A Spring Gardening Workshop presented by Pasadena Water and Power Saturday will feature tips on bio intensive garden from an expert in getting the greatest yield from a minimum area of land.
Christy Wilhemi, owner of www.gardenerd.com, will be the guest speaker. Wilhemi said she has been gardening in small spaces for 20 years.
“It all started very, very small, on a balcony and then on a patio,” she said. “Then I began a community garden, which I’ve had for 15 years out here in Mar Vista at Ocean View Farm.”
The free workshop will be held 9-11 a.m. at the Salvation Army, 960 East Walnut St., and is the second such PWP event, according to Water Conservation Manager Nancy Long.
“For years we’ve hosted landscaping workshops and irrigation workshops, but there’s really been a growing interest in edible gardening and specifically organic-edible gardens,” Long said. “If people are going to be doing this, we want to make sure they’re doing it in a way that they are using the water efficiently because vegetable gardens use quite a bit of water.”
Biointensive agriculture is generally defined as organic farming with the dual purpose of maximizing yields while maintaining or improving the fertility of the soil. Biointensive gardening is commonplace in developing countries where growing food with limited natural and financial resources is essential to rural communities.
“These classes are geared towards helping people plan out their garden so they can be really efficient and utilize their resources to the best of their ability,” Wilhemi said. “I talk a lot about using less water and less energy. It’s less work with better results.”
Long said PWP also provides videos and other information concerning biointensive gardening at its websitewww.cityofpasadena.net/waterandpower, “but a lot of people want to get hands-on. They want to come and get their hands dirty and just really have a more interactive experience.”
More information is available through PWP at (626) 744-3715.
