Learn with the Farmland Trust

Root to Bloom Centre

Restoring regenerative foodways through hands-on, on the land learning

Through our Root To Bloom Centre, the Farmland Trust offers a diverse year-round program of food and farm-related workshops, lectures, demonstrations, and certification opportunities featuring regenerative experts. In-person Classes take place at some of the most innovative and beautiful growing sites of Salt Spring Island, as well as at our Root Food Hub, Burgoyne Valley Community Farm and Bloom Castle orchard.

Courses range from hour-long skill building webinars to multi-day workshops, diving into topics as diverse as developing food brands and business plans, regenerative growing practices, cooking farm to table mealsa nd , and decolonizing food systems.

We are always open to partnerships with local farmers, producers, and experts to share their expertise, as well as bring in speakers and professionals from across the Pacific Northwest.

Browse our course calendar, below.

Linda Gilkeson's ABCs of Food Gardening

Master gardener Linda Gilkeson returns with a rare 2-part course: ABCs of Food Gardening. Learn proven strategies for resilient, sustainable food growing from one of the West Coast’s most respected experts.

Cooking with the Bounty of Salt Spring - with Jenn LeBlanc

Learn to cook healthy and delicious dishes that feature local food from the farms and fields across Salt Spring with sustainable food educator and local food enthusiast, Jenn LeBlanc. The menu will vary depending on available produce but we will definitely be sharing the recipe and technique for Jenn's Fall Fair award-winning apple crumble, featuring our beautiful SSI heritage apples.

Gardening with Native Plants

In this workshop, you will learn how gardening with our local native plants can give you a water-saving, low-maintenance garden that brings colour all season long, making them the ultimate ecological choice.

Soil Health, Microbiology, and Compost Brewing Workshop

Take a deep dive into the soil food web, compost systems, and brewing compost teas for healthy, resilient soils. Through a farm walk, microscopy session, and practical demonstrations, participants will gain tools to support thriving agroecological landscapes.

WORKSHOP: Walking the Wild Food Web with Jared Qwustenuxun Williams

Choosing plants that are in season, Jared will share lore and law about stewardship and cultivation practices — from time immemorial, and contemporary — and zoom out to what settlers can learn from the plant relatives and Indigenous law/stories in order to be good ancestors.

Cowichan chef and Indigenous foods educator Jared Qwustenuxun Williams.

WEBINAR: Indigenous Wild Foods, Lore, and Stewardship with Jared Qwustenuxun Williams

A seasonal dive into wild foods that are currently flourishing on the land, focussed on relationships between the human and more-than-human world. Choosing a plant that is in season, ie. camas bulbs, Jared will share lore and law about stewardship and cultivation practices — from time immemorial, and contemporary — and zoom out to what settlers can learn from the plant relatives and Indigenous law/stories in order to be good ancestors.

Know Your Plants: A Guide to Seed Saving with Dan Jason

Learn how to confidently identify, grow, and save seeds from open-pollinated plants to maintain biodiversity, ensure food security, and preserve heirloom varieties.