Hello, from Rockcastle Co. and ASPI!  Lots of news this time around.  

We held a workshop on chemical free insect and disease control and on composting – why it’s a good thing, and how to do it - on April 17th.  We had over 25 participants present at the workshop to learn about these subjects. 

                         

 Nancy Seaberg presented the insect and disease control part of the workshop and the composting part of the workshop was facilitated by one of our most active project participants, Mike Lewis.  This guy has also single-handedly taken on the coordination of our second community garden site.  Mike is a young disabled veteran who is a partner farmer in a local CSA and has become a huge benefit to the project.  He is one of our two new hires, the other being a Berea College student.  These two will handle most of the community garden organizing at the Richmond St. site, as well as being introduced to the home gardener end of things.   

 Rockcastle County High School FFA students came out and spread our first layer of compost and laid out the main pathways on the ASPI community garden and a group of 2^nd and 3^rd grade Girl Scouts came out to spread ‘poo’ (manure compost). 

The Girl Scouts have also decided to take on a plot for themselves and have been back to begin planting. 

We have confirmed the schedule (May 15^th) for our Extension specialist to give a hand-on workshop on Home Food Preservation.  This workshop will be held at the Extension office here in Mt. Vernon.  Mike is making plans for a workday on the Richmond St. site that will include local businesses, the Mayor, hospital personnel, and the Girl Scouts – who will be painting rain barrels that day.  With luck we will be getting coverage by a couple of Newspapers for that one!  Nancy attended Earth Day events in Garrard Co. and in Somerset (by request) with Grow Appalachia displays to help spread the word about the project.