News from the Rural Heritage Center
Pepper Jelly Festival April 30th 2011:
Now Requesting Vendor Applications!
We are now accepting applications for vendors for the upcoming Pepper Jelly Festival. This year, the festival will be held on Saturday, April 30th. All vendor applications must be submitted by April 1st to avoid a late fee.
- Fill out a Vendor Application Online.
Register Now for Fun Events!!!
Entry forms for the 5k Run and the Domino Tournament are also now accepted.
- Fill out a 5K Run Application Online
- Fill out a Domino Tournament Registration Form Online
Mama Nem's
Even though we are no longer serving Sunday lunch in our dinng facilities, the Rural Heritage Center's FDA approved kitchen and restaurant area will still be available to reserve for special events. Call us at 334-627-3388 or e-mail at ruralher@frontiernet.net for rates and availability.
A New Addition to the Garden
This December, a new hoop house was added to our garden. The hoop house serves a greenhouse and extends the growing season in the winter and helps with starting new plants earlier in the spring. This year's seedlings for our summer crop will be growing in the hoop house by the middle to end of February. We look forward to having a good crop for the Farmer's market this summer. The assembly of the hoop house was marked by a luncheon with the Alabama Sustainable Agriculture Network members.
A training session, sponsored by the RC&D Council, was held on Wednesday, February 16th, for those who wished to learn how to assemble their own hoop houses. Funding for the hoop house was provided by an NRCS/EQIP grant. Andrew Williams and a small group of local volunteers tend the garden. If you would like to volunteer please call Andrew Williams at 334-216-1344.
Spring Gardening Seminar
There will be a spring gardening seminar presented by Jason Powell of Petals from the Past presented on Wednesday, February 23rd at 10AM. The topic for this seminar is "Tough Plants for Southern Gardens". Plants will be available for sale following the seminar. Cost for the seminar is $15.oo per person and includes lunch. Call 334-295-5959 for more information or to register.
For more information about Petals from the Past you can visit their website at www.petalsfromthepast.com or sign up for their online newletter. You can also call at 205-646-0069
Don't Forget the Pepper Jelly
Our jelly is available in the gift shop in both red and green varieties and comes in 4oz and 8oz jars. We will ship jelly upon request.
Spotlight on Alabama Artists
Our Gift Shop offers a wide variety of unique items hand-crafted by Alabama artists. There are two we would like to highlight in this issue:
Kathryn Tucker Windham (1918- ) is best known for her series of ghost stories beginning with 13 Alabama Ghosts and Jeffrey in 1969, as well as numerous other books, including stories, cookbooks, and photography. Her work focuses on Southern culture and deals with positive subjects like family, community, tolerance, good humor, laughter, and joy.
Artist Peggy Eddy was born August 6, 1934 in Stanton, Chilton County, Alabama. She has been painting since the age of 9 when her mother ordered her first canvas and paints from Sears & Roebuck. The paints arrived but the canvas did not. So, her first art was painted on a linen window shade.
Peggy has always loved nature and the flowers that it produces. You will find these as common themes in her paintings.