Heather had no background in organics or horticulture at all before she started the course at the Organic Training College but knew she wanted to be able to grow healthy organic food sustainably for herself and her family. And after many years of doing odd jobs, she felt a responsibility to do something positive for the world and her adopted country of New Zealand.
Heather rates the course at the Organic Training College as one of the “most wonderful experiences of my life”. She has loved the learning: about soil and plants, biodiversity, controlling pests and diseases, composting, pruning, and crop rotation. The field trips, work experience weeks, and her fellow students are also highlights. To see the transformation from seed to plant to a vegetable that can be harvested has been “amazing”. She has found the lecturers very skilled, and she says their different styles of teaching help the students in different ways.
Learning about organics has made Heather realise what could be done to improve things: even basic things like local production for the local market, and the procedures associated with becoming a certified organic grower. This is what Heather sees for her future: growing certified organic food for the local market. She also sees organics as the future for New Zealand.
“The people that you meet and the friendships you make, as well as the knowledge gained, will be with you for the rest of your life.”
