Oct 3 visit with Transformative Learning Class!

 We had a wonderful time on October 3 learning from and on the land that is The Orchard Garden, hosted by Madi, as part of EDST 534: The Theory & Practice of Transformative Learning & Education. Through sitting and observing, learning about the medicinal properties of certain plants, and reflecting on and enacting principles of foraging, we all were able to appreciate and think about UBC and our relationship to, and understanding of, nature a bit differently.

Students were invited to take photos (some of which you will see below) of anything that caught their eye and also to write a Haiku that captured, in some way, their learning and experience. Thanks to Madi, Susan and the Orchard Gardens for teaching us!

 

Under pear tree's shade,  

Hands reach for sweet, ripe treasures—  

Learning from the Land. 

Plant pedagogy
Forage but sustainably
Cultivate praxis

Maples, all different

Fruit, to forage, to harvest

Slug, you too belong

the gardens bloom, pure delight

Marigolds burst in colour bright

The cold breeze made the evening quiet

leaves wither to grey

Earth's vibrant hues now fade cold

Autumn’s chill upon

Sitting in the dirt

Staring at the growing figs

Thinking of grandma

 

Migrant birds in flight,

Gardens hum with life's bustle

Hong Kong in my heart.

little flowers bloom

Within the orchard garden

Calming ornaments

Three sisters grow tall, 

Corn, beans, squash in warm sunlight,

root and tendrils meet

Urban greens abound
Leaves whispering city tales
Fruits of nature's peace

A dandelion

Scatters in the open sky

Home remains below

Dandelions sit

While I smell the fire  

Brings me to camping.

Although of different kinds, all plants on this land obey the same law of nature.

They are all dying in this chilly October but are given a reward to look colorful for becoming a part of nature.

Would my life be transformed into a beautiful one if I, a part of nature, willingly surrendered to the same law of nature and became meek?

Grass with dandelion

Autumn is still alive

Just here you and I

Concrete meets the green,

Fruits hang like dreams in the sun

Nature's breath in streets

July 11 Environmental Education Class visit

 On July 11, we had the pleasure of visiting the Orchard Garden, where Madi led our group through the garden to showcase various plants while comparing various ways of growing. We planted the three sisters and painted a sign while munching on the delicious berries! It was really a pleasure to spent this time at the Orchard with such an amazing group. Much gratitude to Madi and Susan.

June 29: Workshop and Last Day!

Greetings! Today marks the final blog post from the Allergy Brigade as we conclude our Community Field Experience and prepare to return to classes next week. For our last day, we hosted the final Orchard Garden Workshop of the school year, enjoying a peaceful morning in the Garden. Our day began with introductions from the wonderful individuals who joined us, many of whom are from the secondary program that recently completed their CFE in the Orchard Garden. We are grateful they took the time to participate in the workshop today!

Our first activity focused on herbal teas, discussing which plants can be harvested, the drying process, and the medicinal and healing properties of these herbs. Participants foraged in the garden for lemon balm, fennel, currents, evening primrose and raspberries. They also made tea sachets of herbs that had already been dried, to make their own blends, taste them and take home. 

The remainder of the workshop was dedicated to making leaf prints with watercolour and acrylic paint. Everyone created beautiful and creative designs inspired by the garden.

Thank you to Susan and Madison for the great few weeks spent in the Orchard Garden. Our time was filled with fun, collaboration, hands-on learning activities, garden work and engaging field trips. We leave this experience with new knowledge and perspectives that we look forward to bringing with us into our teaching careers. The peaceful nature of the garden as well as the opportunity to connect with each other and the land allowed for a much-needed reset after the busyness of our practicums. Here is the commemorative rock made by Danielle, showing the amazing eagle that joined us on our very first day.

Thanks for following along with us on this adventure!

- The Allergy Brigade

Summer Solstice at the Garden!

Salutations and gentle tidings fellow readers of the blog! Here is another blog instalment written by the Allergy Brigade! 

Yesterday was our summer solstice party! We had a wonderful day of crafts and food! We were joined by 4 local day care groups where the children participated in several activities. As the groups arrived we gave them a tour around the garden showing them the plants and animals that live in and around the garden. They enjoyed spotting slugs, picking raspberries and learning about the plants. Next they cycled through the following activities: bookmark making, natural dye painting, rock painting, colour matching, and they were read a story (Everybody Needs a Rock by Byrd Baylor). They all had a wonderful time and were very engaged. We ended the morning with a lovely visit and speech delivered by Dr. Samson Nashon, Department Head of Curriculum & Pedagogy here at UBC. Susan also played us some lovely tunes on her accordion throughout, which brought a lovely feel to the day!

We have enjoyed a lovely bread and pastry donation from a Bread Affair in Granville island. Thank you for your incredibly generous donation, your food is truly delicious! 

During the second part of the day several other people joined for the “adult” portion of the event where they made pressed flower book marks, made witches brooms out of flowers, and painted with the natural dyes. 

This was a lovely event that brought together the local community in a special place!

Until we post again,

The Allergy Brigade

(Post by Alex and Danielle)

Solstice Workshop Garden Prep

Today, we met up in the orchard garden to do our final prep for our summer solstice workshop. The in-person meeting at the UBC Orchard Garden was a highlight of the week. Seeing everyone face-to-face was incredibly rewarding and allowed us to solidify our plans and address any last-minute details. The garden, in full bloom, provided a picturesque backdrop, inspiring us further. We walked through the garden together, visualizing our workshop setup and making necessary adjustments.

As predicted, the thistle was in full gear again in the garden. We spent some time tidying up the boxes, pulling out the persistent thistle, and making note of what was growing well. The raspberries are in full bloom and bountiful! It was a pleasant surprise to see how abundant they were, promising a sweet treat for those who come by.

We were definitely given some pause by the rain coming down. We sought refuge in the shed when the worst of it was coming down. This unexpected break gave us a chance to review our plans once more and enjoy some camaraderie, sharing laughs and stories while waiting for the rain to subside.

Back at home, I made a zesty garlic scape pesto, which will be a tasty addition to our workshop refreshments, so generously contributed by our group members and Bread Affair. The process of creating the pesto was enjoyable and fulfilling, knowing it would be shared with our group and the workshop participants. 

The final preparations today involved not just setting up and cleaning but also connecting with the garden and each other. We reflected on the hard work and dedication that has brought us to this point. The beauty of the garden in full bloom, the excitement of the upcoming workshop, and the sense of accomplishment in our preparations made for a memorable day.

That's all for now from our group. We are excited for tomorrow and eager to welcome our participants to the solstice workshop. It's going to be a wonderful celebration of nature, community, and the summer solstice!

-Kathleen

June 26 Workshop planning

        Today, I visited the garden to grab more plants to practice making a tea out of. So far I have been mixing dry lemon balm leaves with various raspberries and currants. I have noticed many raspberries come out recently so I was very excited to use them in making tea. I was also going to try using the raspberry and currant leaves to make tea and see how that goes. We then met up as a group to talk about our Saturday workshop and figure out the types of activities that would help better understand for participants like how to explain the harvesting process and drying out plants for tea so that they have a longer shelf life. I have not much success with fennel in tea as I did not really enjoy the flavour in tea, but I’m sure someone out there does. Justin did some research on leaves we could include in the teamaking process, so that was exciting!

Andrea also showed her progress working with acrylic and watercolor to do leaf prints on canvas/paper. They came out well and had some very vibrant patterns, the only issue was the time to dry to layer the paints together.

Overall, this is very exciting as we are getting closer to the workshop day and can't wait to share the knowledge we have developed and do fun activities with people.