Rachel Vourlas says:
For decades, Henry Huntington's San Marino property was a working ranch; pushing boundaries with the first commercial avocado grove in California, the ranch also supported itself with acres of orange groves and grape vineyards. Drawing on this agricultural history, the Huntington Library looks to the future once again with its newest project, the Ranch. Through the Ranch, an experimental urban agriculture station, the institution aims to become a leader in sustainable urban agriculture education and research in the Los Angeles area. Visitors will be exposed to myriad systems, techniques, and plant varieties adapted to the conditions in Southern California. To celebrate and introduce the Ranch, two days of events will bring together leading thinkers and practitioners from a variety of fields.
Bringing Home the Ranch: Urban Agriculture in Southern California, Friday, November 12 8:30am-8:00pm
Combining talks presenting a range of perspectives with a student poster session and Ranch tour, this one-day symposium brings together academics and professionals interested in the future of urban agriculture. Gary Nabhan, world-renowned ethnobotanist, ecologist, writer, and grower of heritage food crops, will be the keynote speaker.Growing Home: Agriculture in the City, Saturday, November 13 8:30am-5:30pm
In celebration of all that's home grown, is a day of talks, tours and demonstrations by local experts on topics from nurturing soil to keeping chickens to growing organic flowers and produce. Rosalind Creasy, edible landscaping pioneer, is the keynote speaker. Other presenters from: Silverlake Farms, Homegrown Evolution, Food not Lawns, Ecoworkshops.com, Full Circle Gardens, Farm Lab, Backwards Beekeepers, Fallen Fruit, Sustainable Habitats, Master Gardeners, and Little Flower Candy Company.
Read an article about the Huntington Gardens' Ranch (PDF)
