LITTLETON, Maine — The second annual Rural Living Day was held Saturday, Sept. 10, 2016 at the Southern Aroostook Agricultural Museum in Littleton.
The event was organized by Angie Wotton of the Southern Aroostook Soil and Water Conservation District and Linda Trickey from the University of Maine Cooperative Extension Service. Funding for the day was made possible through a grant from the Maine Department of Agriculture, with additional support from Farm Credit and State Farm Insurance Agency.
The venue attracted more than 200 attendees, who were interested in various aspects of gardening, cooking, farming, farm animals, herbs and crafts such as: weaving, wood turning, fly tying, rug making and knitting.
There were also demonstrations on making bread, butter, pasta from scratch and homemade pickles. Children attending tied flies for fishing, created flower and grapevine crowns, made potato print T-shirts, corn husk dolls and participated in hand picking potatoes. A “Harvest Lunch” was provided by the “Vault Restaurant” from Houlton.
The workshops included: alternative energy options for farms and soil with Jennifer Pusser-Brennan from the United States Department of Agriculture, backyard maple syrup with Kevin and Kristi Brannen of Spring Break Maple and Honey; planting fall perennials and preparing your flower beds for winter with Donna Keegan of Myrtle Tree Perennials; using local herbs for health, Natalia Bragg of Knott II Bragg Farm; organic farming with Jim Gerritsen, growing mushrooms in logs with Candice Heydon of Oyster Creek Mushroom Co. and baking artisan bread using local grains, Sara Williams-Flewelling of Aurora Mills and Farm.
Several workshops were also offered by the University of Maine Extension Service. They included: growing hops with Andrew Plant; growing garlic with David Fuller; canning basics with Linda Trickey; choosing and purchasing local meats with Donna Coffin and digging into the soil and how to keep it productive with Jason Lilley.
Wotton was pleased with the large turn-out and said that she had received several positive comments from those attending.
“The event proved to be a fun family day, offering informational workshops for adults while providing lots of engaging activities for children,” said Wotton. “I was pleased to see the increased interest in learning to live off the land.”
