Secrets of Growing Healthy Plants

Foster a deep satisfaction in your gardening and landscaping endeavors by learning the not-so-secret to growing healthy plants. Join Stephanie at the Cabrillo College Horticulture Center and learn simple steps to care for your plants and soil to maximize the nutrition and beauty of your plants. Learn how to improve the basic characteristics of your soil that directly affect plant health, and how to do a quick and easy test, using only your fingers and a ball of wet soil, to determine soil texture. Learn about the importance and benefits of adding organic matter to your soil, how to recognize and rectify plant nutrient deficiencies/toxicities, and how the health of edible plants is related to animal and human health. You will learn how to make good compost, how to use mulch, and how to create a healthier garden and landscape no matter how much room you have or what kind of soil you have!
Your day of learning will include a tour of the Cabrillo Horticulture Center, including their state-of-the-art nursery, greenhouses, shade houses, CCOF certified organic farm, and hydroponic and aquaponics production systems, and conclude with an optional picnic lunch together while you enjoy the sweeping views of Monterey Bay from high atop the Cabrillo Campus! Go home with the knowledge and confidence to grow delicious, nutritious food and vibrant, healthy landscaping!
Please be sure to bring a pen, notebook, water bottle, sun hat, sunscreen, walking shoes, and your picnic lunch.