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Gardeners' Corner at the

Calgary Horticultural Society

Program Highlight—Hydroponics
While offering traditional favourites, such as seed starting workshops, the Society is always looking to broaden the gardening conversation and present some niche topics. Last week, we worked with Hands-on Growing to present Introduction to Gardening Hydroponically. Below are a few notes from the presentation.
  • When growing hydroponically, a nutrient solution is used to provide the plants with water and food, a role typically provided by soil in traditional growing.
  • The plant is frequently started in a rock wool block to anchor the plant and support it in the growing unit. The rock wool also wicks moisture to the roots within the block. The plant's roots will grow through the rock wool to dangle into the growing system enclosure.
  • There are several commercial systems available, but it's worth making your own to try out hydroponic growing first, as the commercial systems can be quite expensive.
  • The simple systems demonstrated in the presentation use a food grade bus pan (the pan used by restaurants to collect dishes; also called a bus tub or box) with a lid, as the reservoir.
  • To minimize algae growth, the reservoir needs a lid to prevent light from entering.
  • A simple stone aerator (like those used in aquariums) will oxygenate the water and help prevent algae growth.
  • Managing the pH of the nutrient solution will ensure an optimum uptake of nutrients by the hydroponically grown plants.
  • When selecting plants to grow, consider time to harvest, plant size, and the capacity of your system. Many plants can be grown hydroponically. The presenters chose to grow lettuces and leafy greens, as a mature crop can be harvested in about 33 days. Tomatoes and peppers require a lot of space and can take months until harvest.
  • Research the following hydroponic growing methods to find one suitable to you: drip, ebb and flow, nutrient film, wick, deep water culture, and aeroponics. 
The presentation provided interesting ideas for soil-less growing, outlined its benefits, and gave us an opportunity to think about alternative ways of growing. 

Many people use hydroponics for growing vegetables. If you'd like to improve your outdoor vegetable bed harvest, the Grow Your Own Food course may be of interest. See the Classes section below for details about this program.
Sidebar top to bottom:  Growing with vertical tubes typically uses an aeroponic method in which misters spray the plant roots with a nutrient fluid. Horizontal tubes typically use the nutrient film method which has a thin film of nutrient fluid flowing down the tube. In the deep water culture, the plants float on the nutrient reservoir. The drip system pumps the nutrient fluid to the plant, it flows over the roots and through the plant holder to a tray, and then drains back to the reservoir to be replenished and recirculated.  
Need help registering for a class or activating your membership?  Give us a call!
The office is open for telephone assistance (call 403.287.3469), contactless pick-up, and appointments. Office hours are Tuesday–Friday from 9:00 am until 4:00 pm. Please leave a message if your call is not picked up right away. Gail will return your call. You can also email the Society using office@calhort.org or by visiting Contact Us on the website and completing the form.
Calgary Gardening—New Issue!
The first issue of Calgary Gardening magazine for 2021 is posted on the website. If you look at the cover you will see that it is Issue 1 of volume 35. While the Society is in it's 113th year, this is the 35th year for Calgary Gardening. Calgary Gardening started as a typed newsletter that was reproduced and mailed to Society members. It has evolved from its humble letter-like beginnings to the magazine you're able to read now. Eight issues are published each year.

To read this issue of Calgary Gardening, log in to the Members Only section of the website. Select "Calgary Gardening" to open the online library. Choose the 2021 February/March issue. The Calgary Gardening online library has magazines posted back to February/March 2015. 
Starting Vegetables Indoors
Did you know that you can start edible plant seeds indoors to have an earlier harvest? In Calgary, tomatoes are frequently started inside in March, to give them a longer growing season. Some of the shortest season tomatoes required at least 52 days to maturity, but 75 days is typical. These are ideal growing days—perfect temperature, sunlight exposure, moisture, nutrition, and are pest free—conditions that are limited in our outdoor growing environment. Hence, extra growing time is required, and starting vegetables indoors, or purchasing plant starts, is a common practice in Calgary.

If you haven't started vegetables indoors before, try one of our seed starting classes. The Seed Starting—Eight Week Annuals targets vegetable growing as well as annual flowers. The Society has just scheduled the Grow Your Own Food course, which is aimed at gardeners would who like to learn more about maximizing the production from a raised bed. We also plan on offering a March class on starting tomatoes. Watch the Classes section below for details.
Classes and Events for 2021!
Visit the What's Happening Calendar for Program Details
To see the calendar, visit calhort.org | What's Happening.
Need help registering? Call the office at 403.287.3469 ext.0 and leave a message for Gail.
Tea with Kath
Tuesday, February 9, 2:00 to 3:00 pm
Online: Facebook Live
Cost: Free, registration is not required.

Gather your questions and have tea with Kath. It is very therapeutic to be able to meet and participate in conversations that are of interest to all of us. Let's check on the plants we are overwintering. Are they in the basement or the garage? Other February conversation topics:

  • To fertilize or not—what to use.
  • Bringing your Geraniums out of storage and taking cuttings.
  • Check the begonias and Canna Lilies and plant them.
  • Let's look at our seed stashes (testing germination) and new catalogues—creating a seeding/garden plan.
So, pour some hot tea (or cocoa) and come join us on Facebook Live!

We are happy to be continuing Tea with Kath on Facebook Live through the fall and winter. 
To have the Facebook Live video automatically display on your Facebook page, we recommend that you visit our page, select the three dots (...) on the right side of the banner, select Follow Settings, turn on Favorites, choose Video, and turn on All Notifications.

The Live session link will be posted on the Calgary Horticultural Society Facebook page (facebook/calhort) at the start of the program.

Submit Your Questions
You can submit questions in advance using Messenger (Message Host button) on the Facebook Event post. Be sure to start your question with "Could Kath answer." That way we're sure to know it's a question for this event.
Design Your Yard 
Tuesday evenings, February 16 and 23, and March 2 from 6:30 to 9:00 pm
Online: Zoom Cloud Meeting
Cost: $75 for Society members, $100 for non-members
Register 
Online registration closes Tuesday, February 9.

Or

Sunday mornings, February 28, and March 7 and 17 from 9:30 am to noon
Online: Zoom Cloud Meeting
Cost: $75 for Society members, $100 for non-members
Register 
Online registration closes Monday, February 22


Not sure what to do with your new yard? Need to reimagine your mature yard? Learn how to create a well-thought-out, functional yard in this multi-day workshop. Homeowners will work on scale layouts of their own properties and complete step-by-step tasks to create a design that meets their needs.

Two people residing at the same address may attend this workshop at no additional charge, with the requirement that they work on ONE yard plan together. Names of both participants must be provided at the time of registration.

Participants will learn how to:

  • work through the process to develop a yard design
  • apply basic design principles and techniques for creating a beautiful, environmentally responsible, functional yard
  • calculate volumes of soil and mulch and access available resources in the community (such as free compost from the City)
  • irrigate their yard
  • select plants at a garden centre to fulfill their design's requirements 
Participants will need:
  • property dimensions - Real Property Report (RPR)
  • graph paper, ruler, pencil, and eraser
  • wish-list requirements
  • photos from your wish list
 
This workshop is sponsored by the
City of Calgary

Grow Your Own Food
Wednesdays, March 10, 17, 24, and 31 from 7:30 to 8:30 pm
Online: Zoom Cloud Meeting and recorded slide presentation
Cost: $150 for Society members, $200 for non-members
Register

Discover and take advantage of your above-ground growing spaces to create efficient and healthy sources of fresh food. Using advanced raised vegetable-gardening techniques, discover how food gardens can be, not only sensible options in today's world, but also attractive garden accents.

Topics covered include:

  • soil health
  • planting techniques
  • crop rotation
  • high-value crops
  • container growing
  • space maximization
  • season extension

Each week will consist of a recorded slide presentation, followed by a live Zoom meeting session. A link to the presentation and access code for the Zoom meeting, will be emailed to registrants the Friday before each class. The Zoom meeting session will include live on-camera discussion, demonstrations, and activities. Active participation is expected.

Instructor: Kath Smyth
Online registration closes on Monday, March 1.

Help us Spread the Word! 
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Forward this email and ask your friends to select this SUBSCRIBE link. They will receive their own copy of Gardeners' Corner in their inbox.

Thanks for helping us grow. We appreciate your support!
Growing Succulents and Cacti
Thursday, February 11, 6:30 to 8:30 pm
Online: Zoom Cloud Meeting
Cost: $25 for Society members, $35 for non-members
Register

Join the Calgary Horticultural Society for an in-depth presentation on succulents and cacti. You’ll learn from Kyle Chow, plant lover and the owner of Plant, located in Inglewood. In this talk, he'll share detailed information about these popular houseplants, how to identify the needs of different varieties and their specific care, propagation techniques, and tips and tricks to successfully grow them in Calgary homes. 

Instructor: Kyle Chow (Plant)
Online registration closes on Monday, February 8.

Flower Arranging Without Floral Foam
Monday, February 15, 1:00 to 3:00 pm
Online: Zoom Cloud Meeting
Cost: $35 for Society members, $50 for non-members
Register

Making beautiful arrangements and keeping cut flowers fresh, requires anchoring the flowers in a container, and giving them access to water. Floral foam (also called Oasis), is often used to provide a base. However, floral foam is a one-time-use plastic, and a source of microplastics that are affecting the environment, aquatic life, and human health. Learn how to create inspiring and exciting floral arrangements without the use of floral foam, and ideas that bring horticulture and floristry back to NATURE! 

Learn about: 

  • the history of floral foam and its negative effects on marine ecosystems 
  • ways to design floral arrangements without the use of floral foam 
  • mechanisms for floral arranging that can be used (and reused!) 
  • vessels for arranging flowers, including many things you have around the house! 

Instructor: Becky Feasby
Online registration closes on Tuesday, February 9.

Introduction to Greenhouses  
Thursday, February 18
Online: Zoom Cloud Meeting

Some of our programs are very popular. Please register early to ensure that your place is reserved. Attendance is capped to facilitate participant-instructor conversations.

Piet Oudolf Movie Night – ‘Five Seasons’   
Saturday, February 20, 7:00 to 9:00 pm
Online: Zoom Cloud Meeting
Cost: $12 for Society members, $14 for non-members
Register

February often feels long and distant from the gardening season—so grab a hot drink and join us for an inspirational movie about a brilliant garden designer and his creations, followed by a facilitated discussion. 

 "After completing a feature documentary on New York's High Line, award winning filmmaker Thomas Piper met the inspirational designer and plantsman, Piet Oudolf, and the idea for a new project was born. The documentary, FIVE SEASONS: The Gardens of Piet Oudolf, immerses viewers in Oudolf's work and takes us inside his creative process, from his beautifully abstract sketches, to theories on beauty, to the ecological implications of his ideas.

Watch the movie trailer and learn more by visiting the Five Seasons Movie website.

The Movie Night will begin with a Zoom session and an introduction by Elaine Rude. She will then share the movie link. The link will allow you to watch the movie for up to 48 hours. The movie is approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes long. Participants will reconvene after the movie (at about 8:30 pm) for a post-viewing discussion. 

In order to participate, registrants will need a computer or tablet with speakers and a stable internet connection.  A device camera is optional. Further instructions and the Zoom link will be provided closer to the event.  

Host: Elaine Rude
Online registration closes on Thursday,
February 11.

Seed Starting—Eight Week Annual Plantings
Sunday, February 21 from 10:30 to 11:30 am
Online: Zoom Cloud Meeting and YouTube video
Access to the YouTube video is available from February 17 until February 28.
Cost: $25 for Society members, $35 for non-members
Register

This two-part course will teach you how to start many popular annuals (e.g., Zinnias, Petunias) and vegetables, indoors, from seed. Starting these plants indoors will give them a jumpstart on the growing season, resulting in earlier blooms and harvests, than if you waited to direct sow them outside. Indoor growing helps extend the season.

  • starting annuals eight weeks from last spring frost
  • veggies, etc.
  • winter sowing options
On February 17, prior to the course date (February 21), an exclusive link to the YouTube video will be emailed to registrants. In this video, the instructor will demonstrate sowing, cover seedling care, hardening off, and transplanting outdoors. This will give you an opportunity to try the first steps in the video, evaluate your materials, and prepare questions to ask the instructor during the Zoom meeting on the February 21. In the live meeting, the instructor will answer your questions and highlight some details covered in the YouTube video.

Instructor: Joanne Ogilvie
Online registration closes on Monday, February 15.
Starting seeds?
Use a journal to keep track of what, when, and how, so that next year (or even later this year) you can repeat your successes and try something different to address the failures.
Can’t Get Enough of Our Classes?
When you volunteer as a workshop monitor, not only do you get to meet new people, but you get the opportunity to attend the workshop for FREE!
If you’ve had your eye on one of our workshops, we would love to have you as a volunteer! Check our “What’s Happening” page for our current in-person and virtual workshop opportunities.

To learn more about our volunteer program or to sign up, please contact volunteer@calhort.org.
For more information about volunteering with the Society, visit Get Involved/Volunteer on calhort.org.

Volunteers are a valued resource of the Society. The safety and well-being of our volunteers is important to us. We are mindful of all the Society's future events and how the changing situation may affect them. Decisions about these event plans will be made closer to these event dates.
Support the Society

Membership—Need a Gift for Your Sweetheart?
It's a gift that gives throughout the year—free Member Talks, workshop discounts, merchant discounts (including garden centres), online resources, e-news, e-magazines, and Open Gardens tours. Gift memberships may be purchased online—visit Membership/Join the Society—or over the phone by calling 403.287.3469. Membership cards are mailed, unless you call the office to make arrangements to pick them up. Please note that an increase in membership fees went into effect on October 1, 2020. The individual membership fee is $55 and the senior (65+) membership fee is $35.

Start a Plan with a Garden Journal
The Society's journal is a terrific tool to help keep track of your plans and activities in the garden. The pages are not dated, so you can journal at your own pace without the stress of finishing an annual diary. It's a great gift for a gardener for any occasion. Purchase this gardening resource and support the Society. Call the office at 403.287.3469 to purchase your copy ($20) of The Growing Journal and arrange for contactless pick-up.
Note: We only have a few journals left. Call and purchase yours today, before we are sold out!

Help Us Grow!
The Calgary Horticultural Society is a registered charity dedicated to cultivating Calgary’s gardening community. Your support helps us continue our mission to enrich the lives of Calgarians by supporting gardening and enhancing the environment through our programs of talks, workshops, and courses. Donations enable the Society to engage Calgarians in Gardening for Life—every donation is appreciated. Thank you for supporting the Calgary Horticultural Society. Donate online.

If you would like to stop by the office (208 50 Avenue SW), please call us at 403.287.3469 to arrange an appointment, and we will be happy to assist you.

Do you have a gardening question? Did you find a great source for unique seeds you'd like to share? Log in to the Members' Forum, choose a topic, and let other members know. We look forward to hearing from you!
Copyright Calgary Horticultural Society | 2021 | All rights reserved.

Our mailing address is:
208 50 Avenue SW, Calgary, Alberta T2S 2S1

Phone: 403.287.3469


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