10 weeks from 22 February 2010

Friday Hill learning centre

Who is the course aimed at? This course is aimed at beginner and intermediate gardeners with an interest in food growing. It is for anyone who has enthusiasm to create a brighter, more productive garden this growing season. It will suit those starting this year from scratch, and those who have some experience and want to follow a 10 week seasonal plan to gain new tips for this year's planting. The focus will be on growing plants organically.

Do you gain any qualifications? No - this course is not accredited.

What will you learn? This course is designed to give practical ideas and support you to get your garden growing. It will cover:

" How to get what you want from your garden
" 'Healthy soil = healthy garden": Looking after your soil
" Making your own compost - the whys and how
" Seed sowing and growing
" How to grow your own vegetables
" Dividing plants to produce more flowers than you can imagine
" Introduction to growing and maintaining herbs and other shrubs
" Pest and disease control - with an introduction to companion planting

Course details: This course runs for 10 sessions at Friday Hill learning centre. Starting on 22 February, it is a Monday evening class from 6.30-9.30pm

It is class-room based, but includes practical work and demonstration opportunities in the grounds of Friday Hill House. There are plenty of opportunities for learners to discuss applying techniques in their own gardening spaces. Towards the end of the course, some sessions will take place at Hawkwood Community Plant Nursery in Chingford. Venue details will be given during the course.

What will you need for the course ? Paper, pens and other equipment you may wish to use to record class notes and a folder to store information material given out during the course. There will be outdoor activities on set days, for these you will be advised to wear appropriate clothing and shoes. Gardening gloves for some activities is recommended, but not essential. As part of the course you will be encouraged to keep a gardening diary. A notebook for this is useful.

Additional costs: There will be vegetable seeds and seedlings available for sale throughout the course.

What next? There are several weekend and Saturday courses running throughout the year that allow learners to deepen gardening knowledge in areas such as seed saving techniques. Your tutor will make you aware of these. Longer gardening courses are available through CLaSS with the possibility for City and Guilds accreditation.

The tutor can offer advice on opportunities for volunteering at gardening projects locally.

More courses can be found on http://www.walthamforestclass.gov.uk/coursefinder/(S(nzigolajmdgv4c552nqy543x))/searchres_all.aspx