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Food Preservation Classes at Orange County Extension Office

Posted in Alternative Education, Food and Nutrition, Organic Gardening, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on March 10, 2010 | Leave a Comment »

I just registered for all four classes.  Here’s the PDF flier in case anyone wants to print and share.  Knowing how to deal with surplus is bonus skills for the organic gardener!

Food Preservation Classes at Orange County Extension Office

Basic Pressure Canning
Wednesday, April 21, 2010 6:00 to 8:00 pm
Hands on for first timers or those who are afraid of using the pressure canner
Boiling water bath

Canning – tomatoes and other high acid foods
Thursday, May 13, 2010 6:00 to 8:00 pm
For those who have used canning equipment but want an update

Freezing Foods
Thursday, May 27, 2010 6:00 to 8:00 pm
Freezing fresh foods, combination dishes and freezing hints

Drying Foods
Thursday, June 10, 2010 6:00 to 8:00 pm
Dehydrating herbs, produce, and make your own fruit rolls.

LOCATION AND COST

All classes will be held at the Orange County University of Florida IFAS Extension Education Center, Rose room.

Orange County/University of Florida
IFAS Extension
6021 South Conway Road
Orlando, FL 32812

Pre-registration is required and class size is limited. Call the Extension Office at 407-254-9217 to register or if you have questions. Register no later than three days before the class.

$10 per class, attend three and the fourth one is free!

Checks payable to Orange County Extension Fund, collected at the door.

Pressure Canner Gauge Testing at these sessions at no extra charge.
Testing by appointment $2.00 per gauge.

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Orange County Shower Head Exchanges on Tuesday and Thurdsdays in April!

Posted in Conservation / Environment, tagged , , , , on April 15, 2009 | 5 Comments »

If you want to swap out your old shower head for a low flow model, you can! It’s part of “Water Conservation Month” activities sponsored by Orange County.

showerhead

As an Orange County Utilities water customer, you are eligible to exchange your old high-flow showerhead for a new low-flow device. Replacement showerheads deliver 1.5 gallons per minute.

How to Check Yours

High-flow showerheads deliver 3-5 gallons per minute. To check what type you have gather together

  • A bucket that holds more than one gallon of water (mark it at one gallon)
  • A clock with a second hand.

First turn on the shower to full flow.  Then put the bucket into the water stream. Time how many seconds it takes to fill up to the one-gallon mark. If your bucket fills to the one gallon mark in under 20 seconds you have a high-flow showerhead. If it takes longer than 20 seconds – it is a low-flow showerhead.

What to Bring

Only residential customers qualify and there is a limit of 3 showerheads per family. Bring a recent water bill and the old showerhead(s) with you.

Where and When To Go

Orange County Utilities
Administration Building
9150 Curry Ford Road

Every Tuesday and Thursday in April 2009
8:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.

Orange County Parks and
Recreation Administration Building
at Barnett Park
4801 West Colonial Drive
One Day Only
Thursday, April 30, 2009
1:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.

Special Needs
In accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), if any person with a disability as defined by the ADA needs special accommodation to participate in these proceedings, then not later than two (2) business days prior to the proceeding, he or she should contact the Orange County Utilities Department at 407-254-9850.

Orange County Utilities Department
Water Division
9150 Curry Ford Road
Orlando, Florida 32825
http://www.ocfl.net/utilities/
E-mail: Water.Division@ocfl.net

orangecounty

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Recycling just got better in Orange County!

Posted in Reduce-Reuse-Recycle, tagged , , , on September 19, 2008 | 21 Comments »

Recycling Bin

Recycling Bin

Unincorporated Orange County has widened their definition of what can be recycled curbside!  In the Green Bins, you can now recycle empty aerosol cans and plastic bottles #3 – #7 with a neck, along with the regular recyclables such as aluminum and tin cans, glass bottles and jars, all drink boxes and milk/juice cartons and plastic containers #1 or #2.  In the Orange Bins, now you can recycle pasteboard along with your newspapers, brown paper bags, flattened corrugated cardboard, magazines and catalogs.  Examples of pasteboard include cereal boxes, empty paper towel and toilet paper rolls, and shoe boxes.
If you have any questions regarding what you can and cannot recycle, you can contact the Orange County Utilities Solid Waste Hotline at 407-836-6601.

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Vermiculite in Lake Mary and Compost and Rain Barrel Workshop

Posted in Organic Gardening, tagged , , , , , , , , , on April 24, 2008 | 4 Comments »

SFG mini-series reader Ryan reports that over at the Home Depot in Lake Mary, square foot garden enthusiasts can buy 4 cu feet bags of vermiculite from the Home Depot  for $12.99.

When setting up my kitchen garden I was unable to find it near me in large quantity so I ordered from Home Harvest instead.

There is still time to throw a bed together and get some fast growers in before the summer heat wave kicks in an all veggie gardeners take a break before the fall season ramps up in late august/early sept.

Not that there is a lack of things do to for the organic veggie gardener in summer…

Over at the Orange County Extension Office, there’s a compost and rain barrel workshop in May. Details are

Date/Time: May 17, 2008 (Saturday) 9:00am-110:00am

Location: Magnolia Room at the

Orange County – UF/IFAS
Extension Education Center
6021 South Conway Road
Orlando, FL 32812-3604
Office: (407) 254-9200

Description: Learn how to turn your plant waste material into compost by conventional methods for homeowners and vermicomposting for apartment, condo, or trailer residents. Conserve water in your yard with the use of rain barrels. One Rain Barrel will be provided to each Orange County family, courtesy of Orange County Environmental Protection Division and Orange County Utilities.

Then in June you can learn about “Summer Landscape Pests” and July covers “Irrigation Auditing — Water Conservation in the Landscape.” Check them out!

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Register for Free Spring Vegetable Gardening Class!

Posted in Organic Gardening, tagged , , , , , , , , , on January 9, 2008 | 1 Comment »

I just signed up for the FREE spring vegetable garden class at the Orange County Extension Education Center. I took my first class last fall and came away with a lot of useful information, handouts, and a free tomato plant that I won in the raffle! While older children may enjoy it, plan to leave the younger set with a babysitter.

The class will be on February 16, 2008 (Saturday) from 9:00am-11:00am.

You will learn the basics of warm season vegetable gardening including soil preparation, adjusting soil pH, fertilizing, irrigation, pests and diseases. It would be a good idea to bring a notebook and a pen to take notes and hold your handouts together.

You can register online or call (407) 254-9200 for more information.

The Orange County Extension Education Center is located at

6021 South Conway Road
Orlando, FL 32812-3604
The street sign is blue but the main building complex is set away from the road and is painted orange. You could miss the driveway if you drive too fast.
newbuilding1a.jpg
extedcenter.jpg

The class lets out near lunch time, and when you come out of the parking lot, if you turn right and heads towards Conway and Hoffner, you will find Winn Dixie, Publix, Wendy’s, Mcdonald’s, Subway, Starbucks, Hop Bo (Chinese Food), Pizzazz, Planet Smoothie, and other places to pop in for groceries or a quick bite to eat.

Julia and I are already prepping my beds and plan to build her a little 4 x 4 ft bed of her own. Check back for updates on that project!

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Free Orange County Compost!

Posted in Reduce-Reuse-Recycle, tagged , , , , , on December 7, 2007 | Leave a Comment »

Need compost but don’t have space to do it yourself? Don’t want to buy it?
Since 1992, yard waste has been collected from Orange County homes and composted. The compost is resembles peat moss, is free of weed seeds and plant pests, and contains some plant nutrients. (PH is around 8.0, so it is alkaline and should not be used with plants needing acidic soil.)

Compost is offered FREE on a first come, first serve basis. Just call ahead to see if they have any available at the pick up locations below. Then head out with your containers, bags, and shovels!

Daily from 8 AM – 5 PM:

Orange County Landfill
12100 Young Pine Road
(407) – 836-6601

Porter Transfer Station
8750 White Road
407-296-5198

Thursdays, Fridays & Saturdays

McLeaod Road Transfer Station
5000 McLeod Road
(407) 245-0931

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