We are starting to shift the look of the newsletter so are excited to start including a few new “regular” sections: Local Foodie Heroes, an article we find interesting pertaining to local food and a recipe of in-season produce available in gardens, at the Farmers Markets and our Marketmobile in Concow and Magalia.

Each section has a highlighted title so scroll until you find what interests you!

Creating food Independence in Butte County Returns!

Save The Date!! Sunday, May 23, 2021 at 11AM– 12:30 PM at Vecino Victory Garden, 1535 Laburnum Ave in Chico.

We are excited to be reintroducing this popular monthly series of talks Sunday, May 23 with a treat: find out what common plants in your garden & the food scraps in your kitchen make permanent or semi-permanent natural dyes

Rachel Haight recently moved back to Butte County after a hiatus in the Bay Area. While there, she studied textile design and taught natural dye workshops. Let’s welcome her back learn and about what we can use to substitute toxic dyes for our coloring fun.

Please bring a chair if you have one, a mask and your lovely self. Find out more and invite friends here .

Please, please take this very Short Survey.

It means so much!

Please help us help the growing garden community by taking a short survey! Your voice matters!

We have the potential to partner with some garden experts, but they want to know what the community wants most to learn about.

Please take our survey and rank your favorite five topics (or more) so we know what to focus on! It’s easy, it’s quick and it’ll help us do talks that the ya’ll are interested in!

Jobs Available For Local Foodies!!

We never thought we’d be saying this, but due to the generosity of the North Valley Community Foundation, Butte Strong Fund, Aaron Rodgers and Sierra Nevada, we are hiring Research Assistants for a Local Food Assessment. WooT!

There are 4 positions available, 20-24 hours a week, $15-20 an hour, depending on experience. It lasts from nowish to September 15ish unless, by some miracle, we finish early. We also need three specialized consultant positions (BIPOC, Low Income/homeless and Burn Scar expertise) that will receive a stipend as consultants. Positions can be combined. You will be involved in all aspects of researching and writing the LFA. The reading/writing team will be led by Maria Giovanni, Associate Professor of Nutrition Science at CSU Chico. Be a part of making history while getting to be of service to your community’s food security.

Please contact us for a detailed job description and spread the word to friends and families who care about local food security, need an interesting job, have experience doing research (whether for personal reasons, school or work) and like to do this kind of stuff. If you don’t want to wait for a reply, you can check out the description here but we ask that you apply via our contact form. Thanks!

Our Local Foodie Heroes:

African American Family Cultural Center in Oroville

AAFCC- We want to give a huge shout out to the African American Cultural and Family Center in Oroville as it’s their TEN year anniversary! Watch how they’ve grown in this video .

The Community Garden is part of our newly forming Butte County Community Garden Network and has reopened after having to pull back during COVID. Stop by, pull a few weeds, create community and inner peace, help the food grow then eat it.

From their FB page: African American Family & Cultural Center’s Community Garden has begun to plant the spring & summer harvest. If interested in working in the garden their hours are Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 8 am to 11:00am, and on Saturday from 8 am – 12 pm. The garden is located at 2733 Wyandotte Avenue, South Oroville. Come and enjoy the bounty.

You can also find out more about the center and their community garden project here.

Local Foodie Article: Fruit Tree Guild

What’s a “Fruit Tree Guild?”

“Planting and growing a fruit tree guild is a great way to maximize your garden space and provide nutrients and health to your fruit trees at the same time. A fruit tree guild can help with disease resistance, attracting pollinators, and providing the right growing environments for multiple crops at once.”

Check out the full and very informative article here.

PS…we love this newsletter and encourage you to sign up if you find the information useful.

Don’t forget…if you live in Magalia or Concow, find the Big Yellow Truck at the Dome Store (on Saturdays, 2:30 to 5) or the Magalia Community Center’s parking lot (on Thursdays from 2-6)

We encourage you to use your EBT/SNAP cards at the Marketmobile as we are trying to show need to be able to (hopefully) offer Market Match next funding cycle.

Please also use your Angel Cards if you got one!

We feature Kohlrabi this week. You may have seen it at markets or stores…it looks like it’s from another planet and you may not know what to DO with it.

We were first introduced to it by Lisa from Pyramid Farm and it was love at first bite. She was offering samples but said to try it with a sliver of blue cheese for a really tasty pairing. It did NOT disappoint one bit, but it’s also really good just on its own or either shredded or slivered into most any salad. We also offer this recipe if you want a specific way to try it if it’s new for you. Most of the ingredients can be found at both the Certified Farmers Market and our Marketmobile which brings the market closer to you.

INGREDIENTS

1 large kohlrabi, peeled, stems trimmed off, grated

1/4 head purple cabbage, shredded

2 medium carrots, peeled and grated

1/2 red onion, grated

4 tablespoons chopped cilantro

1/4 cup golden raisins (optional)

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1 tablespoon cider vinegar

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

STEPS: Combine the kohlrabi, cabbage, carrots, onion, cilantro, and raisins (if using) in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, cider vinegar, sugar, and salt. Pour the dressing over the slaw, and mix until fully coated. Chill for several hours before serving.

Recipe taken from: https://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-kohlrabi-and-carrot-slaw-recipes-from-the-kitchn-46627

Ongoing and Partner Events

Ongoing: Join us (most) every Sunday at Vecino Victory Garden 1535 Laburnum Ave in Chico NOTE…Due to intense heat, hours have changed to 8AM to 11 for those of us who wilt, ie., most of us. Lots to do there…check out the new greenhouse cover and definitely check out the Gazebo and chairs. Next big investment is the shed. It should be here end of June.

This Sunday, join Pamm at 8:30am sharp to stuff Save Our Seeds envelopes so we can get the last batch of Three Sisters seed packets in the Tiny Libraries around town before it’s too late to plant. Plenty of other stuff to do at Vecino if you don’t want to stuff seeds, so please join us!

May 22: Greywater Systems Workshop: Demonstration, Installation, & Permitting at Sol Sanctuary 8742 Nugget Ln, Paradise, CA 95969 from 9AM to 4PM.

Free workshop. Learn from local permaculture expert Ed Fortenberry, local contractors, and a licensed plumber who can speak to the permits and codes relating to greywater systems in California and Paradise specifically. Come prepared with all of your questions! There will be a full day of learning, community, and hands-on fun to be had by all. Find out more here.

May 25: TEK Wildtending At Verbena Fields 1550 E. 1st Ave, Chico. 4-6PM

Overview: Join us the last Tuesday of each month at Verbena Fields to learn about keystone native plants and how to help restore them to revive native ecosystem habitats. Highly recommended. Find out more here .

Summer Kid Program at Kentfield Garden 1125 Kentfield Rd. Chico

From Kentfield: We are welcoming Jess Mercer and Paradise Rec to Kentfield Garden. They are bringing something incredible to you kids. This is an art enrichment program for the summer. This program will run through August. Like everything we do, it’s free, but we have a signup program due to limited space. Every single session will include an art project that you can take home and every week is a new project.

Contact Jenny for more information or to sign up. text 530-513-7638, email fromthegroundup2013@hotmail.com or use the “contact us” tab and it will go directly to Jenny. See you in the garden, kids.

That’s all for now, folks! Take care and eat well! We are SO very blessed with all the abundance our area provides us.

The Team at BCLFN-

Toni, Ali, Amy, Jarrett, Maria and Pamm

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