Live Educational Classes Return!

Friday – A Discussion on Grains

“Baking Bread and Breaking New Ground” with Don Guerra, a James Beard Award winner for outstanding baking.

• 6:00 pm – 6:45 pm

  Join us for a peek into the “fresh flour movement” and meet Don Guerra from Barrio Bread who has been instrumental in its success in Arizona. Don Guerra has made his mark in the world of sourdough and in creating vibrant collaborations with local farmers and millers such as Hayden Flour Mills. Don is celebrated worldwide for his innovative business model, educational efforts and delicious bread. Hear about  Don’s humble beginnings from roots in Phoenix baking with his mother and the path he took that finally lead him back to baking in his garage in 2009 in Tucson. In 2015 he launched Barrio Bread with its location in Tucson and now an outlet at Hayden Mills in Gilbert.  If you haven’t had a chance to sample Barrio Bread, you will Friday night when Don brings some of his delectable sourdough to share with us.

Saturday – Seed Classes

• 10:00– 10:30 am:

  “Seed Saving Hacked” with Bill McDorman. — Learn about the hacks into seed saving that can save you time and money and an online class available that will cover everything else. The tricks of the trade will be unveiled so you are able to harvest robust, resilient seeds that will serve you for years to come. Come with questions and learn from a master (student).

• 11:00 – 11:30 am

  “Starting from Seed” with Kari Spencer — Once you learn how to cultivate and harvest your seeds, then what? Well, one would hope they get planted. The key is to mimic what plants do in nature and replicate each individual plants’ process. Insight into the type of seed and what is required for that seed to germinate will be revealed. Is the seed small and round or flat and flakey. What type of soil, water and sun will result in the best chance for a plant to grow into a strong and healthy plant from which to save seeds. Kari will tell all.

• 12:00 – 12:30 pm

  “Sourcing Your Seeds” with Bill McDorman — If you haven’t started your seed saving adventure yet, then finding seeds to begin is crucial. You want seeds that can work where you are with your unique and distinct regional characteristics. Seed libraries are a great resource for finding locally appropriate seeds. From there, it is a fascinating journey to understand how seed companies source their seeds. Interestingly seed companies do not grow all their own seed material but purchase it from long standing seed suppliers. Learning about the distribution chain will help you make sound decisions when finding the seeds you need to plant, grow and save.

Our Educational Speakers

• Don Guerra is committed to working with local farmers, chefs, and other food producers to strengthen the local grain economy and grow the local food network. In 2015 he was awarded a USDA Local Food Promotion Grant that significantly helped him to increase collaboration with others and expand production with a new bakery. He has taught a variety of baking classes and presented at conferences and workshops, highlighting his business model and work with heritage grains. Don has consulted in Mexico, Taiwan and throughout the United States.

  In 2016 Don was named one of the Top Ten Bakers in America by Dessert Professionals magazine. He also received the Leveraging Your Localness award from Bite Magazine, Good Food Finder USA and Local First Arizona. In 2022 he received the prestigious James Beard Award for outstanding baker.

• Bill McDorman is considered to be one of the foremost seed saving educators in the country. He is cofounder of the Great American Seed Up, Rocky Mountain Seed Alliance, and Seed School, an educational program that boasts over 1500 students worldwide. He is also founder of Seeds Trust High Altitude Gardens, and the International Seed Saving Institute. He is the author of Basic Seed Saving. When not saving seeds, he can be found biking around El Dorado Ranch in San Felipe, Baja, California.

• Kari Spencer is a popular local gardening & homesteading speaker. As a Master Gardener and a Master Farmer, she enjoys sharing her passion for growing and raising food with others. In addition to teaching classes all over the city of Phoenix, she is the creator of Urban Farm U’s Growing Food the Basics & Backyard Livestock courses. Her book City Farming: How-To Guide to Growing Crops & Raising Livestock in Urban Spaces, by 5MPublishing is a comprehensive, yet easy to read resource for any gardener or urban farmer.  Kari is also the author of Vegetable Gardening Journal: A Weekly Tracker and Logbook, published by Callisto.