JANUARY 23, 2019
GROWING FOOD ANYWHERE (in containers) – Chris Hildreth of TOPSOIL started a rooftop container garden selling veg to local restaurants. His urban farm is now ground level at Dockside Green. He’s focused on maximizing yields and shows you how you also can grow lots of food on balconies, backyards, driveways or even your front steps. Any unused space you may have can be turned into a thriving micro garden using containers.
https://www.topsoileatlocal.com
Chris Hildreth bio –
Chris Hildreth recently graduated from the University of Victoria with a minor in business and a double major in environmental studies and sociology. Chris focused his entire academic career towards the pursuit of creating a sustainable business that would merge environmental sustainability with economic profitability.
In 2013 Chris began visualizing an urban agriculture business that would walk fresh local produce straight into local restaurant kitchens. The idea quickly grew from a 400 square foot pilot project to a 20,000 square feet urban agriculture business which has produced thousands of pounds of produce for 16 local restaurants.
FEBRUARY 27, 2019
Wild & Cultivated Truffles of BC – – Dr. Shannon Berch recently retired from Research Science with the BC Government. She is an adjunct professor with UBC, a founding member of the Truffle Association of BC & part of their research and development program. Both as a lover of truffles and an active member of the South Vancouver Island Mycological Society, she is on the search for native truffles in BC.
http://www.bctruffles.ca/
MARCH 27, 2019
The Story of Vancouver Island as Told By Plants (w. James Miskelly) – – The vegetation of southern Vancouver Island was shaped by a variety of forces over the last 10,000 years. Ice ages & warm spells left behind a curious juxtaposition of species seeming to belong in the frozen north beside species more at home in the southern deserts. Landscape-scale management by Coast Salish civilizations over millennia has likewise left tell-tale signs in the plant community. In the last 200 years, vegetation was altered at an unprecedented rate. What do you see when you look at a forest, marsh, or meadow? What ancient stories do the plants tell?
http://www.saanichnativeplants.com/About_us.html
BIO–James Miskelly is a biologist with expertise in Garry oak ecosystems, plants, insects, & restoration. James completed an M.Sc. in Biology at UVic in 2004 & since then has worked on projects dealing with a variety of rare plants and animals. He’s worked with all levels of government, conservation organizations, & private companies. James is a research associate at the Royal BC Museum, a member of the Arthropods Specialist Subcommittee of COSEWIC + the Rare Plants Recovery Implementation Group of GOERT
APRIL 24, 2019
PLANTS OF ABKHAZI GARDEN (w. Jo Wyld) – – Head gardener of Abkhazi Gardens presents a slide show of their special plant collection, & highlighting how they accomplish extended seasonal color.
http://wyyg.ca
bio – Jo Wyld is Head gardener of TLC’s Abkhazi Garden in Oak Bay. She instructs horticultural students and garden enthusiasts at the Horticultural College of the Pacific. Jo also runs WY Yards & Gardens.
MAY 22, 2019
Backyard Birds of Victoria with: Ann Nightingale
Learn about Spring & summer backyard birds with tips on how to identify and encourage them to visit you! Expert birder Ann Nightingale shows pics of the rare & common birds seen in our neighbourhoods.
http://vibigyear.ca/
Bio – Lifelong Vancouver Island resident Ann Nightingale started birding almost 30 years ago. She organises Victoria’s Christmas Bird Count, is heavily involved with the Rocky Point Bird Observatory as well as The Victoria Natural History Society. Retired from University Administration, Ann spends much of her time raising awareness of native species.
JUNE 26, 2019
A Special 70 th Anniversary Celebration
Special thanks to the Town of View Royal for their support celebrating current & previous garden club members.
Edibles In The Garden (with Lindsay Lewis)
As garden plots are shrinking, sometimes limited to patios or balconies, we still enjoy growing food
bio – Lindsay Lewis works at Blenkinsop’s GardenWorks.
Special thanks to the Town of View Royal for their support of our 70th Anniversary celebration.
JULY – no meeting in July
AUGUST 28, 2019
SPECIAL KEYNOTE EVENT
In celebration of our club’s 70th Anniversary
Members must reserve their tickets.
$10 fee for Guests,
tix at GardenWorks (Blenkinsop, Colwood, & Oak Bay)
Resilient Gardens in a Changing Climate
(with Dr. Linda Gilkeson)
Our regional climate is changing as the global climate changes with extreme weather events reaching record levels in 2018. What does this mean for our food gardens and landscape plants? Learn how extreme weather affects plants, including trees and how to design resilient food and ornamental gardens, help plants survive ‘weird weather’ and other management tips that will help you become an adaptable gardener.
http://www.lindagilkeson.ca/index.html
bio – Linda Gilkeson earned a Ph.D. in Entomology before moving to BC to work for Applied Bio-Nomics Ltd., a company that produces biological controls. Since then she’s worked to reduce and eliminate pesticide use. She has been head of the BC State of Environment Reporting Unit & the Salt Spring Island Conservancy. Linda now devotes her time to writing, teaching and consulting.
Linda’s comprehensive gardening book Backyard Bounty: The Complete Guide to Year-Round Organic Gardening in the Pacific Northwest, became a BC best seller and has just been republished in a new, considerably expanded edition. She continues to self-publish books for local gardeners, most recently Resilient Gardens: Pollinator Gardens, Garlic Diseases, Pest Update.
As a private consultant, Linda is a regular instructor in the Master Gardener programs in BC & at the Horticultural Centre of the Pacific.
Special thanks to the Town of View Royal for their support of our 70th Anniversary celebration.
SEPTEMBER 25, 2019
** room change – entrance is through the lower door off the church Admirals Rd parking lot**
Observations of the Royal BC Museum’s Native Plant Garden – (With Michael Fox)
The Native Plant Garden, containing more than 400 species of BC’s native plants, sits directly in front of the Royal BC Museum yet is undervalued by area residents and even museum visitors. Michael Fox, a non-botanist volunteer, will try to kick-start your interest in this local treasure with a brief history of its colourful origins and the often subtle changes he’s observed in weekly visits over the last 15 years.
BIO:– Michael Fox retired to Victoria after a 30-year career with Environment Canada at the National Water Research Institute in Burlington, Ontario. He studied the environmental fate of man-made compounds such as pesticides and PCBs in Canada’s lakes and rivers from coast to coast including the high Arctic.
Joining View Royal Garden Club and the Natural History Society 20 years ago led to knowledge of both the cultivated and native flora of British Columbia. 15 years as a volunteer maintaining the Native Plant Garden under the direction of curator of botany Ken Maar has added to his knowledge of the native plants of BC.
OCTOBER 23, 2019
Deer?!…….Oh Dear! Coping With Deer in the Urban Garden (With Jennifer Kolot)
What are the basic coping strategies for keeping deer out of your yard? And when you can’t keep them out, let’s discuss deer resistance & deer-proof plants.
Bio: Jennifer is a Master Gardener in Training with the Victoria Master Gardening Association. She gardens in Rockland, Victoria with A LOT of deer. Jennifer has been gardening since she was a child growing up in rural Alberta. She has a special interest in growing food.
NOVEMBER 27, 2018
Enjoy the annual Awards Celebration & Christmas Party, silent auction & pot-luck dinner. (It does not include a speaker presentation nor a mini show.)
DECEMBER – no meeting in December.
updated Sept. 13, 2019
View Royal Garden Club 