Saturday, July 20, 2019
Join us for an inspiring tour of four local edible gardens, from the p-patches on Johnson Farm’s historic 14-acre property to a year-round vegetable garden in Winslow. Hosted by Friends of the Farms and Bainbridge Prepares, local food gardeners will share their knowledge on everything from creatively maximizing limited garden space to growing multi-grafted fruit trees. Meet us at the Bethany Lutheran Church parking lot to commence the tour and be inspired to grow more of your own food!
Advance ticket purchase required. Only 50 spots available.
Date: Saturday, July 20, 2019
Time: 8:45 to 1:30pm
Meeting location: Bethany Lutheran Church parking lot. 7968 Finch Rd NE, Bainbridge Island, WA 98110
Relax and travel by bus to these 4 locations.
These gardens are inspirational!
Featured Gardeners—
Carol Appenzeller
In her home garden on a not-so-big property right in Winslow, Carol Appenzeller grows very nearly all of her family's vegetables for the whole year, as well as some fruit and a rotating variety of protein staples. Growing food connects her to the life of her ancestors and to the value of traditional skills. She loves teaching others how to start from wherever they are to begin or improve their food growing. She can show you when and how to plant to make your garden feed you abundantly all year, even in the middle of winter, without costly infrastructure, as well as giving you tips on storing fresh food in the garden, "cellaring," fermenting, and developing a network of gardening friends with whom to trade produce, skills, and joy.
Tami Meader & Nick Daluiso
Our story started twenty years ago in a studio apartment on Capitol Hill with two tomato plants in plastic pots. Fourteen years and a few gardens later, we found our current property while searching for a new home on the island. We had no inkling what we were getting into. Garden beds and fencing needed mending, the orchard had gone untended. Why was there bunny fencing? I don’t see any bunnies… But on a thoughtful whim we said, “why not?” Eating fresh, healthy food has always been a priority for us. Now we rarely go to the produce isle and canning has become a summertime priority. This property has inspired us to be outside and to bring what we thought we knew about vegetable gardening front and center into our daily lives.
Darren Murphy
On just a third of an acre, Darren Murphy and his wife Kari have created a virtual inner city garden oasis, containing a wide assortment of fruits, vegetables, herbs, and flowers as well as small flock of chickens. Darren is one of the founding members and current President of the Bainbridge Island Fruit Club. Using his substantial knowledge of growing fruit, Darren has created numerous multi-grafted trees—with one of his newest creations combining plums, cherries, and apricots on a single tree! This tour site promises to give viewers a wide range of fruit to observe and taste. You’ll also see Darren’s creative ways of maximizing limited space through the use of raised beds, trellis, and various types of containers as well as learn about some low cost methods for controlling both small and large garden pests. In March 2017, the Murphy’s orchard/garden was featured in Westsound Home & Garden.
Johnson Farm
Johnson Farm is a 14-acre historic farmland off Fletcher Bay Road. It is owned by the City of Bainbridge and has been managed as by Friends of the Farms since 2012. The farm is open to the public for walking, picnicking, and foraging for various wild edibles. The farm is the site of an orchard managed by the Bainbridge Island Fruit Club. It is also the home of Friends of the Farms’ annual Harvest Fair and other community events, like yoga!
Three local farmers also utilize Johnson Farm. Heyday Farm operates the fenced in crop area. Persephone Farm has a CSA pickup location in the green barn. And Vireo Farm is in the process of building the island’s first hydroponic farm, down in the lower lot.
Friends of the Farms works with 14 gardeners to run a p-patch at Johnson Farm. Gardeners grow food and flowers for their families and help maintain community areas, equipment and grape vines.
