Cutting flowers at 8 this morning

First garlic harvest of the season

Yum! Green, un-cured garlic is for sale today at the market.

Beekeeping workshop next Saturday – register now!

My Sweet Honey: The Basics of Bees and Beekeeping!

It’s time to learn about:

• Bee physiology
• Bee social patterns
• Honey production
• Bee care
• Honey harvest!

on SATURDAY July 11, 1-4pm at the UBC Farm

Presenter Bio:

Allen Garr is UBC Farm’s resident beekeeper, and he makes sure our bees are happy and healthy. The bee program has been part of farm life at UBC for many years. In its current form it provides opportunities for people of all ages to learn about the life of bees. In addition, the bees also work at the farm as pollinators and tend to the various crops. The honey they produce is sold at the farmers market near the end of the summer and in the early fall. During the summer Allen gives talks at the farm about bees and pollination. Allen also welcomes volunteers to help with the maintenance of the bees and their hives, including honey extraction in the fall.

Cost: $20 (plus 99 cent registration fee)

Registration: Limited to 20 people.  Registration online here. **Please note that all UBC Farm Growing Season Workshops require advance payment.  Also,  our workshops sell out VERY quickly.  We apologize for any inconvenience or disappointment.  There is great demand for our workshops, and unfortunately we can’t accommodate everyone. If the website says the workshop is full, it really is full.**

What to bring: Pen, paper, appropriate clothing

Growing Season Workshops:

This event is part of the UBC Farm Growing Season Workshop Series.  Our goal is to connect sustainability and life-skills experts with our local community through accessible and affordable workshops.   Come join us for a workshop, gain new skills and knowledge, and help support the UBC Farm!

Saturday volunteer shifts beginning this week!

If you’re already a volunteer, join us at our newest shift: Saturday mornings from 9:30-12:30.

For those of you who want to volunteer but have not yet made it out there are two orientations scheduled in the upcoming weeks. Join us either this Saturday, July 4 from 2-3:30pm or Thursday, July 9 from 10:30-12.

Remember, updated info is always available at our website.

Seasonal recipe: rhubarb soda

It’s the tail-end of rhubarb season, but there’s still time to cook up a batch of this delicious syrup and be on your way to a refreshing summer drink.

Rhubarb Soda (adapted from culinate.com)
1 1/2 cups rhubarb, coarsely chopped
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cup water
sparkling water or club soda

Simmer the rhubarb, sugar and water in a small saucepan for about 15 minutes, until the rhubarb pieces are very soft and the liquid is pink. Cool the syrup, then strain into a jar. (This syrup can be kept in the fridge for a few weeks.) To complete your soda, simply mix your rhubarb syrup with soda water to taste, then pour over ice.

Outstanding in the Field at UBC Farm July 19th – tickets available!

Vancouver is a featured again as a host city in this year’s Outstanding in the Field dining series!

Chef Andrea Carlson of Bishop’s will be the guest chef for an Outstanding in the Field event at UBC Farm Sunday, July 19th.  The UBC Farm is excited to be hosting this great event for the 5th season in a row and hope you will join us for a great evening celebrating the bounty of the region.

Outstanding in the Field is the wildly successful roving culinary adventure that travels North America during the harvest season. The experience begins with a tour of the location – typically a local farm – then guests join farmers, producers, culinary artisans, and share the seasonally fresh meal set at a long table. The table is located outdoors at farms or gardens, on mountain tops or in sea caves, on islands or at ranches. Occasionally the it is set indoors: a beautiful refurbished barn, a cool greenhouse or a stately museum. Wherever the location, the consistent theme of each dinner is to honor the people whose good work brings nourishment to the table. Ingredients for the meal are almost all local and most come from the host farm. Meals are generally prepared by a celebrated chef of the region. Learn more and reserve your tickets at the Outstanding in the Field website.

Wednesday Walkabout, June 24

Paving stones

Yum

Ick.

Veiny cabbage leaves

Broc getting ready

Poppy face

Broad beans

Poppy pods

Lettuce head

Currants, ripe

Tomato kid

Basil-kins, will be at this week’s market

Canola, harvested

Sunflowers have arrived

But some are still sleeping

Builder girl

Fireweed in bloom

Samara bunch

sqwawk!

Sleeping…

Western Tanager just spotted at the UBC Farm

Scott and Gemma just noticed one of these brilliant birds out in the field. Scott’s stoked – it’s the first one he’s ever seen. They didn’t have a camera on them but I’ve included an image below, courtesy of Flickr user almiyi.

Campus produce sales tomorrow, Wednesday June 24

We are lucky to have an abundance of produce this week so will be having a sale on campus this Wednesday, June 24th from 11:30 – 12:30 outside of the MacMillan building (2357 Main Mall).

We’ll have UBC Farm salad mix, garlic scapes, mustard greens, radishes, mizuna, & herbs as well as kale, Swiss chard and mushrooms from other local, organic farms.

So stop by and get your mid-week produce fix! Remember, cash only & bring your own bags. See you tomorrow!

–

Amy Frye, Marketing Coordinator

Vanessa Perrodou, Market Manager

Natural building workshops with James Richardson, July 11 and 18

Presented by the Conscious Design Collective, with support from UBC Farm:

Essentials of Natural Building

Join us for an informative and practical introduction to the essentials of Natural Building.

Cob and Earthen Plaster represent a simple, sustainable, appropriate and entirely available resource for Vancouver residents. With a media-rich and design focused presentation followed by a hands-on session, you will learn the essentials of working with this ancient material and ways to incorporate its use into your life.

Topics covered include:

- Rock and Urbanite Foundations

- Post and Beam Construction

- Cob

- Earthen Plaster

- A Pattern Language

- Urban Cob and Earthen Plaster applications

Time: 9:00am – 4pm

Location: UBC Farm Centre (go to: http://www.landfood.ubc.ca/ubcfarm/ for directions)

Date(s): July 11^th OR July 18^th (Choose a date that works best for you)