Calendar


Apr
29
Sun
2018
Project Pick – All Call to Pick Oranges
Apr 29 @ 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm

Hi pickers!

It’s been a while, but we finally got an all call to pick oranges and possibly lemons and tangerines.

Please let me know if you are available (no need to respond if you are not):

Sunday, April 29, from 1-3PM

I’ll let you know the location when you reply to info@alamedabackyardgrowers.org or call 510-239-7425.

Thank you!

Jillian Saxty
Project Pick Coordinator

PS Be sure to visit our Alameda Backyard Growers booth this Saturday at the Alameda Earth Day Festival!

May
12
Sat
2018
Intro to Urban Permaculture
May 12 @ 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm

Permi-curious? Hear stories from real, on the ground, projects showing ways we can meet our needs while being beneficial to all life. Hear stories about Permaculture design. If you love good food, regenerative farming, natural building, community building, renewable energy and are curious about a design system that ties it all together then come check out this free introduction.

We’ll discuss practical ways you can use permaculture design in your life to grow your own healthy food, harvest and clean your own water, build your own home, transition your career, reduce your carbon footprint and increase your carbon rootprint while building lasting, quality community relationships with people that share your values.

Taught by David Cody of the Urban Permaculture Institute. To learn more about permaculture design trainings in the SF Bay Area, visit the Urban Permaculture Institute at www.UPISF.com.

May
15
Tue
2018
Fruit Tree Care @ Rhythmix Cultural Works
May 15 @ 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm

with Birgitt Evans & Marla Koss

Jun
2
Sat
2018
Project Pick – Lemons Still Coming
Jun 2 @ 2:00 pm – 3:30 pm
Project Pick - Lemons Still Coming

Hi Pickers,

Hope you’ve been well! Come and help us pick at least one lemon tree on Saturday, June 2 from 2 to about 3:30 PM. The location will be provided when you contact me.

Please bring gardening gloves if you have them, water and a hat.

Also, please let me know if you need Project Pick postcards to distribute to help recruit your neighbors with fruit trees to donate their fruit.

Jillian

Jun
9
Sat
2018
The Art of Pruning
Jun 9 @ 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm

Take the mystery out of tree pruning with this hands-on workshop! Learn the basics and leave with skills you can start using immediately.
Topics covered include:

  • How trees grow
  • Why pruning keeps trees healthier
  • How trees react to pruning
  • Seasonal pruning
  • How to prune properly
  • Common pruning mistakes
  • Identifying a properly pruned true
    and more!

The workshop will also include a show-and-tell of different types of wood, branches, branch collars, compartmentalization of decay in trees. Bring your questions and come prepared for a fun interactive learning experience.
Tony Wolcott is a Certified Landscape Horticulturalist, Certified Irrigation Designer, Board Certified Master Arborist, Master Composter, and Bay Friendly Designer. His work experience includes being the urban forester at the Cities of Albany and San Francisco, non-profit work with Friends of the Urban Forest, Our City Forest, and arborist representative with Bartlett Tree Experts. Currently he is professor of Arboriculture within the Horticulture division of the Biology Department at Diablo Valley College.

Jun
21
Thu
2018
Alameda Garden Visit – FULL
Jun 21 @ 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm

Join us for Alameda Backyard Growers’ Second Annual Garden Tour. This year, Mary Sotelo is opening her beautiful garden, which showcases her love of color and edibles. Much is packed into a small backyard. Fruit trees are kept small to maximize space. Large containers are also used. In addition to fruit trees, berries and veggies, the garden includes chickens (who enjoy a chandelier in their coop), compost bins, and a garden wall of Talavera Mexican pottery. The garden is an important part of the curriculum of Mary’s preschool, allowing children to learn about gardening and where our food comes from.

About the gardener: Mary got her love of gardening from her grandmother at an early age. The last few years, she converted some of her flower beds into veggie beds, so she could have fresh, organic veggies right outside her door. For now, the garden is her perfect mix of art, flowers, and edibles.

This event is now full.

Jun
30
Sat
2018
Plum Picking This Saturday
Jun 30 @ 11:00 am – 12:30 pm

Hi Project Pickers,

We have a quick plum pick this coming Saturday, June 30 (this month has FLOWN by!) at 11 AM.

Come and enjoy being together and picking summer stone fruit! Email info@alamedabackyardgrowers.org to RSVP and I will advise the location.

Please bring gardening gloves if you have them, water and a hat.

Also, please let me know if you need Project Pick postcards to distribute to help recruit your neighbors with fruit trees to donate their fruit.

Jillian

Jul
14
Sat
2018
Join us in the Mini Orchard
Jul 14 @ 2:00 pm – 3:30 pm
Join us in the Mini Orchard

Hi Pickers,

Believe it or not we have lots of oranges and lemons to pick in the middle of summer! We need to go back to a backyard that has several orange and lemon trees with delicious fruit!

Let me know if you can join us on Saturday, June 14 from 2 – 3:30 PM and I will give location details.

Bring a hat, water, and gardening gloves if you have them.

Thanks! Hope to see you soon!

Jill

Project Pick Coordinator

Jul
21
Sat
2018
Winter Seed Starting Talk & Demo @ Alameda Free Library
Jul 21 @ 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm

with David Blood, Master Gardener of Alameda County 
July 21, 2018, 2 to 3:30 pm
Alameda Main Library, 1550 Oak Street, Alameda

Yes, summer gardening may be starting to wind down.  But in the Bay Area, we can grow food three, or maybe even four, seasons of the year.  In the fall, some crops actually do better than in the summer, because pest problems may be fewer.  David Blood, long-time Alameda County Master Gardener, will speak on how to approach the fall and winter garden: what crops work and what to avoid, how to start seeds for the fall/winter garden, and other issues to consider.  David’s presentation will be followed by a seed starting workshop, featuring seeds suitable for the fall and winter garden.  Take home a six-pack of planted seeds and try out a fall/winter garden!

About our Speaker:  David Blood became an Alameda County Master Gardener in 2001, and has many years of experience growing food.  He co-leads the ACMG Lake Merritt Trials Garden, which conducts tests of which varieties do best in our moderate western Alameda County climate, provides presentations on growing food each summer, and showcases the plants named Outstanding Plants of Alameda County.

Aug
11
Sat
2018
Mid-Summer Pick
Aug 11 @ 2:00 am – 4:00 am

Hi Pickers!

Hope you’ve been enjoying your summer!

Our pick on Saturday, Aug. 11 from 2-4pm will feature oranges, plums and lemons!

Come and join us! Bring gardening gloves if you have them, water and a hat.

I will fill you on where we’re meeting when I hear back from you. To RSVP please email me at info@alamedabackyardgrowers.org.

Looking forward to seeing you!

Jillian Saxty