Master gardeners hosting homesteading open house on June 21
Photos courtesy of Cornell Cooperative Extension: The Master Food Preserver program will be at the event, showcasing canning equipment and providing recipes. Karen Desjardin is one of the local Master Food Preservers.
Press Release, Master Gardeners in Orleans County
KNOWLESVILLE – Orleans County CCE Master Gardeners are excited to announce a new event for this year – an Intro to Modern Homesteading open house, set to take place on Saturday, June 21 from11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Trolley Building of the Orleans County 4-H Fairgrounds.
The event will feature information tables showcasing various skills that increase self-sufficiency.
Modern homesteading can be loosely defined as reducing reliance on global supply chains and increasing practices that enhance self-sufficiency, sustainability and independence. The idea for an event based on modern homesteading skills was tossed around the last few years at the Master Gardener planning meetings.
As county residents witnessed rising grocery prices, looming tariffs on outsourced products, and signs of economic downturn, Orleans CCE Executive Director Robert Batt encouraged Master Gardeners to try to find a way to offer some type of education involving homesteading in their 2025 program year.
(Left) The compost tumbler that will be raffled off as a door prize for the event. (Right) There will be a table with information on the importance of using rain barrels.
Master Gardener Volunteers (MGVs) Eileen Sorochty and Kathleen Contrino formed a subcommittee and set to work detailing skills considered important in modern homesteading and finding professionals, volunteers or hobbyists willing to extend their experiences and information to the public.
“Modern homesteading can be a great way to save money and know what your family is exposed to,” said Contrino, MGV Co-Chair for the event. “The more we do for ourselves and our community, the less we have to rely upon large corporations whose goals are reaping profits.”
Some of the topics that will be featured at the event include: food gardening, seed saving, sewing, soap-making, homeschooling, composting, rain barrels, chicken raising, canning, and more!
Volunteers will be at each table offering examples and information on each of the skills. In addition to the informational tables, there will be demonstrations on fiber spinning, live animals from the Orleans County 4-H and Rosemary and Pine Goatscaping, and a Kidsteaders table with hands-on crafts for children.
Master Gardener Brenda Radzinski will showcase quilting and sewing techniques.
“I think it’s important that folks see and experience some of the home skills that our parents and grandparents relied on,” said Sorochty, the other MGV Co-Chair for the event. “Whether it’s raising a vegetable garden or having chickens, it can only benefit us all to know how to feed ourselves from our own backyard. Yes, it might be a bit more work, but the satisfaction and rewards are worth the efforts.”
This event takes place directly after the Master Gardener class on Flower Gardening (at 10 a.m. in the Education Center). The Intro to Homesteading event is free and open to the public from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Attendees are welcome to come and go throughout the event. Each attending family can enter a free raffle to win the door prize of a Lifetime Compost Tumbler donated by Orleans County resident and Master Gardener supporter Pam Maryjanowski.
“We are hopeful the event will be successful and can grow into something even bigger in the future. We’d love to see larger series of monthly events and hands-on classes next year.” Contrino said, “Homesteading can help make our lives more sustainable, build local infrastructure and increase community through sharing and bartering.”
For more information on this or any other Master Gardener program, contact MGV Coordinator Katie Oakes at klo54@cornell.edu or 585-798-4265 ext. 125.
Master Gardener Kate Hardner, an advocate for backyard chicken raising, will be at the event with information about raising chickens at home. Photo by Kelly Lucyszyn.
