LIIDLII KUE/FORT SIMPSON
With the growing season at least halfway over in Fort Simpson, a recent workshop gave gardeners ideas on what and how to harvest right now and how to promote continued growth in some plants.

Kathryn Scott, the Fort Simpson community garden co-ordinator, picks kale to include in a salad during a workshop she offered on July 23 about mid-season garden maintenance. - Roxanna Thompson/NNSL photo

Kathryn Scott, the Fort Simpson community garden co-ordinator, led the workshop at the community garden, located on the flats near the Mackenzie River, on July 23. The event took approximately five participants on a tour of the garden that included taste-testing along the way.

Many of the plots in the garden are doing really well, but gardeners don't always take the credit, said Scott.

"A lot of people just say, 'I don't even know what I'm doing,'" she said.

The workshop was designed to give gardeners more confidence about mid-season maintenance and information so they can plan ahead and pick things when they are at their best, Scott said. Beets were one of Scott's personal examples. For years, while thinning beets, she threw away those she picked to make room for the others. The leaves of the picked beets can be eaten as micro-greens in salads or on sandwiches, she said.

The tour of different boxes in the garden brought out questions from the participants as well as suggestions. Broccoli heads that go to flower can still be used because the flowers are edible, said Holly Watt. Once the heads are cut, the plant grows smaller, new heads that can also be harvested.

Watt said she enjoyed the workshop. One of the new things she learned is that radish flowers can be eaten.

"That's neat. I didn't know that," she said.

One of the best things about gardens is how much you can learn about them, said Watt. New knowledge can come from other gardeners or workshops. In her box, Watt is experimenting with parsnips, baby bok choy and Napa cabbage.

Donna Courtoreille was also pleased with the workshop. All of the different leaves and other items that can be mixed into a salad is one of the new pieces of knowledge she gained from the event.

"It was good. It's educational," she said.

While touring the garden Scott harvested several types of lettuce, Swiss chard, kale, radish flowers and nasturtium flowers to put in a sweet salad. A second savory salad included tomatoes, broccoli, dill, cilantro, peppers and peas – all from the garden.

More people should get involved with gardening considering the high cost of food in the village, said Courtoreille.

Some plants can benefit from constant harvesting about mid-season including kale and Swiss chard, lettuce and spinach. Beans should be picked when they are as wide as a pencil, said Scott.

"They are nice and tender. If you let them keep growing they get a little hard," she said.

Scott is hoping to hold another workshop next month for youth who are interested in gardens and growing plants.