First Parish Church of Newbury - Current News Relating to Mission

Sheet Mulch Garden Beds

Saturday, April 17 10:00 AM to Noon

This hands on workshop will teach you how to start a new garden bed without the usual toil of deep digging. Sheet mulching is a no-till method that uses plant trimmings, cardboard/paper, straw and a few additional amendments to create rich planting beds. Earthworms and other soil organisms do most of the work by converting the mulch material into a rich compost right where you want it to be.

Sheet mulched beds can be installed over existing lawns or even weedy areas to create gardens without the toil of digging and turning earth. Soil strata is preserved allowing beneficial organisms to aid in creating fertile loam . The results are vibrant, healthy plants and very few weeds.

Fee: $16 per person with online reservation $18 the day of the event Sheet Mulch and Double Dig combined $26 with online reservation $30 the day of the event

Youths from age 12 to eighteen are welcome with an adult supervisor.

Double Dug Garden Beds

Saturday, April 17 12:30 to 2:30

This hands on workshop will teach you how to create rich garden soil using the double-dig method.

Compacted, heavy clay, sandy and low or high pH soils can all benefit from this method of preparation. Double digging allows the incorporation of compost and other soil amendments more rapidly into the root zone resulting in greatly improved plant growth. Heavy soils are loosened and aerated allowing roots to penetrate deeper for better access to moisture and nutrients.

Fee: $16 per person with online reservation $18 the day of the event. Sheet Mulch and Double Dig combined $26 with online reservation $30 the day of the event

Youths from age 12 to eighteen are welcome with an adult supervisor.

Build a Hen House

Saturday, April 24th

New Eden is pleased to present a hands-on workshop building a backyard hen house!

Back yard laying hens are the new and old “must have” source of healthy local food. People in cities and suburbs all around are catching on to this easy and delightful way of producing food at the most local level...your own back yard. Hens are easy to raise as pets with benefits, but they have a few basic requirements...food, water and a safe home.

Please join us and learn how to use simple tools and materials to build a home for your backyard hens! Participants will also learn about the needs of laying hens, their housing requirements, feed suggestions for healthy birds, winter considerations and a bit about different breeds.

Participants will learn from hands-on building experience and will receive a set of plans that can be scaled down for smaller flocks of hens.

Fee: Sliding scale $15 - $30

Youths aged 14 to 18 welcome with an adult

Basics of Organic Gardening

Tuesday, April 27th, 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM

This class will be on the basic principals of organic gardening. Topics to be covered include garden preparation, composting, crop rotation and plant families.

Instructor, Deborah Cinamon Whalen is a life long gardener and sells organically grown flowers and vegetables from The Good Food Farm in East Kingston NH. She is a NOFA (Northeast Organic Farming Association) land care accredited gardener and a member of The Real Food Campaign.

Fee: $16 per person with online reservation $18 the day of the event

Youths from age 12 to eighteen are welcome with an adult supervisor.

Chicken 101

Saturday, May 1, 10 AM-noon

Learn the basics of raising day old chicks to adulthood including maintaining a healthy environment for each stage of development and characteristics of different breeds.

Fee: $16 per person with online registration $18 the day of the event

Shiitake Mushroom Cultivation

Saturday, May 15, 10 AM – noon

Would you like to know how to grow delicious mushrooms in your own backyard? Then join us for a hands on mushroom cultivation workshop! Participants will inoculate hardwood logs with dowel spawn and learn how to care for their mushroom logs to promote several years of shiitake mushroom growth. Other varieties will be discussed along with appropriate wood to use for future adventures in fungi fun.

Each participant will receive a log inoculated with Shiitake spawn to take home along with instructions and info on further learning resources.

Fee: $35 fee per person with a limit of 15 participants

Youths from age 12 to eighteen are welcome with an adult supervisor.

Chicken Tractor

Saturday, June 5 from 10:00 to Noon

There's no argument that free range eggs are superior to those produced by cooped birds fed a limited diet. For those of us with small or unfenced lots, free ranging isn't a real option. This hands on workshop will teach you how to build and use a Chicken Tractor – a light weight movable coop. Hens in a tractor are able to eat a natural, healthy diet while being safely contained. This portable structure also allows you to direct the birds' attention to cleaning up vegetable beds and depositing manure before and after harvest.

The tractor we will build was designed for easy storage during winter months. Participants will receive plans and material list to build their own.

Fee: $16 per person with online reservation $18 the day of the event.

Youths from age 12 to eighteen are welcome with an adult supervisor.

Organic Disease and Pest Control

Saturday, June 12 10AM-Noon

Learn organic strategies for pest and disease prevention and control including the use of predatory insects and companion planting.

Fee: $16 per person with online registration $18 the day of the event

Earth Oven

June 25, 26 and 27 9am-4pm

This three-day hands on workshop will teach you how to build a beautiful and durable earth oven using natural, native materials. Earth ovens, also known as cob ovens, have been used for centuries in outdoor settings to bake bread, pizza, meats, beans, pastries and more. These ovens are a wonderful gathering point for outdoor events!

This workshop is appropriate for homeowners, community organizers, artists, landscapers, masons and builders. All skill levels welcome!

We are delighted to have Jonah Vitale-Wolff of Hudson Valley Natural Builders as our guest teacher for this workshop.

Fee: Sliding scale $175 to $ 350