots have just become available again and we are offering them to anyone interested on a first come, first served basis.

If you are hoping to get involved with us in our co-op community gardens, now is the time to act by contacting Gary Johnson at community@valleynaturalfoods.com or 952-891-1212, ext. 236. You may also inquire about availability at customer service.

This series is hosted by citizens and students who are growing the organic community Partnership Garden at the School of Environmental Studies. It is co-sponsored by Valley Natural Foods, Burnsville, and District 196 Community Education. All events are at the School of Environmental Studies, 12155 Johnny Cake Ridge Road, Apple Valley, MN 55124. Donations at the door will help sustain the non-profit garden and its community outreach classes and events.

Pre-registration at least one week ahead is encouraged for each evening. For more information about this series or Dakota County community gardens, contact Loris Sofia Gregory at 952.431.5586 or lorissofia@frontiernet.net. For information about the Partnership Garden at SES or their upcoming community classes, contact Roxanne Beseman at 952-431-2553 or Pam Farrell at 952-454-8385.

Locavore: Local Diet, Healthy Planet – This documentary film empowers us with the knowledge to revitalize our own health, return to an economically prosperous nation, dramatically reduce our energy use and rejuvenate our land and environment. Learn about the rewards of a locavore lifestyle and how great you can feel when nourished with fresh and local. Q & A with gardeners will follow the film. Wednesday, Apr 4, 6:30-8:30 p.m, at the School of Environmental Studies. Donations welcome at the door. To view Locavore-The Movie trailer, click here.

Queen of the Sun: What are the Bees Telling Us? – Created by Taggart Seigel, filmmaker of “The Real Dirt on Farmer John,” this film shares the compelling perspectives of farmers, beekeepers, scientists and philosophers around the world. The problems behind the global bee crisis are uncovered and viable solutions are offered for renewing our partnership with nature. Q & A with gardeners will follow the film. Wednesday, April 11, 6:30-8:30 p.m., at the School of Environmental Studies. Donations welcome at the door. To view Queen of the Sun movie trailer, click here.

Everything You Want to Know About Gardening with Nature – A panel of experienced local gardeners and farmers will answer your questions about gardening, eating fresh and local and what we can each do to partner with nature and flourish as individuals and a community.  This evening will also be your chance to meet representatives of Dakota County community gardens and supportive organizations, browse their displays and sign up for garden plots. Wednesday, April 18, 6:30-8:30 p.m. at the School of Environmental Studies. Donations welcome at the door.

Join us this Saturday, August 6th from 11-2pm here at Valley Natural Foods! We’ll meet in the Co-op Community Garden area for our co-op’s first ever participation in Gardening Matters’ Community Gardening Day.

Over 50 Twin Cities community gardens are on the tour and everyone has fun, with different activities available at each site! Valley Natural Foods will be serving free cold beverages, Fair Trade coffee and glad corn snacks for all Co-op Community Garden visitors. Be sure to check out the official map of all  the garden locations and  festivities available.

Cool off after the tour by visiting our Valley Natural Foods Juice and Java counter! Check out our online coupons and save $1.00 on a refreshing fruit smoothie of your choice. Coupon good through August 9, 2011.

Free for the taking! The sod from our co-op community gardens has been rolled up and placed on pallets at  the east end of our Valley Natural Foods parking lot. Perhaps you need to patch up a few places in your yard after our long winter. If so, please help yourself! Just stop by customer service and let them know you will be taking some sod. You may take as much sod as you like.

Co-op Community Garden Update: For those of you who have leased a plot in the smaller garden mandala, feel free to begin your gardening. For those of you awaiting plots in the larger mandala, look for a future e-mail announcement about an upcoming work day for completion of those plots.

7th Annual Community Garden Spring Resource Fair

at the Sabathani Community Center, Minneapolis
Saturday, April 2, 2011, 9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
(doors open at 8:30 am)

The 7th Annual Community Garden Spring Resource Fair Offers 15 exciting workshops!

Keynote: 9:00 a.m. Frogtown Farm – The Power of Collaboration

Morning Workshops: 10:40 a.m. – 11:50 a.m.

Eliminate Erosion – Increase Productivity, MetroBlooms Landscape Designers

Tell your Garden’s Story! Working with Media, Margo Ashmore, Northeaster and NorthNews Newspapers

Garden Together! Communal Gardening Panel, Gardeners from Celeste’s Dream, Jardin Paraiso Comunidad and St. Cloud Community Garden

Fruit Tree Orchards: Planting for the Long Term, Midway Greenspirit Community Gardeners

What’s the Hoopla about Hoop Houses? Extend Your Growing Season! Starr Carpenter, Market Grower, Rebecca Harnik, Minnesota GreenCorps

Afternoon Workshops (Session 1): 1:00 p.m. – 2:10 p.m.
Doing More with Less: Superabundant Small Gardens, Susan Reed, Dowling Community Gardener

Environmental Justice and Soil Mitigation, Representatives from Environmental Justice Advocates of MN and the Women’s Environmental Institute

Share Your Produce! Gleaning and Food Shelf Donation Panel, Panelists from Emergency Food Shelf Network, MN FoodShare, and Guardian Angels Community Garden

Understanding the 2012 Farm Bill, Mark Muller, Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy and Adam Warthesen, Land Stewardship Project
Sticks and Stones Garden Art, Nancy Ward, Artist and Community Gardener

Afternoon Workshops (Session 2): 2:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m.

Community-Based Problem Solving, Jay Clark, U of MN Center for Urban and Regional Affairs (CURA)

Join the Local Food Economy, Collie Graddick, The Co-op Project, Starr Carpenter, Market Gower

Employer Sponsored Community Gardens Panel, Gardeners from the Haberman Group, Blue Cross and Boston Scientific

In-Ground Mushroom Cultivation, Jeremy McAdams, Cherry Tree House Mushrooms

How to Eat More Veggies Everyday,Tracy KS Yue, Healthful Cooking Coach

Saturday, April 2, 2011
9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. (doors open at 8:30 a.m.)

Sabathani Community Center
310 E. 38th St, Minneapolis (near 23, 18, and 11 bus lines)
More information, complete schedule, and pre-registration online at www.gardeningmatters.org

As food prices rise, communities and families are looking for options to assist with their household budget. Community gardens are neighborhood educational centers for growing your own food, deepening roots in the community, & beautifying the neighborhood. Community gardens are a hands-in, feet-on green space bridging generations & cultures.

Presenting Sponsor: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota
 

Event Sponsors: Edible Twin Cities, JobCorps, Linden Hills Co-op, Sabathani Community Center, Specialized Environmental Technologies, Inc., Valley Natural Foods
 

Grassroots Sponsors: Barbette, Bryant Lake Bowl, Egg/Plant Urban Farm Supply, MN Institute of Sustainable Agriculture, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum – Education Department, MN-NRC-SARE, MN State Horticultural Society, Mother Earth Gardens, Red Stag Supperclub, Seward Cooperative Grocery and Deli, University of Minnesota Extension

Starting next week Wednesday, Small Planet Foods® will be holding a consumer sweepstakes!

Enter for a chance to WIN an organic garden when you buy ANY 5 Muir Glen® or LÄRABAR® products. (Prize to be awarded in the form of a $2,500 check)  Products must be purchased in one shopping visit between 3/1/11 and 3/31/11. Look for entry forms on a tear pad near the Muir Glen® or LÄRABAR® products starting March 1.

For every valid entry form received, Small Planet Foods® will donate $1 to support the Organic Farming Research Foundation. (max. donation: $5,000).

So what a great time to stock up in March – not only will you be supporting the Organic Farming Research Foundation with your sweepstakes entry, but selected varieties of  LÄRABAR® Nutritional Bars and Muir Glen Fire Roasted Tomatoes and Organic Soups will be on sale!

Valley Natural Foods’ March 2011 class line-up takes a step beyond encouraging purchase of organic, healthy food. Instead, it focuses on how to plant and harvest your own produce within your backyard, even within the confines of the city or suburbia. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday night classes at the co-op, which are open to the public, center on developing a sustainable lifestyle involving local, growing practices that follow nature’s natural patterns.

“It is one thing to buy local, organic produce from your co-op but it is another to truly live a sustainable lifestyle and grow your own,”  Courtney Tchida, instructor of Valley Natural Foods’ February “Organic Farming, Design & Business” class series told us. “Some think it isn’t possible to do this in the city, but we can show you that it takes only a small plot of land for a successful, productive garden. Local food production helps promote healthy eating, it reduces our carbon footprint, conserve resources, promotes healthy soils and plant diversity. It also helps to re-invent our food system on a local level toward a healthier, sustainable model.”

Courtney’s March 2nd “Feeding Your Community One Tomato At A Time: Marketing Strategies & Options” will teach attendees what they need to know to make their growing endeavors worthwile financially –whether it be marketing to CSAs, wholesale options or a few “think outside the box” ideas.  Neil Cunningham, a writer/urban naturalist with a working background in entomology, is teaching a series on Insect Management. During his March 8th and March 15th classes, you can discover how to cultivate beneficial insect populations along with organic methods to manage unwelcome infestations.

Linda Halley, manager of Gardens of Eagan (GOE)  and Jennifer Nelson, a Market Coordinator for GOE, will teach how healthy soil can create healthy food that is full of nutrients during their “How to Grow Good Soil” class. On March 31st, GOE will also teach you how to develop a seasonal eating calendar around your garden.

Sign up early! All classes include discounted rates for members. Call 952-891-1212 ext 221 to register and pre-pay or stop by our customer service counter at the store.

View all class listings online:
Valley Natural Foods Website and  Facebook

We are delighted to welcome Gary Johnson to our co-op family! Gary will be working as our community relations developer for our community gardens and educational outreach here at Valley Natural Foods.

Currently buried under a couple feet of snow, our two “mandala” gardens are located on the grassy lawn east of the Valley Natural Foods parking lot. Both gardens will contain several keyhole gardening areas, and will be leased as community plots. We can hardly wait to start digging in the dirt - hurry up spring!

If you are interested in gardening with us, why not sign-up for one of our February gardening classes, while we are waiting for spring! Click Here to see our exciting class line-up, here at Valley Natural Foods.

Join community citizens and students on Tuesday, December 14, 6:30-8:00 pm at the Partnership Garden meeting held at Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church, 12650 Johnny Cake Ridge Road, Apple Valley (across the street from our Garden).

Our community garden is a collaboration of citizens and students who are growing a sustainable organic garden at the School of Environmental Studies while learning, sharing, and teaching about healthy foods and gardening in partnership with nature. Come and join in the plans for spring planting! For more information, contact Pat Schoenecker at avgarden@charter.net or 612-965-3372.

by Kristin Stockton, 2010 graduate of the School of Environmental Studies

Community gardens bring people together, add beauty and green space, and help the environment. The healthy food that results can improve health, and the simple act of tending to a garden improves one’s health.

Gardening can serve as an outdoor classroom, an opportunity for children to learn about the natural world, healthy food, and the value of helping create something with their own hands.

Valley Natural Foods is working to create a community garden on our property. Together with the accompanying outdoor classroom we plan help teach people how to use various gardening supplies and how to start your own garden at home.

Please click here to learn more and visit our co-op calendar to stay on top of the great things happening with this exciting project!