The season of fresh fruit is upon us, and generous donations are already piling up! Come by LUSH Valley for fresh apples, plums, and apricots by donation.

Oh no! the Lentils workshop is cancelled for tonight.

Join instructor Nicole Bertram for a fun and informative workshop series!

Quicken your 'pulse' as we explore this versatile powerhouse legume!Nicole will ignite your passion for tiny, delicious and affordable lentils through soups, appetizers, salads, burgers and dishes from around the world. Each week will feature one kind of lentil dish, which we will prepare and enjoy together. Recipes will be provided, though improvisation is encouraged!

Wednesdays July 16 - August 13 6:00pm to 8:00pm

Participation is by donation!

Please call our office at 250-331-0152 or email admin@lushvalley.org to registar

Bring the kids to celebrate summer vacation by cooking and sharing a healthy meal with your community! On Friday, June 27th from 11-1PM, LUSH Valley will be hosting a School’s Out! community lunch. The lunch is by donation and people of all ages and ability-levels are welcome to join us in the kitchen at 1126 Piercy Ave in Courtenay. Contact chantal@lushvalley.org if you have questions.

On a lovely May day, car-loads of young cooks bounded out onto the Greenhaven farm and into its beautiful abode! 

First off we learned about a vegetable most of us hadn't even heard of before: the sunchoke or Jerusalem artichoke. Technically the plant is a kind of sunflower, but our gracious instructor and farmer, Eva, told us about how the tuber can be eaten as a root vegetable. The plant, native to our area, is especially significant in that it is able to grow underground even throughout the winter without rotting as other tubers like potatoes do. 

After learning about the plant, we had the chance to eat it prepared in a variety of ways. The lucky cooks (and their chaperones) got to taste crunchy slices of raw sunchoke (a bit like a potato, but crisp and slightly nutty), as well as a sunchoke and potato stew (scrumptious! Several of us couldn't resist going for seconds). Eva also shared a variety of kale products they make on the farm, and everyone feasted on kale kaviar with crackers as well as some delectable kale chips, thoroughly impressed that something so healthy could taste so good.

Daisy the cow and her calf, Lucky, were definitely excited by the free buffet the kids offered up by sticking handfuls of grass through the fence. The goat wasn't quite as keen on visiting and kept his distance, but the young cooks did get the chance to get up close with the chickens. The kids entered the coop in pairs to a flurry of excitement and even got to glimpse freshly-laid eggs.

A romp through the forest to expel some extra energy and it was time to head home again! Everyone clamored around to pick up goodie bags containing fresh eggs and kale chips, among other treats; said a big thank you Eva; and piled back into the cars, already pulling things out of their bags.


We would like to say thank you again to Greenhaven Farm for their generosity in guiding us around and sharing their beautiful farm with us!

To learn more about what's happening at Greenhaven, check out their website greenhaven.ca!

Delve into the world of aquaponics! Saturday, June 28th from 9AM-4PM, LUSH Valley will be hosting a day-long aquaponics course put on by Julie Vandenbor of Vancouver Island Aquaponics (VIA). The course will give you the knowledge and understanding to successfully run your own aquaponics system, whether it’s one you build yourself or purchase from VIA. We will cover a wide range of topics from site selection to fish harvesting and everything in-between. 

The cost for this workshop is $99 and preregistration is required. 

Contact the LUSH Valley office for sign-up at admin@lushvalley.org or 250-331-0152. 

For more information, check out the Facebook event, the Vancouver Island Aquaponics website, or contact Julie Vandenbor at info@VIAquaponics.com.