ASD welcomes four new VISTAs to our Agriculture Education and Groundwork programs! "Volunteers in Service to America" Founded in 1965, Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA) is an anti-poverty program designed to provide needed resources to nonprofit organizations and public agencies to increase their capacity to lift communities out of poverty. AmeriCorps
Bringing Back Victory Gardens History has shown that in dark times people come together to support one another and through trials, our communal strength often rises above what we are confronted with. A prime example of communities banding together in times of trouble is through gardening for food production. During the hardships of
Faith in Action Community and Demonstration Garden In southwest Virginia, rates of poverty, obesity, and disability are higher than the state average. Many food drives are only able to take donations of cans and dry storage goods, so fresh produce is a rare commodity in food pantries. This makes it even harder for
Grow Your Own When I was a kid, I helped my grandfather harvest his garden on the weekends. I always knew where in my neighborhood the apple trees were so when I needed a snack, I didn’t have to come in from playing. I once tried planting sweet potatoes in the backyard, but
Adventures in Tilling I’m the kind of person who likes to learn to use new power tools and fancy machinery. I took both wood shop and electrical shop way back when and I was the only girl in classes like that. I’m generally pretty good at mastering new tools, but sometimes I get
The Knott County Farmers Market is opening early this year! At the request of the community, we will be opening in May to take advantage of pea and strawberry season. The grand opening will take place from 5:00 to 7:00 pm on Tuesday, May 21st at the Hindman Settlement School’s Outdoor Classroom. Country singer Pierceton
Gardening as Self Care Everyone knows that gardening can provide your body with great health benefits from all the exercise and nutrition, but what you may not realize is how beneficial gardening can be to your mind. One of the ways the brain heals itself from stress is by entering a sort of
What is Intensive Gardening? Intensive gardening is a gardening method in which one plants a small garden in such a way that maximizes one’s harvest. Why use it? "The purpose of gardening intensively is to harvest the most produce possible from a given space." This method saves time, money, and space. It is perfect
Our participants had a great time learning about small-scale farming at the Eastern Kentucky Farmer Conference! The third annual Eastern Kentucky Farmer Conference was held on February 22 and 23 at the University of Kentucky’s Robinson Center in Jackson, KY. Five of our site’s Grow Appalachia participants received scholarships to attend. These participants want to
It may still be winter, but it’s never too early to start thinking about spring gardening classes! As we look forward to warmer days ahead, we’re studying up on garden planning, planting, and maintenance so we can spread that knowledge throughout and beyond the Grow Appalachia community. For our first Grow Appalachia meeting of the
