Hi Grow Appalachia Bloggers. Maria here in Williamsonm WV. Hope everyone is finally clear from all of the terrible storms. It is hard to put a month of great work into one blog post. So I wanted to share our trials and tribulations.
As most of you have probably been experiencing as well, the rain has just destroyed our tomatoes. This has really brought down the spirits of some of our gardeners. They feel like they have been trying so hard to keep the blight and septoria away, and that it is to no avail. One thing I’ve learned though is how important it is to mulch. I work at a health and wellness center, so our clinic staff is ALWAYS shredding papers. While some of pour growers were skeptical at first, this has proved to be a lifesaver. Plus it does not help that there is an endless free supply of it. Definitely seek out doctors offices or law offices if you are in need of shredded paper.
Some of the exciting things that have been going on over the last month are the numbers of healthy eating events that we have been hosting.
The first event that we did was a canning class with Dana Wright at Victoria Courts in Williamson, WV. Dana prepared food purchased from the Williamson Farmers Market. She made Apple Preserves and Chile salsa! See the recipes below! Both were very easy to follow!
Additionally, we are testing a new idea, “SNAP tours” , next month. We are inviting SNAP recipients to our farmers market, will lead a cooking demonstration with them, and then take the group through them through the market to show them what ingredients to purchase to make meal that they just made. When they make their purchase, we will match their SNAP dollars up to $10. This program has been a great success in Morgantown, WV and we are looking forward to starting it here.
As for our gardens, we finally have tomatoes coming in hot, as well as eggplant, peppers, and a variety of other things!! It’s finally peak season! We just planted a fall crop of beans in the the tunnels, and look forward to growing in there throughout the fall this year.
Heirlooms grown at the gardens!!
beans were planted in the center row between the cucumbers and tomatoes
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