<html><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><div><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><div><div>Notable local food gardens will be open to visitors on five evenings in August and September for the "2009 Kitchen Garden Tours" organized by Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County. This year’s tours will feature themes of gardening in the city, a country “stimulus” garden, and two gardens that extensively utilize root cellars for winter food storage. The first 3 garden tours are free, the last two have an admission fee and are limited to 40 visitors, however additional tours will be scheduled if these fill up. Please preregister for free or fee tours by calling 607-272-2292. Thanks!<br><br> <br> <b>Gardening in the City I <br> Tuesday, August 11, 6:30-8:00pm<br> 306 Utica Street, Ithaca <br> </b>FREE. At this address, four families gardening together have turned their entire back yard into a vegetable garden featuring raised beds, mulched rows, and a large variety of plants including artichokes, tomatoes, herbs, flowers, beans, peas and greens. The garden is 40 ft x 60 ft. To mediate lead in the soil, 20 yards of composted manure and topsoil were added. No chemicals used for pest management. NOTE: No formal tour is planned; meet the owners and speak with them informally about their gardens. So that we may track interest, please pre-register by calling Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County at (607) 272-2292. <br><br> <b>Gardening in the City II <br> Tuesday, August 18, 6:30-8:00pm<br> 3 gardens at N. Geneva & Cascadilla Streets in Ithaca<br> </b>FREE. Learn about intensive backyard gardening and a variety of sustainable gardening practices including water catchments, permaculture design, intensive raised beds, featuring herbs, vegetables and small fruits. NOTE: No formal tour is planned; meet the owners and speak with them informally about their gardens. Visitors should meet at 438 N. Geneva (second house from Cascadilla) and look for signs at each open garden. So that we may track interest, please pre-register by calling Cooperative Extension at (607) 272-2292.<br><br> <b>"Country Stimulus Garden" <br> Tuesday, September 8, 6:00-7:30pm<br> 77 Halseyville Road, Enfield<i> (take Rt. 79 West, turn right onto Halseyville at the detour) <br> </i></b>FREE garden tour by neighbors Joan Adler, David Dietrich and Ann Rider who have joined forces to grow veggies this season. They prepared the site in fall with cardboard mulch topped with manure, tilled it in spring and have been planting and enjoying vegetables ever since. Visitors should park at 77 Halseyville Road in the driveway, by the shed. Meet at the shed and walk next door to the garden. So that we may track interest, please pre-register by calling Cooperative Extension at (607) 272-2292.<br><br> <br> The final two Kitchen Garden Tours feature gardeners who have built root cellars to help preserve their harvests. The following sites have an admission fee, are limited to 40 visitors each, and pre-registration is required; additional tours will be added if these fill:<br> <br> <b><i>Home Food Gardening & Storage I <br> </i>Thursday, September 10, 6:00-7:30pm<br> </b>This guided tour visits the extensive vegetable and fruit gardens and root cellars of f Kathy, Bill and Dan Halton's farm on Danby Road. In 1984, Bill used a construction technique from Ken Kern (<u>The Owner Built Home</u>) to build a circular root cellar dug into the hillside. In 1991, when they built their house, they put in another root cellar below ground, which they use to store the produce from their gardens. They have found root cellars to be very useful for storing: potatoes, beets, carrots, and other root crops, as well as wine, beer, and rain water for dyeing fiber. The Haltons also make their own electricity from solar panels which stand inside the garden. Visitors must pre-register for this tour by calling 607-272-2292. Tour fee for this site is $5/person or $8/couple, limited to 40 visitors. If tour fills we will start a waiting list for a second tour. <br><br> <b><i>Home Food Gardening & Storage II <br> </i>Thursday, September 17, 6:00-7:30pm<br> </b>This guided tour visits the gardens, orchard and root cellar at Peasant Dreams Farm (<a href="http://www.peasantdreamsfarm.com/" eudora="autourl"> www.peasantdreamsfarm.com</a>) owned by David and Katie Quinn-Jacobs in Ithaca. This farm focuses on root crops for winter home storage and offers information about root cellaring. The farm uses certified organic seed and no chemical fertilizers or pesticides. The gardens are a mix of raised beds, raised rows and larger crop plantings. The orchard includes apple, pear, peach, pawpaw, northern kiwi, Cornellian cherry, and an assortment of berries and nuts. The root cellar below their porch is divided into two storage areas: for cool/dry and cool/moist storage to accommodate different crops. Chickens and Romney sheep provide manure to the gardens. Visitors must pre-register for this tour by calling 607-272-2292. Tour fee for this site is $5/person or $8/couple, limited to 40 visitors. If tour fills we will start a waiting list for a second tour. <br><br> <br> For additional information or to register, please call Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County at (607) 272-2292 or email <a href="mailto:growline@cornell.edu">growline@cornell.edu</a>. <br><br> </div> </div><br></div>(via FLX Permaculture Network listserv)<br></div><br></body></html>