We welcome new members to the Farm. Surrounded by the Jerrabomberra Wetlands, we are also home to many small insect-eating birds, who work hard with their human companions to keep the garden and farm areas healthy in a sustainable, organic way. We also have the bees from the ACT Beekeepers Association’s hives working to pollinate our trees and plants.
If you would like to join us, please fill in the membership form and come along to a Working Bee or a Farm Tour on Monday and Thursday at 9.30am by emailing info@ccfarm.org.au and putting “Farm Tours” in the subject line. Other times are possible by arrangement – at the same contact.
See Activities for some of your options for participation.
For current COVID-19 restrictions at the City Farm, click here.
New in 2023
MARKET GARDEN TRAINING.
We are excited to announce that Farmer Incubator, a not-for-profit organisation committed to providing agricultural development opportunities, is running a program called Pop Up Garlic Farmers from February to November right here at Canberra City Farm in the heart of the nation’s capital.
It’s a beginner course in market gardening and is designed for people who want to grow their gardening skills, are interested in learning more about small scale sustainable farming or just want to be self-sufficient in garlic. The course provides workshops, mentoring and hands-on experience as participants grow their own crop of garlic at the Canberra City Farm. It’s a great opportunity to learn practical skills while developing new friendships, connections and networks. At the end you’ll have enough garlic to sell, gift, eat or all three!
For more information email pugfcbr@farmerincubator.org. More detailed information about the program can be found here. A link to ticket sales and the course schedule can be found here. An Information Session will be held at the City Farm on Saturday, 28 January, at 3pm. More details on the Information Session can be found here.
In our Sustainable Living Podcast, Episode 25, Keith Colls talks to Roberta Wallis, the Program Coordinator for the Pop Up Garlic Farmers program at Canberra City Farm and Per Staurup, one of the founders of Farmer Incubator. You can listen to the podcast here.
Regular Events
Sustainable Living Podcast, Episode 24, features Fred McGrath Weber of Majura Valley Free Range Eggs and President of the ACT Rural Landholders Association of Farmers. For more detail and to listen to the podcast, click here. Previous podcasts are online. You can hear them by clicking here.
Each month we are holding a You-tube gardening and sustainable living video review session – like an electronic book club, if you like. To indicate your interest and get onto the Zoom call, email info@ccfarm.org.au.
The current Member Spotlight features Mark Spain, a long term volunteer and founding member of the City Farm. This was originally published in our October Newsletter. Every month after the Newsletter is published we will be putting the spotlight on another one of our members. One of the most important things to us here at CCF is the people who make up our community. You can find the Member Spotlight page here.
Monthly Mingles will continue in 2023. They are on the third Sunday of the month from Midday to 3pm and consist of an informal get-together where we can share food, stories, and views on sustainability and our food system. We’ll be firing up the pizza oven, so bring along some toppings to share and help us make some delicious wood-fired pizzas. We’ll provide the dough, sauce, and cheese. If you haven’t visited the Farm in a while, this is the perfect opportunity to see what crops growing and to reconnect with a community of like-minded people.
The next Monthly Plant Clinic will be held from 10am to midday on Monday, 6 February on site at the City Farm in the LESS. If you have been having problems trying to identify pests and diseases which are affecting your garden plants and you don’t know how to deal with them, then a visit to the plant clinic may help. If your plants are not thriving in your soil, perhaps you need some advice on how to make you soil more plant friendly. All gardening questions are welcome. Plant Clinics are held on the first Monday of every month, 10am to midday. Keith Colls will be happy to answer any of your gardening questions. PLEASE NOTE, if you are bringing diseased plant material or pest insects from home please ensure they are in a sealed plastic bag or glass bottle so they do not contaminate the City Farm gardens.