Rooting DC is just around the corner on Saturday February 20th, and we want to share with you the lineup of workshops.  In its third year, Rooting DC promotes gardening as a low-cost way to provide food for families, particularly in areas where fresh, affordable food is hard to come by (such as East of the River).

This year we’re excited to be focusing on the themes of Food Production, Distribution, Preparation and Preservation.  In addition to how-to workshops about gardening, one classroom will feature demonstrations of food preparation, showing how to work with fresh ingredients on a limited budget, plus the basics of fermentation and canning.  One classroom will offer a series of gardening and nutrition workshops in Spanish.  One room is for kids’ activities and childcare offered on an as-needed basis (with pre-registration).

We hope that you’ll be able to join us for a day packed with workshops, keynote presentations, and discussion panels!  On behalf of Rooting DC and America the Beautiful Fund, we hope that you’ll assist us in our outreach effort by distributing the flyer to your friends and networks, particularly East of the River.

Don’t forget to call to pre-register if you plan to attend: 202-638-1649

Rooting DC 2010 Schedule

9:30-10          Registration and sign-in

10-10:30        Introduction

10:30-11:30  Workshop Session 1 (Choose one)
·         Button Farm Almanac – Growing Heirloom Crops from a Slave Plantation by Tony Cohen

·         A Specialty Crop Program for the District of Columbia by Dr. James Allen and Yao Afantchao

·         Starting Seeds Indoors by Chris Turse

·         Wiggly Wonders by City Blossoms

·         Vegetales en Macetas presentado por Jerry Potter

·         10:30  Low Cost Vegetable Salads with Niko Welch

·         11:00  Preserving summer’s bounty: canning basics with Liz Falk

11:45-12:45  Workshop Session 2 (Choose one)
·         Breaking through the Barriers – the Business of Better Food for All by Robert Egger

·         A Specialty Crop Program for the District of Columbia (repeat presentation) by Dr. James Allen and Yao Afantchao

·         All the Dirt on Compost by Cheval Force Opp

·         Gardening crafts and games with the Washington Youth Garden

·         Sembrando Sabores de Mi Tierra presentado por Rafael Merchan

·         11:45  Quick and Easy Spicy Kale Salad with Tracye McQuirter

·         12:15  Green Smoothies: The Ultimate Nutrition with Steve Seuser

12:45-1:45     Light lunch & non-profit info fair

1:15  Food for the Brain! Cooking Workshop with Tambra Stevenson, MS

2:00-3:00       Workshop Session 3 (Choose one)
·         How North American cities have been organizing for urban agriculture – and what the DC region can learn from that by Joe Nasr and Kimberley Hodgson

·         Fresh!  Healthy!  Available Locally? Discussion facilitated by Healthy Affordable Food for All Coalition members

·         Soil Preparation for Small-Scale Production by Tommy Pyne

·         Gardening crafts and games with the DC Childcare Collective

·         Nutrición General y Comida Saludable presentado por Niko Welch

·         Wild Fermentation with Ed Bruske

3:00-3:15       Break – raffle drawing

3:15-4:00       Workshop Session 4 (Choose one)
·         A Community of Gardeners documentary film by Cintia Cabib

·         Making a Difference: Policy & Advocacy Discussion facilitated by Carl Rollins, Andrea Northup, and Parisa Norouzi

·         Creating Healthy Food Systems Discussion facilitated by Vinnie Bevivino, Judy Davis, and Michele Levy

·         Container Gardening by Jennifer Jefferson