Urban Farm & Garden ~ Sunday Afternoons

Bees and Backyard Beekeeping with the Kenyan Top Bar System
Section 1: Starting the Season  Sunday March 30, 11-3pm $25-50 **CLASS FULL
SESSION ADDED!! Saturday April 5 10am-2pm **CLASS FULL
Section 2: Honey Harvest & Potluck Sunday August 24, 10-4pm $35-60
Learn about the life cycles and biology of the honey bee, basic management strategies and equipment needed to get started as a backyard beekeeper using the Kenyan Top Bar Hive, a low input natural beekeeping system. Weather permitting we will go into a hive and work with the bees. This class is for anyone interested in bees, even if you don’t plan to manage a hive of your own.

Organic Gardening 101 Sunday April 27 1-4pm $25-50 **CLASS FULL
SESSION ADDED!! Saturday May 3 10:30am - 1:30pm **CLASS FULL
Learn foolproof basics to get started. Information about soil, water, sun & shade plants, starting seeds, buying starts, cover crops, double digging, plants for our area, seasonal planting, garden planning, container gardening, pests and more. Bring your questions and get your hands dirty! This class is for beginning gardeners and those wanting to learn more about organic perspectives and techniques.

Backyard Chickens the Permaculture Way with Dawn and Brent in El Cerrito
Sunday June 1 2-5pm $25-50 sliding scale
Have you heard about how much better home-grown eggs are and long to have a supply of your own? Are your kitchen scraps overwhelming your worm bin? Tired to tilling your garden beds by hand? Is your garden overrun with oxalis? Chickens are the answer to all of these challenges, and many more. Learn how to pick a breed of chicken that will suit your needs, how to build a raccoon-proof shelter for them, how to feed for optimal egg production and much, much more. Keeping chickens can be easy and a whole lot of fun if done right. Learn how with Brent and Dawn. You'll get a chance to meet our chickens (and their eggs) up close and personal, find out what foods get a chicken excited, how to protect chickens from predators and everything else you'll need to start your very own, low-effort backyard flock.

Solstice Open House & Demonstration Sunday June 22 1-5pm FREE
Check out the garden in full swing, the greywater set-up, the beehives and a show and tell of the tilework and projects done by hand. Jam, compote and mead tasting. Art and potions for sale. Please contact us for location & directions.

Pollinator Paradise Sunday July 20 11-1 pm $20-50
An Introduction to the wonderful world of pollinators, pollination strategies and pollination syndromes. We will learn about native solitary bees and honey bees, their life cycles and biology and how to encourage them in the garden. We will observe native bees and other pollinators foraging, so bring your camera with close-up function to take pictures.

Put a Bee in Your Bonnet Sunday July 20, 2-4 pm, $20-50
This is an introduction to the honeybee and backyard beekeeping for people whi are interested in knowing mroe about bees but may not be quite ready to start their own hive. You will learn about honey bee life cycles, watch a real bee hive at work, taste homegrown honey, hold comb and learn some essentials about managing honeybees without getting too technical! Plus you'll get the lowdown on Colony Collapse Disorder and the good news about organic beekeepoing practices on the rise. This class will be geared for grown ups but appropriate for kids 6 and up.

Farm & Garden | Kitchen | Arts | Body | Herbs | In the Works

Urban Kitchen ~ Tuesday Evenings

Canning Made Easy
Section 1 Fruit Compotes, Jellies and Jams. Tuesday June 10, 7-9:30pm $25-50, $8 supply fee
Section 2 Tomatos & Tomato Sauces.Tuesday August 12 7-9:30pm $25-50, $8 supply fee
Learn the most simple canning techniques for acid fruits and tomatoes. We will can seasonal organic ingredients in a failproof method that will knock yer socks off it is so easy and quick. Plus you will take home a jar or two of the goodies we make.

Yogurt & Cheese Making Tuesday July 22, 7-10pm $25-50, $10 supply fee
We will learn an easy method of making homemade yogurt, two kinds of soft cheese and a 30-minute mozzarella. You will take home samples of all four.

Introduction to Making Fruit & Honey Wines Tuesday June 24th 7-9:30 $25-50
We will learn about equiptment, ingredients and fermentation techniques for making fruit and honey wines—including making wines with natural ingredients instead of chemicals. We will start one batch and taste several others.

Working With Chocolate with Anastasia Nicole
Tuesday July 15, 2008 7-10pm $25-50, $20 supply fee
We will learn how to make decadant desserts using quality organic ingrediants and approaching dark chocolate as a food. Includes sampling of various types and grades of chocolate, properties of chocolate, and hands-on work with chocolate. We will learn techniques for "enrobing" fresh fruit and nuts, as well as prepare simple chocolate pudding and truffles. Participants will leave with an assortment of handmade chocolate confections.

Farm & Garden | Kitchen | Arts | Body | Herbs | In the Works

Art in the Garden ~ Sunday Afternoons
Each class will include an introduction to the materials with specific instruction and ample time for art-making, support and dialog.

Fine Art Collage Play Day Sunday April 13, 1-5pm $25-50, $5 supply fee Class canceled
We will work with paper, paint, crayons, cloth, sewing, ink stamps, found images and more to create 2-dimensional images about themes of personal interest. Please bring several images or textures with you to start with. Special focus on the interplay of form and content.

Mosaic Play Day Sunday May 4, 1-5pm and Tuesday May 6 7-9pm $50-80, $10 supply fee
In this two sitting session we will each create a small mosaic from start to finish. Instruction will cover an introduction to mosaic arts including materials, adhesives, substrates and cutting techniques.

Collage & Assemblage Play Day Sunday June 8 2-6pm $25-50, $5 supplly fee
Come explore collage making in the intersection of 2 & 3D. We will work with found and constructed materials to create wall hangings or sculptures. Instruction will address various assembly and adhesive techniques. Please bring several objects of personal signifigance to use as a base for your project.

Printmaking Play Day Sunday August 3 2-6pm $25-50, $10 supply fee plus $5 to make gocco prints
Instruction will cover a survay of printmaking techniques including rubber stamps, potato prints, temporary silkscreen methods, block prints, spraypaint and sponge stenciling and the gocco print. Each person will have the option to try one or two of these techniques. Focus will be on small prints for cloth or cards.

Farm & Garden | Kitchen | Arts | Body | Herbs | In the Works

Enchanted Herbalism with Zsuzsi Fern
Fresh Plant Tinctures & Infused Oils Sunday April 6th 1-3pm $25-50, $10 supply fee
This class will introduce participants to the uses and benefits of tinctures and herbal infused oils. We will gain background knowledge of specific medicinal herbals, connect with these plants in the garden and work with them to make tincture and oil. All materials provided.

Enchanted Herbalism with Zsuzsi Fern
Herbal Salve & Lotion Tuesday, April 15th 6:30-9:30pm $25-50, $8 supply fee
Suggested pre-requisite: Fresh Plant Tincture & Herbal Infused Oils
Participants will learn the benefits of homemade body products and the hazards of commonly used store-bought lotions. We will make our own lotion and salve with natural ingredients and plants harvested fresh from the garden.

Making & Using Flower Essences with Dori Midnight
Sunday July 27, 2-5 pm $25-50 plus $8 supply fee
Flower essences are magical and powerful remedies that people have been making and using for ages (for example the ever-popular Rescue Remedy) . They draw on the "essence" of the plant for its particular healing properties and are often used for emotional and spiritual imbalances, crisis and transformation. We will cover the basics of flower essences, uses and applications, and make our own essence in the garden! Come get your fairy on and learn more about this innately sustainable folk magic!

Children's Classes Ages 6 and Up with Zsuzsi Fern
Parents welcome to stay and participate for free.

Heavenscent Spritzers Sunday July 20 10:00-11am $10-20, $2 supply fee
Children will make spritzers, create artistic labels, and play a fairie garden game

Fairie Wheel Creation Sunday July 13 10-11:30am $10-25, $2 supply fee
A fairie wheel is a wreath and medicine wheel combined. The intention is to create a healing tool from nature, which represents the circle and cycles of life. Children will learn what it means to create a healing tool and how it is used. We will also briefly discuss the seasons and their themes in relation to our lives. They will use objects found in nature to create this sacred healing tool. They will create a short ritual with their fairie wheels. Children are encouraged to bring crystals, feathers or beads for their wheel.

Bodywork & Sexuality
Why are these classes included in a school for urban permaculture?
Permaculture is a series of principles that deal with how we human animals inhabit this earth. In the permaculture zone system, zone zero is usually thought of as the home, but if we think of zone zero as our body, we can see there is plenty to learn to care for this most precious resource in a sustainable manner. It is our perspective at IUH that the body is akin to our personal earth which is much maligned and taken for granted. In particular there is a great deal of misinformation and shame about the pelvis and its functions in western culture and upbringing. These classes bring information and knowledge to this vital center of our body, help free us from both inhibition and shame and promote authenticity and pleasure.

Pelvic Breathwork Saturday May 17 2-6pm $60-90
Also called Revolutionary Breathwork this style of breathwork is a process of activating the body from the pelvis outwards. The breathwork session is a mini-tune up for body and spirit. It is a way of clearing out and letting go of what is not needed: inhibition, shame, stress, stuck emotions -- and moving towards pleasure and ecstatic, kinesthetic joy. The afternoon includes breathwork instruction, a breathwork session and discussion.

Pelvic Bodywork Sunday May 18 10-6pm $120-160
This day-long massage class introduces participants to the landscape of the pelvis and specifc massage strokes and approaches to the lower abdomen, buttocks and groin area. There will be instruction on quality of touch an how to communicate clarity of intention through touch. Massage experience is helpful but not necessary. All genders are welcome. We will work clothes on or draped, depending on the needs and comfort of those receiving. It is highly recommended to take the Pelvic Breathwork class in conjunction with this class.

Moon Cycle Magik- Honoring the Menstrual Cycle with Zsuzsi Fern
Saturday, May 10th 1-6pm $65-90, individual or $120-200 each mother/daughter pair
Go with the flow! This one-day intensive circle is designed specifically for mothers and daughters, and will allow us to explore our beliefs and patterning related to menstruation. We will honor, explore and share the journey of menstruation in relation to the cycles of nature through movement, creative expression, stillness and ritual. Mothers and daughters of all ages welcome, in celebration of Mother's Day, May

IN THE WORKS


Teaching at IUH
We are currently on-hold for adding any more classes for the 2008 season. If you teach something you think would be a great addition to our curriculum please contact us and we will send you information on how to propose a class.

Below are classes we are planning on offering at a future date. Please check back for updates or let us know you are interested in these topics.

Archistectural Tile Setting
Do you need a tile counter, backsplash or other small to mediujm area tiled? I am looking for projects and locations that could be done as a workshop. Email me to discuss the details.

Introduction to Welding with Erik Bjorkquist (San Anselmo)
A personalized introduction to welding. Waiting for date

Introduction to Machining with Erik Bjorkquist (San Anselmo)
A survey of machine tools and what you can do with them Waiting for dat

Homemade Root Beers & Sodas & Kombucha.
Learn to make home made sodas and kombucha. Take home a kombucha baby to get yourself started at home.

Lactic Fermentation
Learn to preserve in jars or crocks without canning or vinegar.
This class will introduce you to the technique of making sauerkraut, pickles and kim chee.