The dead of winter isn’t usually the time when people are plucking fresh greens and herbs from their gardens in Central Oregon — but it’s certainly a time when people are dreaming of doing so. And over at the Three Rivers School in the Sunriver area, students and teachers really ARE starting to pluck greens from the ground right about now.
Last year, organic garden educator and greenhouse builder Shiv Shakti began working with Three Rivers School to build a heated greenhouse in the school’s courtyard. Over the past year, Shakti and the students and educators at Three Rivers have installed a series of beds using the hugelkultur technique — described by the Farmer’s Almanac as “a centuries-old, traditional way of building a garden bed from rotten logs and plant debris.” The heat from the varying layers of wood, plant debris, soil and compost add some heat to the greenhouse, but the addition of a long-awaited heater to the space has really ramped up the plant growth inside the greenhouse. Even during my December visit to the space, hardy veggies like kale and lettuces were pushing up out of the beds, soon to be consumed by the families of Three Rivers School.
Food grown by the school’s gardening club gets sold (by donation) to the school community, Principal Tim Broadbent told the Source Weekly.
“We worked pretty closely with the Environmental Center to start our gardening program eight or nine years ago – hoop houses and other things,” Broadbent said. “Then the Environmental Center encouraged us to apply for a grant that Shiv was on — the Central Oregon Health Council — and so we did apply for that grant. Shiv came out and did a site visit, we talked about what we had visions of doing. We were awarded the grant, and Shiv helped us get this all set up.”
In addition to the plants inside the greenhouse, a series of cards highlight the color-coded system Shakti set up for companion planting — a technique of placing plants that benefit one another near each other in the garden, allowing for better pest control and overall growth. Also hanging on the wall inside the greenhouse is a laminated book, instructing educators and students about watering schedules, times to harvest and more. The greenhouse itself, covered with two layers of greenhouse plastic, is designed with a gap to allow warm air to flow in between and keep the space cozy. Outside, open-air beds along the perimeter of the greenhouse are planted with flowers aimed at attracting beneficial insects. In warmer seasons, the sides of the greenhouse are rolled up, allowing the flowers to lend their pollinator-friendly services to the veggies inside.
All of these techniques are outlined in the organic gardening course, “Organic Gardens: A Garden & Greenhouse Blueprint for All,” developed by Shakti from his own experience at his Central Oregon farm and his years of research into sustainable farming techniques. Shaki is passionate about the topic of food security and organic gardening, and dreams of a community where large greenhouses, bursting with healthy foods, fill every available space.
“Our course is more than just planting seeds; it’s about planting ideas — ideas that foster growth, sustainability and community spirit,” Shakti told the Source Weekly. Growing organic, nutritious food is a goal in its own right, but for Shakti, it’s also about “reconnecting individuals with their food sources and empowering them with the knowledge to cultivate their organic oases.”
Shakti features his online organic gardening course on his website, shaktifarmdesign.com, as well as offering greenhouse consultation, building and maintenance services.
Later this month, Shakti joins The Environmental Center’s Garden Educator Network for a training titled, “Nurturing the Soil, Nurturing the Soul.” The Environmental Center’s Garden Educator Network invites local educators to “come together to provide trainings, networking events for peer-to-peer learning and resource sharing; and garden tours.”
As Shakti describes in the event description, “This isn’t just a lecture; it’s a love letter to the land and the magic it holds. Imagine understanding the earth beneath your feet not just as dirt, but as a dynamic, living canvas.”
This article appears in Source Weekly January 4, 2023.
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