Jim Atkins. Photo courtesy of Jim Atkins
By Calie Brummer
On Friday and Saturday, September 7–8, the Organic Growers School (OGS) will host the 5th annual Harvest Conference at Warren Wilson College in Swannanoa. This year’s conference features three intensive workshops: The Sustainable Poultry Flock: Breeding, Growing, and Marketing at Any Scale, with instructor Jim Adkins of the Sustainable Poultry Network USA; Tending Your Inner Garden: Tools for Cultivating a Healthy Gut, with instructor Monica Corrado of Simply Being Well; and Mushrooms, Molds, and Mycorrhizae: Infinite Possibilities for Innovation, with instructor Tradd Cotter of Mushroom Mountain. Workshops run from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. each day, with registration open for Friday only or for Friday and Saturday.
On Thursday, September 6, from 6:30–8:30 p.m., guests can attend a free lecture with Corrado called Reclaim Nutrition to Reclaim Your Health. The event will be held at the Center for Graduate Studies at Lenoir-Rhyne Asheville. Corrado, a teaching chef and holistic nutritionist, will be addressing how to heal gut and health issues holistically through nutrient-dense cooking and wholefoods eating.
“Monica Corrado is based in Colorado and is a new addition to our curriculum this year,” says OGS executive director Lee Warren. “I’ve worked with her before and we’re so lucky to welcome her to Asheville. Her knowledge of nourishing foods, not to mention her unlimited enthusiasm, makes this topic really come alive. She offers so much wisdom through this workshop.”
During the weekend, instructor Adkins will explain how to bring heirloom and standard breeds of poultry to farms and communities, and Cotter will dive into a workshop on mushrooms, molds and mycorrhizae.
“We’re changing up the Harvest Conference format for this year because there are so many incredible offerings in our region, especially during this time of year,” says Warren. “We created an opportunity to go deeper with three outstanding instructors and a two-day intensive format. We have offered classes with both Jim Adkins on sustainable poultry and Tradd Cotter on mushrooms for years, and folks are always satisfied. Both workshops are staples in our programming.”
For those interested in poultry breeding and production, Adkins, founder of the Sustainable Poultry Network USA, will lead a workshop examining the five pillars of sustainable poultry production. The class will include a breeding analysis as well as a slaughter and butcher demo. Poultry enthusiasts will leave the workshop prepared to begin their own adventure into the world of poultry with a training manual including budget guides, facility plans and pasture-growing strategies.
Back by popular demand, Cotter’s mushroom workshop is open to experts and newcomers to the field alike. Cotter will explain how to identify, prepare, collect and store medicinal mushrooms, incorporate edible mushrooms into gardens, understand mycelial life cycles, cultivate mushrooms and much more. “The mushroom workshop will cover a broad spectrum of topics and is a perfect immersion course for beginners with some advanced material for experienced growers,” says Cotter. “I teach the foundational ecology of fungi, what they do and why they do what they are doing (and then build outwards by layering towards cultivation), how mushrooms make medicinal compounds and easy DIY methods for recycling home and farm waste. I also teach guests how to compost toxic waste such as pesticides and how to filter contaminated water. I would call this workshop a life-changing experience!”
The Harvest Conference is hosted by the Organic Growers School, a nonprofit providing practical and affordable education to boost the success of organic growers and farmers in WNC. For ticket prices and registration, visit organicgrowersschool.org.
