Growing Literacy: 2024 Winter Garden Workshop Series 

Please join us for our annual Winter Garden Workshop series: Growing Literacy. This year we are proud to host five workshops through collaboration with Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust, Growing to Give and Curtis Memorial Library.  Bring your curiosity, questions, and join us! 

Every winter, the Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust offers this series of workshops to engage with the community, support the Tom Settlemire Community Garden, and offer skill-building exercises for gardeners of all abilities. These workshops are a wonderful opportunity to learn from master gardeners and experts on a variety of gardening subjects. This year we are excited to host six workshops in collaboration with Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust, Growing to Give and Curtis Memorial Library. Two of these workshops will be held online via zoom, and four will be in-person at Curtis Memorial Library. Bring your curiosity, questions, and join us! 

The Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust  (BTLT) conserves and stewards vital natural areas, supports a vibrant food system, and connects people with the natural world through inclusive education and recreation programs in the Brunswick region. Our goal is to protect our natural resources, cultivate care for the natural world, and in so doing foster resilient connected communities for now and for generations to come. 

Curtis Memorial Library is a public library of Brunswick and Harpswell, Maine. Curtis Memorial Library strives to enrich the quality of life in this region by building community, advocating for reading, championing social justice and digital equity, and promoting sustainability. 

Growing to Give grows organic produce to support those in the community struggling with food insecurity while modeling, educating, and advocating for climate-friendly farming practices. Working with a robust network of volunteers and community partners, Growing to Give has grown and donated over 80,000 lbs of produce since its inception in 2017. 

• January 21: Acorn abundance (and what to do with them) https://curtislibrary.libcal.com/event/11767020 

• January 28: Not just the Honeybee: Native Pollinators & Native Plants in Your Garden https://curtislibrary.libcal.com/event/11664741 

• February 4: Invasive Jumping Worms 101: A Community Conversation https://curtislibrary.libcal.com/event/11664745 

• February 11: Processing Elderberries  

• March 3: DIY Resilient Yard 

• March 23: Kids in the Garden 

Processing Elderberries  

Sunday, February 11, 3-4:30pm, at Curtis Memorial Library in the Morrell Meeting Room  

We have all grown to love blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries, but what about elderberries? Please join us for a hands-on demonstration on how to make elderberry syrup with Becky Alden Vail, Community Herbalist of Herbage by Bex. This workshop will cover the process of how to turn this incredible berry into a delicious, healing, and long-lasting syrup. Bring your questions and be ready to get messy!  

Becky Alden Vail has been loving and living Herbage by Bex, in Maine, since 2014. She is a nature and outdoor enthusiast, always in search of new adventures and places where wild things grow. Becky has completed a 500-hour herbal medicine course with Rosemary Gladstar, a 1500-hour course with Chestnut School of Herbal Medicine, and has completed three years of apprenticeship with Milk and Honey Swallowtail farm, as well as extensive classes on supporting her community with herbal remedies.