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It was a hot Saturday morning in Hollywood when I arrived in the residential neighborhood where Fountain Community Garden is located. The vibrant green that saturated the lot stood out between the houses and apartment buildings. I stepped from concrete to dirt as I entered the garden and made my way through the plots to the back where I met Alex Alferov, the garden manager. Joining Alex were Laura Guzman and Jessica Tarr, two members of Fountain’s steering committee. We sat down around a table not far from an introductory class led by Fountain’s own Master Gardener. We spoke about the characteristics unique to Fountain, the benefits of community gardens, and the struggles they face.
There are many things that make Fountain unique, from their holiday events to the crops they grow. Alex spoke highly of their annual Día de Los Muertos celebration in the garden...continue reading here!

A huge thank you to all who made the 11th Annual Gathering of Community Gardens at Centro Maravilla in East Los Angeles on October 21st such a success!  We had more than 180 attendees from more than 30 community gardens. Our especial thanks to Vernon CommUNITY Fund, Pretty Green, and Momentum Solutions for their sponsorships, to our Board Members and Event Committee, to all the workshop leaders and informational booth leads. See you all next year!

Join Pasadena community gardeners for their monthly work days. They will be working with their compost bins, pulling weeds, and clearing pathways. If you are interested in volunteering your time, please wear comfy clothes, a hat for shade, and bring plenty of water. For more information, please email Cathy Morrison at cjmorrison22@gmail.com.
The garden is located at 721 South Pasadena Avenue, Pasadena, CA 91105.

Visit two community gardens with photographer Corey Burns and learn how to take pictures that will help you advocate for more green space in LA. The event includes a healthy lunch in the garden with other budding photographers and garden enthusiasts.
For more information, click here.

Learn about gardening in urban spaces as well as the many uses of compost and mulch. Taught by Steve List, a passionate horticulture teacher with over 40 years experience teaching sustainable urban gardening practices. A rainbarrel will be given away! The workshop is from 9:00 am - 11:00 am at Lopez Canyon Environmental Education Center, 11950 Lopez Canyon Rd, Sylmar, CA 91342. This is a free workshop. If you have any questions, please call 1-800-773-2489.

The Glassell Park Community Garden opened in June 2011. The garden includes a communal area as well as 38 plots for families to grow fruit, vegetables, and flowers. It has helped green the neighborhood, teach valuable gardening skills, bring community members together while continuing the process of reducing gang-related crime in the community. Some former gang members have voluntarily worked in the garden on community workdays. 

Glassell Park Community Garden will use the donations to pay the water bills and keep the community garden alive. "This ensures that our children stay out of gangs and, not just stay alive, but thrive with a healthy diet of fresh, organic fruit and vegetables." 

If you'd like to donate, please visit their Seed Money site HERE!

State of the Honeybee Crisis and Solutions & Biodynamic Beekeeping Workshop, Saturday, December 2nd
Gunther Hauk has been an educator, biodynamic gardener/farmer and beekeeper for nearly four decades. In 1996 he co-founded the Pfeiffer Center and built up one of the first biodynamic training programs in the U.S. Since that time he has been lecturing and giving workshops on biodynamic/sustainable beekeeping methods. The workshop is from 10:00 am - 4:00 pm. For more information visit their website HERE!

Join Al for his free monthly Saturday morning classes at the site of the new East Hollywood Community Garden. 
Next Class: January 20th, 2018
The classes teach the basics of gardening, from soil preparation to planting, to best watering practices, to composting, and to the glory of harvesting.
For more information, please email, dcampos.lacgc@gmail.com 

Do you have a pressing question about your garden that your fellow gardeners just can't seem to answer?  Reply to this email to Ask Al, Master Gardener and one of the founders of LACGC.

Al hosts "office hours" at the LACGC office in Boyle Heights every Wednesday from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm and gardeners from LACGC partner gardens are welcome to come by to ask questions then.