By Scott Weybright, College of Agricultural, Human & Natural Resource Sciences
BURLINGTON, Wash. – Classes about food preservation, gardening, livestock management and fruit production, among many other topics, will be available at the annual Country Living Expo and Cattlemen’s Winterschool on Jan. 30 at Stanwood High School in Stanwood, Wash.
To register and view classes, visit http://skagit.wsu.edu/CountryLivingExpo.
Registration is $75 for adults (save $5 if you register in 2015) and $40 for youth age 12-18. A discounted rate of $10 is available for youth in need of scholarship help.
Coffee and pastries, five classes and choice of smoked prime rib or gourmet vegetarian lunch are included. The all-day trade show features over 65 small farm vendors.
In addition to the expo, five Sunday Farm Tours – including Carnation, Wash., and Lopez Island – will be offered for an additional fee.
“Our program is packed with classes for everyone, from existing small farm owners to city dwellers,” said Joan DeVries, program coordinator with Washington State University. “People interested in growing and preserving their own foods, raising their own bacon and eggs, revisiting lost farmsteading skills, building a shed or making a rain barrel will want to attend.”
Class examples include:
• Edible plants of NW Washington and edible mushroom cultivation
• Seed saving: Hands-on identification and threshing
• Growing your own event or wedding flowers
• Soil 101 and building soil health to cope with drought
• Building a small garden shed
• Sourdough bread baking for beginners
• Calving, lambing and kidding classes
• Maintaining healthy horses, sheep, beef, goats and poultry
Hosted by the Stanwood FFA, the expo is presented by WSU Extension, the Livestock Master Foundation, the Cattlemen’s Association, the WSU Center for Sustaining Agriculture and Natural Resources and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program.
Contact:
Joan R. DeVries, WSU Skagit County Extension, 360-428-4270 Ext. 240, joand@wsu.edu