Many thanks of those of you who came out to the Herb Gardening Re-Skilling Workshop on May 12, 2010!

Special thanks to Michelle Philpot-Snowden, owner of The Potting Shed (508 Richmond Road, Berea, KY 40403).

Michelle showed participants many different types of herbs. She talked about the growing conditions required for each type of herb, which herbs are good for cooking, when to plant, how/where to plant, clipping techniques, and much, much more. Michelle also gave each participant his/her choice of herb plant to take home.

Thanks to Laurel McIvor, who delighted participants with various flavors of teas made from dried spearmint leaves, fresh fennel, and fresh lemon balm. She also prepared herb butter made fresh with different types of herbs to eat with homemade bread. Absolutely delicious and wholesome!

Details for Sustainable Berea’s next workshop will be posted as soon as details are finalized.

Many thanks to those who attended the workshop on Planning and Creating Successful Backyard and Community Gardens.

Danny Mayer and Michael Benton, professors at Bluegrass Community & Technical College, Lexington, KY, presented many ideas on creating community gardens. They also discussed ways to strengthen community ties and resilience by growing and sharing food.

A few of the ideas included:
* Members of the community working together to create small community gardens in areas that are un-used and/or neglected and make the produce available to the public

* Collecting food wastes from local restaurants, composting it, and sharing the compost with the community

* Sharing garden foods with others by having small local potlucks

* Holding seed swaps and plant swaps with others in the community

* Bartering with local restaurants by trading garden produce with other restaurant goods

* Growing food and sharing with local schools to give healthy alternatives to school children

Special thanks to Danny and Michael for sharing these ideas and many others with us.

If you have any questions for Danny or Michael, you may email them at: danny.mayer@kctcs.edu or michael.benton@kctcs.edu

Special thanks to Cheyenne Olson and Bruce and Aggie Gregg for providing participants with packets of seeds to use in their gardens.

Please join us on May 12, 2010 at 6:30pm for our next Re-Skilling Workshop on Herb Gardening.