The Kelmarna Gardens Workshop Programme hosts sessions for people of all backgrounds and experience levels, to engage with a range of topics delivered by acclaimed presenters, connecting people with skills-based, hands-on learning in nature.

Scroll below to check out the current listings for dates and details on upcoming workshops. You can also sign up to our monthly e-newsletter, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Humanitix to keep up to date with what's on offer. We can't wait to see you on the farm!
Our Workshop Schedule
August 2022
Organic Gardening Basics (6-Part Series)
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Session 3: Fruit Trees & Pruning
Judy Keats (Kelmarna Gardens)
This session with help you give your food forest the best chance at success by looking at how to choose the most suitable specimens for your space. You'll cover pruning skills and tree training strategies to care for new and existing fruit trees, and you'll have the opportunity to get hands on and put theory into practice in the Kelmarna food forest.

This 6-part organic gardening course progresses through a spectrum of essential knowledge and skills for growing food organically. It's perfect for new gardeners and also excellent for experienced gardeners keen to sharpen and improve alongside an expert tutor in organics!
Saturday 20 August 2022

​9.30am - 12.30pm

Complete Series
$225 + Humanitix fee

Single Session
$55 + Humanitix fee

Community Services Card
concession rate available​
Making Pasta by Hand

with STEFANIA UGOLINI of PASTA E CUORE
Stefania Ugolini (Pasta e Cuore)
Join chef Stefania Ugolini of Pasta e Cuore to get your hands in the mix and learn how to make fresh pasta in the time-honoured tradition of the kitchens and restaurants from the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, and bring a container to take home the pasta you make.

Learn the importance of quality ingredients, how to mix, knead, and roll, cut basic shapes like tagliatelle, pappardelle, and taglioline, and how pasta should be stored and cooked for best results. Enjoy morning tea and discuss with Stefania the history, tradition, techniques, and pleasures of creating your own pasta by hand and from the heart.

This workshop is proudly presented in collaboration with Slow Food Auckland, celebrating locally grown and produced food that is good, clean, and fair.
Saturday 27 August 2022

​10am - 12pm

$120 + Humanitix fee
( only 2 spots left! )
September 2022
Organic Gardening Basics (6-Part Series)
​
Session 4​: Weed Management
Judy Keats (Kelmarna Gardens)
This session covers annual weeds, noxious weeds, and strategies for processing them, to explore how to manage or even eliminate weeds from your system while avoiding waste and recovering resources. Get up close and familiar with beneficial and invasive weeds in order to learn how to organically work with plants in both categories in a way that enhances the condition of your garden and nutrition of your crops.

This 6-part organic gardening course progresses through a spectrum of essential knowledge and skills for growing food organically. It's perfect for new gardeners and also excellent for experienced gardeners keen to sharpen and improve alongside an expert tutor in organics!
Saturday 3 September 2022

​10am - 12pm

Complete Series
$225 + Humanitix fee
​( SOLD OUT! )

Single Session
$45 + Humanitix fee
( only a couple left! )

Community Services Card
concession rate available​
Organic Gardening Basics (6-Part Series)
​
Session 5: Gardening with the Seasons
Judy Keats (Kelmarna Gardens)
This session will cover fundamental strategies for effectively planning your garden to manage the benefits and disadvantages of each season, to improve your understanding of when to grow certain plants, when to start certain processes, how to select seeds, and how to manage your time and energy to get the most from your garden at any given time of year.

This 6-part organic gardening course progresses through a spectrum of essential knowledge and skills for growing food organically. It's perfect for new gardeners and also excellent for experienced gardeners keen to sharpen and improve alongside an expert tutor in organics!
Saturday 17 September 2022

​10am - 12pm

Complete Series
$225 + Humanitix fee
​( SOLD OUT! )

Single Session
$45 + Humanitix fee
( only a couple left! )

Community Services Card
concession rate available​
Mushrooms in Containers
Ellen Schindler (Tiny Footprint)
Join us at Kelmarna Gardens for this crash course in growing NZ native oyster mushrooms. This three-hour session with Ellen Schindler (Tiny Footprint) includes the materials and instruction to guide you step-by-step through the process of setting up your own container and allows you to come away not only with the finished product but also the skills and confidence to carry on growing at home on your own!
Saturday 24 September 2022

​9.30am - 12.30pm
​​
​$75 + Humanitix fee

Community Services Card
​concession rate available
October 2022
Organic Gardening Basics (6-Part Series)
​
Session 6: Pest Control & Insectories
Judy Keats (Kelmarna Gardens)
This session focuses on how we can support the health of our plants by supporting the biodiversity of not only our plants but also of other beneficial macro- and micro-organisms, in order to promote biological solutions for common pests and diseases. Judy will also cover a range of common strategies that use engineering and ingenuity rather than harmful toxins.

This 6-part organic gardening course progresses through a spectrum of essential knowledge and skills for growing food organically. It's perfect for new gardeners and also excellent for experienced gardeners keen to sharpen and improve alongside an expert tutor in organics!
Saturday 1 October 2022

​10am - 12pm

Complete Series
$225 + Humanitix fee
​( SOLD OUT! )

Single Session
$45 + Humanitix fee
( only a couple left! )

Community Services Card
concession rate available​
Bountiful Bananas
Ellen Schindler (Tiny Footprint)
Bananas are imported to Aotearoa New Zealand at more than 70-million kilograms each year . . . yet, in many parts of the country the climate is perfect to grow your own! Join expert tutor Ellen Schindler at Kelmarna Gardens for this introduction to all things bananas, to learn how simple and beneficial it can be to grow your own bananas, even in smaller spaces or containers!

Certified organic banana pup from our own food forest, option available for pre-order with tickets, for pick up at the workshop!
Sunday 9 October 2022

​10am - 12pm
​​
​$48 + Humanitix fee

Admission + Banana Pup
$​65 + Humanitix fee

Community Services Card
​concession rate available
Beginner Home Gardening
Yotam Kay (Pākaraka Permaculture)
Come and learn everything you need to know to grow nutritious food for you, your family and community. In this comprehensive workshop with Yotam Kay (Pakaraka Permaculture ), we will cover all the essential topics that will help you grow a productive vegetable garden.

​No prior knowledge or experience is needed!
Saturday 15 October 2022

​9am - 4pm

Full Day Session​​
​$195 + Humanitix fee
Intermediate Home Gardening
Yotam Kay (Pākaraka Permaculture)
To have a super productive garden is to do a lot of small things very well. Come and sharpen your skills in this comprehensive workshop for experienced gardeners with accomplished organic gardener and permaculturist Yotam Kay (Pakaraka Permaculture).
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Whether you've been growing for 2, 3, or 10 seasons, there will be loads to learn from Yotam's professional experience, so bring a notebook, a pen, and all of your vegetable gardening questions!
Sunday 16 October 2022

​9am - 4pm

Full Day Session​​
​$195 + Humanitix fee
November 2022
Backyard Composting Basics
Madeleine Cull (Kelmarna Gardens / Soil Factory)
Are you looking to reduce your household waste to landfill, but not sure how? Or do you already compost at home and want to improve your results? This introductory home-composting course is designed to kick-start your systems for reclaiming wasteful scraps and turning them into rich, living compost!
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Join Kelmarna Garden's own Madeleine Cull, lead coordinator of our Soil Factory community compost hub, to learn a host of tips and tricks for making microbially rich compost in your own backyard, to help you navigate common misconceptions and use a biological approach to work true microbial magic with your scraps!
Saturday 12 November 2022

​10am - 12pm

​​$35 + Humanitix fee

Community Services Card
concession rate available​
Book a Private Group Workshop
If you have a group of friends or workmates that is keen to take part in one of our workshop experiences, then use this form to get in touch, and let's arrange a private session for your group!
For enquiries, get in touch with our Education Manager, Sean, at education@kelmarnagardens.nz