Farm to Table: Better Food for Better Health

A hundred years ago, most of the food we ate came from within 50 miles of our homes. When people moved from rural to urban settings, local food sources disappeared while large producers flourished. The current farm to table movement promotes the idea of producing, purchasing and consuming food close to home, resulting in a boost to the local economy, a greener planet and a healthier population.

Beekeeping | Canning | Composting | Cooperative Gardening | Healthy Cooking | Herb Gardening | Homebrewing Beer | Homesteading | Purple Carrot Truck | Raising Backyard Chickens | Spring Garden Prep

THE PURPLE CARROT TRUCK

The Purple Carrot is Michigan’s first farm-to-truck food stand. Owners Nina Santucci and Anthony Maiale buy fresh, high-quality ingredients directly from farmers and turn them into delicious, creative cuisine. Hear about their fresh food mission and enjoy delicious samples.
DOWNTOWN LANSING: Saturday, April 21 • 2 pm
Treat yourself to lunch first! The truck will be selling food outside our library from 12–2 pm.

OKEMOS: Wednesday, April 25 • 7 pm

HOMEBREWING BEER

Learn the basics of homebrewing from local brewer Matt Jason. He’ll talk about preparation, bottling and the
basic steps to brewing. (No alcohol provided.) 
WILLIAMSTON: Saturday, March 3 • 1 pm

OKEMOS: Saturday, May 5 • 2 pm

RAISING BACKYARD CHICKENS

In 2009, Ingham County passed an ordinance allowing households to keep chickens. Lansing resident and chicken
owner Corie Jason took up the challenge! She’ll explain how to get started raising chickens in your own backyard.
STOCKBRIDGE: Thursday, April 19 • 7 pm

HASLETT: Saturday, May 19 • 1 pm

OKEMOS: Saturday, June 2 • 2 pm

HERB GARDENING

This series is presented at the Foster Library by John Bolan, a member of the Michigan AmeriCorp and a coordinator
at the Community for Power of We Consortium at the North West Initiative-Food System Project in Lansing.

Windowsill & Container Herb Gardening
Even small spaces can produce fresh, savory herbs for healthier cooking.
FOSTER: Tuesday, March 13 • 6:30 pm 

Outdoor Herb Gardening
Learn how to plan an outdoor herb garden for fresh cooking all season long.
FOSTER: Tuesday, April 10 • 6:30 pm 

Advanced Herb Gardening
A special program for advanced herb growers, including unusual and tropical herbs
FOSTER: Tuesday, May 15 • 6:30 pm

BEEKEEPING

Why raise bees? Besides the valuable harvest of honey and beeswax, bees help increase the yields from
fruit trees and vegetables.

Beginning Beekeeping
Local beekeepers Matt Wojack and Jeremy Sprague will explain the process of beekeeping, where to get supplies
and the best time to get started.
HOLT-DELHI: Monday, March 5 • 6:30 pm

The Vanishing of the Bees: Film Screening and Discussion*
Honeybees the world-over have been mysteriously vanishing from their hives, bringing crisis to an industry responsible for pollinating apples, broccoli, watermelon, onions and a hundred other crops. Join us as we watch and discuss this important film, which the UK’s channel 4 calls, “an essential documentary.” Learn more at vanishingbees.com. *Registration required; call (517) 694-9351 ext. 3.
HOLT-DELHI: Monday, April 16 • 6:30 pm

GET STARTED COMPOSTING

Yard trimmings and food waste make up nearly 30% of the US municipal solid waste stream. Learn how to turn yours into low-cost, environmentally-friendly compost from Rebecca Titus of Titus Farms, a sustainable vegetable and fresh-cut flower farm located in rural Ingham County.
DOWNTOWN LANSING: Sunday, March 18 • 2 pm

HASLETT: Saturday, April 21 • 11 am

MASON: Monday, April 23 • 6 pm

STOCKBRIDGE: Thursday, April 26 • 7 pm

LESLIE COOPERATIVE GARDEN

The Leslie Community Garden is a small, organic membership garden dedicated to the idea that gardening as a community and eating local, seasonal food encourages us to stay in touch with the earth. View a slide show about how members work together, share recipes and keep gardening fun.
LESLIE: Tuesday, March 20 • 6:15 pm

 HEALTHY COOKING WITH HERBS

Learn to grow herbs and use them in nutritious recipes from Brenda Ginther, owner of the Wooden Shoe Herb Farm near Mason.
DANSVILLE: Monday, March 26 • 6 pm 

STOCKBRIDGE: Thursday, May 10 • 7 pm 

BEGINNING CANNING

Canning is a great way to preserve nutritious produce, but it’s important to do it safely. MSU Extension educator Joyce McGarry will demonstrate several methods, including freezing, water bath and pressure canning.
AURELIUS: Thursday, April 12 • 6:30 pm 

SOUTH LANSING: Wednesday, May 9 • 6 pm

LESLIE: Thursday, May 17 • 6:30 pm 

MASON: Thursday, June 7 • 6:30 pm

PREPARING YOUR GARDEN FOR SPRING

Join us for easy care tips to make this your best growing season yet. Sabrina Jenkins, certified Master Gardener and owner of Second Nature Designs, will talk about soil preparation, pruning, planting bulbs and adding low care native plants to your garden. We’ll have lots of gardening books available for check-out after her presentation.
HASLETT: Saturday, April 14 • 11 am

HOMESTEADING

How did our ancestors manage to keep wholesome, homegrown food on the table? Find out from Alex Bryan, owner of Apollo Farms orchard in Laingsburg and Volunteer Coordinator at the Greater Lansing Food Bank, and Gabriel Biber, garden program manager at the Great Lansing Food Bank. They’ll talk about time-tested seed saving and preservation techniques, using rain barrels and more. 
WILLIAMSTON: Thursday, April 26 • 6:30 pm

WEBBERVILLE: Thursday, May 3 • 6:30 pm

STOCKBRIDGE: Thursday, May 17 • 7 pm

OTHER RESOURCES

- Farm to Table: The Emerging American Meal: A blog chronicling the people, places and trends in the local sustainable food movement

- Center for Environmental Farming Systems: CEFS develops and promotes food and farming systems that protect the environment, sthrengthen local communities and provide economic opportunities in North Carolina and beyond.

- Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations  : Achieving food security for all and to make sure people have regular access to enough high-quality food to lead active, healthy lives.

- United States Department of Agriculture: Provides leadership on food, agriculture, natural resources and related issues. Learn more about their Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food program.

- Titus Farms: committed to producing fresh, delicious and unique horticultural products for the mid-Michigan community.

- Let's Garden Lansing: A list of gardening events happening throughout mid-Michigan.

- The Purple Carrot Truck: Michigan's first farm to truck food stand serving fresh and creative cuisine by working directly with farmers.

- Wooden Shoe Farm: A working farm consisting of a shot, greenhouse, drying barn with classroom and acres of organically grown herbs and perennials.

- Greater Lansing Food Bank: The Garden Project that began in 1983 helped establish and support 45 community gardens in 2009 and assisting low-income residents with their backyard gardens.

BOOK LIST

Beekeeping: Self-Sufficiency by Joanna Ryde
All aspects of beekeeping are explained, including the basic tools and equipment needed,
detailed advice on when to harvest honey and the many tasty things you can make.

Can It, Bottle It, Smoke It: And Other Kitchen Projects by Karen Solomon
This innovative cookbook offers ideas for adventurous culinary DIYers to stock
the pantry with artisan food and drink, kitchen staples, tasty snacks and gift-worthy eats.

The Compost Specialist by David Squire
This new entry in the highly successful Specialist series gives gardeners all the guidance
they need to start making, storing, and using their own compost.

Community Gardening by Ellen Kirby and Elizabeth Peters
This guide uses case studies to show how it produces safe, eco-friendly food, brings
neighbors together, offers science lessons for children, and gives participants the satisfaction
that comes with making things grow.

Techniques of Healthy Cooking by The Culinary Institute of America
An up-to-date guide to healthy eating, featuring 200 full-color photographs, nutritional
requirements, dietary guidelines, healthful cooking techniques, and more than 400 recipes
from Mediterranean, Asian and vegetarian cuisines.

The Kitchen Garden Grower's Guide by Stephen Albert
A veritable encyclopedia and easy how-to guide on all that is natural and necessary in the
world of gardening and fruit, vegetable and herb preparation.

Beer Craft: A Simple Guide to Making Great Beer by William Bostwick and Jessi Rymill
A guide that gives information on ingredients, equipment, basic beer-making steps and
advanced techniques.

Homesteading edited by Abigail R. Gehring
A backyard guide to growing your own food, canning, keeping chickens, generating your
own energy, crafting, herbal medicine and more.

A Chicken in Every Yard: The Urban Farm Store's Guide to Chicken Keeping by Robert and Hannah Litt
This colorful, nuts-and-bolts guide to selecting and raising backyard chickens offers everything a
first-time keeper needs to know.

The New Low-Maintenance Garden by Valerie Easton
A guide that explains how to have a beautiful, productive garden and the time to enjoy it.

The Omnivore's Dilemma: The Secrets Behind What You Eat by Richie Chevat
Delve into facts about food, life expectancy as it relates to consumption, and global health
implications resulting from food choices made by people around the world.

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life by Barbara Kingslover, with Steven L. Hopp and Camille Kingslover
Follow the author's family's efforts to live on local, home-grown foods, an endeavor through
which they learn lighthearted truths about food production and the connection between health and diet.

Farming with the Wild: Enhancing Biodiversity of Farms and Ranches by Daniel Imhof
An inspiring look at more than 30 farms, ranches and organizations in the United States,
demonstrating a new agrarian movement that is slowly sweeping across the nation. A
movement that aims to provide healthier food to Americans while restoring healthy ecosystems.