MEXICO — A new course aimed at first-time gardeners will be held March 23 and 30 at the Region 9 School of Applied Technology on River Road. The hours are 6 to 7:30 p.m.
The cost is $10 and registration must be made by Friday by calling 364-2012.
The course is being offered in response to the trend toward locally grown, nutritious food.
“We’re trying to get as many people as we can to grow their own food,” Region 9 Adult Education Director Nancy Allen said. “We always want to expand our offerings.”
Leading the class is Barbara Murphy, a University of Maine Cooperative Extension educator from the South Paris office.
“Our goal is for small gardens so people can have success,” she said of the Hundred Square Foot Garden course.
Assisting her will be Sandy Witas, an employee with the River Valley Healthy Communities Coalition who has been responsible for planting vegetables in numerous brick planters around Rumford for the past couple of years.
Murphy said she will focus on teaching gardeners how to grow the easier vegetables, such as beans, cucumbers, greens and summer squash. Tomatoes, although not among the easiest to grow, will also be included because “everyone wants to have their own tomatoes,” she said.
Potential gardeners will learn about the best soils for growing the healthiest and most abundant vegetables, and be given hints on how to eliminate plant pests, and provided with lots of information on how to best grow vegetables from seedlings or seeds.
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