Tag Archives: Community

Gretchen on Scott James 92.1 FM radio about Ham and Eggs show 7:00AM 2016-02-10



7AM Thursday morning, Gretchen Quarterman will be on the

Scott James, 92.1 FM radio program along with Ray Ewing (President of Lowndes Improvement Association),
to talk about
a South Georgia cultural tradition, and one of only two left in the entire country:
the 66th annual

Ham and Eggs Auction 2016.
You can bid on eggs, on a ham, and if you talk to Gretchen or Ray they can tell you how to get involved in the program and even how to get the whole hog!


noon at 2102 E Hill Ave, Valdosta, GA 31601
The Ham and Eggs Show will be noon Wednesday 17 February 2016
at the Lowndes County Extension Office, 2102 E Hill Ave, Valdosta, GA 31601
(facebook event).

If you are interested in entering eggs in the show
Continue reading →

I Stand For What I Stand On: Permaculture for a Better Tomorrow –Benjamin & Jennifer Vieth @ SOGALO16 2016-02-06

Layered gardens as ecosystems that have persistent community and environmental benefits: permaculture.


Jennifer Vieth in the garden
Description: We will be discussing how permaculture practices with
an emphasis on land stewardship and building communities.

Who should attend: Anyone interested in community gardens,
permaculture, and environmental philosophy.

“Benjamin Vieth has a BA in Continue reading →

Valdosta Farm Days –Gretchen on WALB

Gretchen is at the old Lowndes County Courthouse now, setting up for Valdosta Farm Days, 9AM to 1PM today.



By Colter Anstaetts reported from Okra Paradise Farms for WALB yesterday,

Lowndes County farmers ready for “Farm Days”,

Lowndes County farmers will be at the courthouse in downtown
Valdosta from 9 a.m.to 1 p.m. selling their crops. This is the
fourth year for the “Farm Days” program, and Lowndes County farmers
are looking forward to it.



“I’m definitely looking forward to Farm days,” said Gretchen
Quarterman, a farmer in Hahira. “It’s an excellent opportunity for
farmers, not only to sell but for local people to get local, fresh
food. And, when we buy from local farmers we support the local
economy.”

-jsq

Growing up Growing –Maria Arambula

Maria Arambula will speak at

South Georgia Growing Local 2014:



Gardening is an essential skill that every child and adult should
learn. How can we work in our families and communities to ensure
that young people understand how our food is grown? This workshop
will share creative ideas and resources for gardening with youth of
all ages at home and in the community. Attendees will be encouraged
to share their own experiences through a fun and collaborative
workshop format.

Her conference bio: Continue reading →

For the Love of Herbs –O’Toole’s Herb Farm

Elizabeth (B) Fraleigh O’Toole, President of

O’Toole’s Herb Farm will speak at

South Georgia Growing Local 2014:



This presentation will touch on growing herbs for pleasure, growing
herbs for the fresh cut market and growing herbs in greenhouse
production for wholesale and retail sales. I will cover the joy and
positive healing energy these plants give, the passion of growing
and using them and how I got to this place.

Her farm was featured in the

April-May, 2012, edition of Home & Design:

“A village is happening out here,” B said during a tour
of her 114-acre farm’s greenhouses, gardens, retail shops and
resident flock of sheep. “If you think Walmart, we’re
absolutely the opposite. Small, local, knowledgeable, none of our
plants genetically modified with man-made chemicals.”



Also on

facebook.

Her conference bio: Continue reading →

Proof Is in the Certification –Connie Hayes

Connie Hayes of Healthy Hollow Farms will speak at

South Georgia Growing Local 2014,



How do we prove to customers that our products are free of
genetically modified ingredients? while many homesteaders choose to
be not certified or certified naturally grown, consumers are
becoming more concerned with GMOs. We will offer practical tips for
insuring consumers, as well as how to on certifications & non-GMO
testing.

Here’s her conference bio:

Members of

Coastal Organic Growers (COG), Connie & Jimmy Hayes own &
operate

Healthy Hollow Farms near Stilson, GA, which has been
certified organic since 2007. They grow organic peanuts and raise
Belted Galloway cattle. They are in the process of setting up an


on-farm processing facility for their peanuts. Connie serves on the
board of


Georgia Organics and has trained under Jeffery Smith with

The Institute for Responsible Technology to speak on GMOs.



Come to

SOGALO2014 and hear Connie about getting certified organic!

-jsq

Online payment for South Georgia Growing Local 2014



You can

register online for
South Georgia Growing Local 2014.

Seed saving, composting, rain water collection, fruits, vegetables, textiles, goats, chickens, bees, and policy, plus Friday Farm Tours, dinner and a movie!

Continue reading →

Early registration extended to January 15th! –South Georgia Growing Local 2014



Early registration extended to January 15th!

Update 2 January 2014:
Or pay online.

You can

sign up here
to see the

goats,
bees, chickens, ham, eggs, fruits, seeds, textiles, rain, and sun, and let’s not forget the worms!

Continue reading →

South Georgia Growing Local for Christmas



How about a registration for

South Georgia Growing Local 2014
as a Christmas gift?

Have fun and support the local economy
on the Farm Tour (citrus, sheep, olives, and row crops)
Friday 24 January 2014, plus also dinner and a movie.

Learn a lot, eat well with the local community at the talks
Saturday 25 January 2014, about animals, orchards, gardens, health,
farmer experiences, and policy.

You can register
using this form.

And you can join

events on facebook so everybody can see you’re going.

Here’s the conference flyer for more information: Continue reading →

Lowndes County next year: SoGa Growing Local & Sustainable Conference


Janisse Ray starting the conference
This year’s

SoGa Growing Local & Sustainable Conference
was a satisfying success, and next year it moves to Lowndes County.

Not only did 260 people sign up, but
all the sessions were well-attended, and
everybody seemed to learn something new, from hoop houses to solar power, from hands-on
workshops to all-hands plenary sessions.
Of course the food was excellent.
You can get a hint from this picture of Janisse Ray opening the conference;
the food in the foreground is on the snack tables (ah, the honeycomb!).
Then there were the meals, potluck by and for a conference-full of foodies.

In 2011 about 50 people came to the first one in Tifton.
In 2012, about 150 people went to Reidsville.
In 2013, about 260 people signed up, also for Reidsville, Tattnall County,
to learn what it takes
to grow local sustainable food here below the gnat line
in this longleaf pine land of tea-colored rivers, acid soil,
and rich gardening traditions.

As Janisse Ray wrote on the

facebook event
for this year’s conference:


Gretchen Quarterman on preserving foods

SoGa Growing Local 2014 will be held in Valdosta, GA. Gretchen
Quarterman will be the lead organizer. We’ll be keeping you posted
on the date so you can put it on your calendars now. (We may do a
mini version in Tattnall in 2014.)

More later on what happened at this year’s conference,
and more as it develops on next year’s conference.
So far, many local farmers, civic and business organizations,
and local governmental bodies have offered to help, and Gretchen is forming an organizational committee.
Stay tuned!

-jsq