AUSTIN – The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and the Travis County Master Gardeners will present the Backyard Basics Workshop from 9 a.m.–4 p.m. Sept. 13 at the Austin Community College south campus, 1820 W. Stassney Lane in Austin.
“The public is invited to this event that will feature hands-on instruction and presentations by AgriLife Extension Master Gardener volunteers and other community experts on homegrown and homemade foods,” said Daphne Richards, AgriLife Extension horticulturist for Travis County. “Workshop presentations will cover the basics of growing fruits and vegetables, garden recipes, the how-to’s of canning and preserving, and backyard chickens and bees.”
Richards said the Backyard Basics program is an initiative by AgriLife Extension to get people involved in the production, preparation and preservation of their own foods to help ensure maximum freshness and nutrition. She said consumers have become more interested in how their family’s food is grown and made, so they have started taking a greater interest in doing it themselves.
Workshop registration is from 8:30-9 a.m. A box lunch is included in the registration cost, with lunchtime from 1-1:30 p.m.
Registration for the program is $25 by Sept. 8 and $30 thereafter, including onsite. To register, go to: http://agriliferegister.tamu.edu.
Richards said specific program topics and presenters are:
— Grow Your Own Fresh Fruit, Joe Posern, Travis County Master Gardener fruit specialist.
— Growing Vegetables, Patty Leander, Travis County Master Gardener vegetable specialist.
— Garden Recipes and Preserving the Harvest, Jeff Peters, Travis County Master Gardener.
— Backyard Chickens, Joy Williamson, Travis County Master Gardener.
— Backyard Bees, Chris Doggett, Williamson County Beekeepers Association president.
For more information, contact Richards at 512-854-9600 or drichards@ag.tamu.edu
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