"Surviving the Winter Homestead"

This hands-on, all-day class, led by Eliza A.H. Lord, will teach students the basics of preparing for the winter on a homestead. Learn how mountain Southerners in the 19th century managed to survive the winter without being able to drop by the grocery store or turn on central heating. The class will be a combination walking tour and series of small workshops, with an hour break for a picnic lunch (students must bring their own food). Workshops will include heirloom seed saving (including how to properly ferment heirloom tomato seeds before drying them), building a “clamp” (an earthen root cellar), winter gardening before the invention of plastic tunnels, identifying the best firewood trees in summer or winter, and putting by enough food without a modern canner (we'll string “leather britches” beans and more).  Students will leave with an ornamental string of leather britches and some rare Southern heirloom seeds. We will meet at the visitors center, but the projects will take us all over the property.

Students should bring a water bottle, snacks, a picnic lunch and sun protection. All other supplies provided. No experience required. Tuition is $100 per student. Class minimum is 5 and maximum is 12. Rain or shine. Students must be at least 18 years of age to enroll. Advanced registration is required.

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Eliza A. H. Lord

Born in the foothills of the Appalachian mountains, Eliza A. H. Lord’s roots in this area go back for generations. She's a certified permaculturist, S.C. Master Gardener, and Upstate S.C. Master Naturalist. She founded the S.C. Upstate Permaculture Society, now with over 600 members. For years, her downtown Greenville urban farm has held popular open houses with its lawn-free edible landscaping, chickens, mushrooms and bees. In addition to consulting, teaching classes and writing for various publications, Lord also maintains a permaculture "how-to" blog called Appalachian Feet. She has a full roster of hands-on garden and homesteading classes available for 2015.