Mattapan, MA – On April 18, the Northeast Organic Farming Association/ Massachusetts Chapter (NOFA/Mass) is holding three simultaneous workshops across Greater Boston on how to start and maintain successful organic gardens. The event is part of the Massachusetts Organic Gardening Workshop Day, which is designed to meet the recent resurgence of energy and action for backyard and community gardening. Similar events will be held in 10 other towns and cities throughout the state.
“Lots of people want to start gardens, but the one thing they need first is the confidence that they can succeed at it this season,” said Ben Grosscup, the event organizer. “With this event, we're offering the public an opportunity to learn from experienced gardening educators basic skills they need to get started.
Mattapan
One workshop takes place from 9am-12pm at City Natives in Mattapan on 30 Edgewater Drive, with instructo Jean-Claude Bourrut, farm manager at Serving Ourselves Farm. Bourrut, whose work at the farm involves running a vocational organic farm program for homeless men and women, says he feels passionate about the benefits of organic backyard gardening. “I'll be teaching the organic way of gardening. I can show people who are looking for an alternative to using chemicals in their gardens how to control weeds and pests without using anything toxic,” said Bourrut.
“I think a lot of people are looking for ways to increase their knowledge. I hear more and more people turning their front yards and backyards into productive gardens. With the ecological and health concerns so many people have, most of this new energy is steering toward an organic approach.”
Natick
The second workshop will be held from 10am-12pm at the Natick Community Organic Farm in South Natick on 117 Eliot Street. The Farm's director, Lynda Simkins, will be teaching the workshop. Simkins, who currently serves as president of NOFA/Mass' board of directors, has been farming and gardening and running agricultural education programs for all ages for 30 years. She says the workshop will empower participants to take more control of producing food for their families.
“We have seen a great increase in people interested in producing their own food during this economic downturn. There is a great empowerment and enjoyment from eating the food you produce,” said Simkins. “Whether you have a window sill or you are growing in a backyard, this is something that you can do with your children that is fun and rewarding but doesn't cost you hardly any money to do.”
Cohasset
The third workshop will be held from 9am-12pm at Holly Hill Farm in Cohasset on 236 Jerusalem Road. Hannah Hobbs and Ben Wolbach, who manage the farm, will provide instruction. Hobbs said, “We'll be addressing questions of beginning gardeners by demonstrating some growing basics. Experienced gardeners will also learn techniques for getting as much food out of a small space as they can. For example, we do a lot of season extension at the farm that allows us to harvest 9 months out of the year, and many of these techniques can be applied at home.”
“There are few farms left on the South Shore, and our farm has far more demand than we can supply, so it is vitally important that more people learn how to supply their own, especially when you take into account the ecological, health, and economic problems of our industrialized global food system.”
Topics that will be covered at each workshop include: starting garden beds, seed starting, organic soil fertility, organic soil amendments, mulches and cover crops, weeds, disease and pests, what to plant when, crop spacing, and succession cropping. Workshop participants are also strongly encouraged to bring their own questions to the workshops.
“Growing our own food is an excellent way to save money, lessen our carbon footprint, improve our health, and connect with neighbors and nature. Whether you are a newcomer to gardening or you just feel that you could use some brushing up on growing skills, now is as good a time as ever to learn how to plant a garden and make it productive throughout the season,” Grosscup said.
Workshop organizers say that the level of interest in gardening has never been as high as it is now in their own living memory. In 1943, however, in the midst of shortages related to World War 2, nearly a third of all the vegetables consumed in the United States came from Victory Gardens, which were small plots planted in neighborhood spaces.
Julie Rawson, NOFA/Mass executive director and leader of another workshop in Worcester, said, “Sharing the knowledge people need to grow their own food has been the mission of NOFA since it began more than 30 years ago. Today, with the economic and ecological crises that we're in, I think a lot of people are once again turning toward backyard gardening as more than a hobby; it is also something essential for our well-being.”
In addition to the Boston area events, workshops are also being held in the following communities: Newbury, Middleboro, Worcester, Barre, Winchendon Springs, West Springfield, Wendell, Chesterfield, Great Barrington, and Pittsfield. For information on how to register, visit www.nofamass.org, or contact Ben Grosscup 413-658-5374 ben.grosscup@nofamass.org.