Principles and Background
Home gardening is a simple but very effective way for individuals to make a difference that immediately contributes to their quality of life and also to the world in general through reducing their environmental footprint. Many fresh vegetables and fruit can be produced in gardens, large and small, throughout the community. Wide scale adoption of home gardening would contribute to decentralising the supply of this fresh food, lead to sequestering carbon from local organic matter such as tree prunings, and recycling nutrients such as those in food waste. It would also give consumers some control over their food supply and in many cases gardening would also provide personal relaxation and satisfaction.
In this course, we hope to give an opportunity for people to learn basic gardening skills that would help them discover the power and joy of providing fresh home grown vegetables for family and friends.
Objectives and Methodology
To teach participants how to establish and manage a home vegetable garden using sustainable organic methods. This will be done using presentations and practical activities so they understand fundamental principles as well as gain the confidence through hands-on participation to establish their own gardens. It will include the following topics:
1) Designing a garden and garden preparation prior to planting vegetables.
2) Learning basic concepts about soil.
3) Understanding some plant and soil relationships.
4) Making and preparing biochar and compost – soil conditioners to support a healthy garden.
5) Choosing and applying fertilisers, and plant watering.
6) Choosing which vegetables to grow and what you need to know to grow them well, e.g. crop rotations within the garden.
Training Venue
near Maetha Organic Cafe
https://goo.gl/maps/jiSaePvh9h92
Mae Tha: The Organic Village of Thailand
With more than 40 years of history on sustainable development, Mae Tha village (70 km south of Chaing Mai) is well known place for rural development practitioners. With assistant from Green Net, organic farming activities began around 25 years ago with less than 10 farm but now has expanded to include more than 300 farmers. Mae Tha inspires thousands of Thai and foreigner visitors of how organic farming could change the life of farmers and how it can be up-scaled to have further impacts.
The training is organized in collaboration with Maetha Organic Community Enterprise (a local organization of young new generation organic farmers and friends) and the Earth Net Foundation – Green Net.
Tentative Schedule
Day 1 (Saturday) 22 June 2019
09:00 – 09:30 Welcome and personal introductions
09:30 – 10:30 Introduction to gardening (Theory); Space available and aspect, local weather conditions, shading and insect protection, tools resources etc.
10:30 – 11:00 break
11:00 – 12:30 Continue to discuss garden layout and type, e.g. gardening in the ground/raised bed/container growing (Theory) Q+A / discussion
12:30 – 13:30 Lunch
13:30 – 14:30 Walk around “new land” garden and on site discussion about layout etc., hands-on soil discussion.
14:30 – 15:00 Begin preparing land for garden, including container growing, planting examples e.g. dig garden, assemble a raised bed, prepare a container.
15:00 – 15:30 Break.
15:30 – 16:30 Discuss biochar and compost (Theory).
16:30 – 17.30 – Start making biochar (demonstration).
17:30 – 18:30 Break
18:30 – 19:30 Dinner
19:30 – 20:30 Finish making biochar.
20:30 – 21:00 Reflection on days information and Q/A time.
Day 2 (Sunday) 23 June 2019
07:00 – 08:00 Breakfast
09:00 – 10:00 Plant nutrition and fertilisers (theory)
10:00 – 10:30 Start to build a compost heap (demonstration)
10:30 – 11:00 Break
11:00 – 11:30 finish the compost heap. Complete garden digging and preparation including adding compost and nutrients
11:30 – 12:30 Planting and sowing seed
12:30 – 13:30 Lunch
13:30 – 15:00 Visit biochar experiment and organic seed farm of Green Net
15:00 – 16:00 Close and informal discussion
Trainer/Instructor
1) Dennis Enright [primary trainer]
Dennis has a long history of working with soil and gardening. He has 23 years experience in soil research working for the NZ government and 20 years growing and selling organically certified vegetables. Now his primary focus is on researching and promoting biochar. He has also spent time working for various community groups and has been chair of The Soil and Health Association of NZ – a consumers group advocating for environmental care, gardening and for safe and healthy food, Organicfarm NZ – an organic certification organisation, and currently chair the Biochar Network NZ – a national biochar organisation.
2) Vitoon R. Panyakul [assistant]
Vitoon has been working with the Thai organic movement and fair trade since 1991. He has been founder of many key organizations such as Green Net Cooperative, Earth Net Foundation, Organic Agriculture Certification Thailand (ACT), Thai Organic Trader Association (TOTA). Besides working in Thailand, Vitoon is also active in Southeast Asian region where he works as consultancy on various aspects of organic agriculture and fair trade.
Accommodation
We plan to house you in farmer home as home stay with local organic farmers. Some of them are young farmers (their parents started organic farming 30 years ago) and they could communicate in basic English.
Most of the home stay would be on shared room basis (2 – 3 persons) but there is a couple private room available. Local style breakfast is included.
However, you could choose to stay at the nearby hotel. We can organize a transfer between the hotel and the training venue.
Pick up from Chaing Mai
Free transfer from Chaing Mai airport to the training venue and return are provided for participants.
Depart Chaing Mai airport to Mae Tha
Saturday 22 Jul 19, 07:00 (expected arrival time 08:30)
Depart Mae Tha to Chaing Mai airport
Sunday 23 July 19, 16:30 (expected arrival time 18:00)
Training Fee
THB 4,600 per person.
This fee includes 2 organic lunches, 1 organic dinner, 4 coffee breaks, training materials, and one-night home-stay. A discount of THB 200 is given for those who do not want the home-stay accommodation.
Participants and Application
As this is a practical training, a maximum of 25 participants can be accepted. This is on the basis first come (pay) first serve.
Registration is done on line at:
https://forms.gle/c9mFmRMk7D72scmq8
