Category Archives: SOGALO14

House of Hope: Gardening for Recovery –Sharon Wagner

Sharon Wagner, ex-Director, South Georgia House of Hope, will talk about “His Tomato Girls” from Seed to Salsa, at South Georgia Growing Local 2014:

Why we started an organic garden.

How we grew heirloom tomatoes.

What we have learned about ourselves in the process.

Her conference bio:

Sharon Wagner — Executive Director

Sharon’s background includes a 15-year addiction to cocaine which she overcame in 1987 with the love of God and the discipline of Teen Challenge. While at the Walter Hoving home in New York, Sharon received a vision to provide a home for women — a place of safety and healing. In 2005, out of a passion to bring healing and freedom to women struggling with alcohol, drugs, and abuse, Sharon and her husband rick founded the South Georgia House of Hope here in Valdosta, Georgia. This began a journey of faith that will last a lifetime.

Sharon has personally experienced the healing power of organic foods as part of the recovery process. It is her desire to teach the ladies the importance of not only growing but also enjoying fresh and healthy food. This is an essential part of detoxification — replenishing nutrients that have been lost through years of drug and alcohol use. The organic garden at the House of Hope teaches the ladies how to work together as a team, while also building healthy minds and bodies.

Come to SOGALO2014 and hear Sharon Wagner talk about tomatoes and recovery!

-jsq

Seed Saving –Janisse Ray

Janisse Ray wrote the book on seed saving, and will talk about that at South Georgia Growing Local 2014:

From her book, The Seed Underground: A Growing Revolution to Save Food,

“If you haven’t heard what’s happening with seeds, let me tell you. They’re disappearing, about like every damn thing else…. But I’m not going to talk about anything that’s going to make us feel hopeless, or despairing, because there’s no despair in a seed.”

Her book bio, with picture by Raven Waters: Continue reading →

Schedule changes for South Georgia Growing Local 2014

Four talks have moved locations or times:

Jerald Larson needed an earlier slot, so Grow Your Own Organic Small Fruits has moved to 11:30 AM in Room 1.

Composting needs a room with a tile floor, so Composting: Red Wigglers and Soldier Flies by John Horton has moved to 3:15 PM in Commons.

A Walk with Dairy Goats: a lesson in humor and humility by Julia Shewchuk has moved to 3:15 PM in Commons.

From Fabulous Natural Fibers to Flamboyant Fabric: the craft and art of hand spinning and weaving by Amy Brown has moved to 11:30 AM in Room 2.

All these changes are in the revised schedule.

-jsq

Permaculture –Ben and Jennifer Vieth

The Vieths will talk about gardens that continue to grow season after season, at South Georgia Growing Local 2014:

Permaculture is a regenerative and sustainable food production design system combining bio-mimicry with local food system knowledge. The scalability of permaculture lends itself applicable to everyone from beginner gardeners to seasoned farmers. Our presentation will focus on how we can apply permaculture principles to our homes and gardens, no matter the size of your space.

Their conference bios: Continue reading →

Growers Tell All –Diane Howard

Diane Howard will moderate a farmer panel, Growers Tell All: A Conversation with Experienced South Georgia Growers about God-Given Talents and 150+ Years of Growing, at South Georgia Growing Local 2014:


Innis Davis and three of the children in his family who help with his very large backyard garden on Cherry Street, Valdosta.
With a combined 150+ years of experience as growers, these veggie veterans will interact with members of the audience sharing their stories which include the following: planting, harvesting, and preserving by the moon; rotating crop sites; fertilizing; controlling weeds and insects; saving seed for 50+ years; growing in containers; and using their talents and techniques of growing to help friends and 3 generations of family. Serving as a moderator for this discussion will be Diane Howard who works closely with individuals in South Georgia to promote growing their own food and oversees a large garden on her 5th generation family farm in Grady County.

Here are the panelists’ speaker bios: Continue reading →

From Fabulous Natural Fibers to Flamboyant Fabric: the craft and art of hand spinning and weaving –Amy Brown

Amy Brown will talk about making fibers into fabric at South Georgia Growing Local 2014:

This lecture/ workshop will explore making yarn, thread, and cloth. Preparing the natural fiber, the hand spinning process, and  weaving will be demonstrated. There will be a  hands-on introduction to many different natural fibers  and a discussion of their individual characteristics which may be used to enhance a final cloth. A few spindles and wool will be available if you would like to try out what you have learned .  Inexpensive spinning and weaving tools that are easy to make will be discussed so you can get spinning and weaving right away.  Though the emphasis in this hour and a half is on spinning for weaving, discussion will also include spinning for knitting, crocheting, lacemaking, embroidery, and sewing. Come and join us and learn to turn your cotton fields, pet hair, sheep wool, and other fabulous fibers into unique cloth that your friends will admire. 

Her speaker bio: Continue reading →

Speaker Schedule –South Georgia Growing Local 2014

Hello again,

We are now nearly at the conference and I can hardly tell you how excited I am. I had a final walk through of Pine Grove Middle School and Farm this week and got all the details for accessing their technologies and the Internet.

Friday Farm Tours

Farm Tours will be Friday, January 24th, including produce at Raisin’ Cane, door yard citrus at Loch Laurel Nursery, olive oil and trees at Georgia Olive Farms, and Katahdin sheep at Hound River Farm.

Saturday Talks

Conference talks will be Saturday, January 25th, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. (Doors open at 8 a.m.) at Pine Grove Middle School, 4159 River Rd, Valdosta, GA 31605. We will be able to tour the hydroponic green houses at the school that day! The preliminary schedule is posted.

Lodging

Most of our speakers are local (how lucky are we that we have this wealth of talent in our community) and a couple from out of the have indicated that they need a room. We have arranged a discounted rate at two local hotels.

Registration

There is still plenty of room, so by all means, please continue to invite those that you think will be interested in attending. The Pine Grove Middle School is a lovely facility and we are lucky to be able to use it.

Don’t forget to register!

-Gretchen

Katahdin sheep –Hound River Farm

Not for wool, for meat, they raise Katahdin sheep; we’ll visit Hound River Farm on our Friday Farm Tour at South Georgia Growing Local 2014.

We raise registered Katahdin Hair Sheep on 240 acres in the coastal plains region of South Georgia. We are approximately 30 miles north of the Georgia-Florida border with easy access from I-75. Our farm consists of Bermuda and Bahia pastures, woodlands, and wetlands. We harvest our own Continue reading →

First olives harvested east of the Mississippi since the 1800’s –Georgia Olive Farms

We’ll visit Georgia Olive Farms on our Friday Farm Tour at South Georgia Growing Local 2014.

Richard Villadoniga wrote for StAugustine.com 18 July 2012, Liguid gold rush,

There’s a new gold rush taking place in Georgia, and it’s not up in the mountains near Dahlonega as first happened back in 1828. This time around, people are buzzing with excitement over a liquid gold produced in Southern Georgia: extra virgin olive oil. You read that correctly — olive oil from Georgia. What was once an exclusively Mediterranean product is now being crafted with olives grown in Southern Georgia, and to a smaller extent, North Florida.

Georgia Olive Farms, a cooperative of about 10 regional olive growers, is based in Lakeland, Georgia, near Valdosta.

Jason Shaw, one of the company’s founders, comes Continue reading →

Multi-generational Growing –Gene Godfrey

Gene Godfrey will talk about Making Provisions From A Local Level at South Georgia Growing Local 2014 about:

Ways to get the church involved in gardening

Addressing challenges doing harvest time

Providing moments for show and tell

Supporting our mission throughout the year

Here’s his church website with additional information: Newsome Street Church of Christ in Hahira.

His church participates in Lowndes County Partnership for Health’s Gardens in the Community: Continue reading →