announcements: October 2008 Archives

WHAT: Mobile Botanical Gardens Fall Plant Sale
WHEN: Thursday, October 16, 4-8pm; Friday and Saturday, October 17-18, 9am-4pm; Sunday, October 19, 11am-4pm
WHERE: Mobile Botanical Gardens, 5151 Museum Drive, Mobile AL
COST: $25 for the opening night party and sale on Thursday; all subsequent days are free

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Gardeners of all sorts - including kitchen gardeners - will want to visit the Mobile Botanical Gardens' Fall Plant Sale. The opening night party includes food and drinks, as well as a chance to be first to get your hands on all those plants. The sale continues with free admission Friday through Sunday. More information and a plant list (pending availability) is at the Botanical Gardens web site.

Edibles include vegetables and herbs, fruit and nut trees, bananas, berries, and grapes. You'll find varieties you can't get elsewhere, and plants selected specifically for their suitability to this region.

Even if you don't go to buy, or to buy very much, it's great fun to just stroll the grounds and look at the wonderful variety of plants. For best selection you'll want to go early; in recent sales many herbs and vegetables have sold out quickly.

WHAT: Local Food Production Initiative public meeting
WHEN: Monday, October 20 at 6:30pm
WHERE: the Nix Center, 1 Bayou Drive in Fairhope

TOPIC: Community supported agriculture farms, or CSAs. Phil Strinste, owner of the Bee Natural Farm in Fairhope, will discuss his experience in operating the CSA, and Patty Hermecz, owner of The Cottage Garden CSA in Silverhill will briefly talk about her experience in opening a new CSA.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Community supported agriculture farms are quite different from traditional farms. They are much smaller and more labor intensive. Members who join the CSA pay so much per year, and every week of the growing season receive a share of the produce harvested.

See this archived post for more information on the Local Food Production Initiative, centered in Fairhope. Current projects the Initiative is looking into include establishing a community garden in Fairhope; expanding the season on the Fairhope Farmers Market and perhaps finding a permanent off-street location for the market; educating the public about the opportunity for and benefits of local food production; and exploring ways of encouraging the preservation of farmland in Baldwin County.

For information about the Local Food Production Initiative or about the October 20 meeting call Elaine Snyder-Conn at 990.4751.