“The Hereford Garden is a community effort,” said Program Coordinator Tommy Ferrier, “with dedicated Master Gardeners coordinating student volunteers and paid garden interns, along with other professional staff who help the garden grow.”
Horticulture is incorporated into “Garden Party,” a one-credit course that Hereford residents can take in the fall and spring semesters. Students in the course typically attend workshops three to five at a time and learn basic houseplant care, an introduction to vegetable gardening, how to read soil, pruning trees and vermicomposting (using earthworms to make compost). In addition to growing, students also engage in conservation.
“Other workshops during the Garden Party class included popcorn processing, elderberry syrup, bouquet/tussie mussie (herb and flower bouquet) making and garlic braiding,” Maggiore said. “Herbs dry easily and we saved a lot of our own seeds.”
Hereford Residential Gardens also features vegetables such as tomatoes, garlic, onions, peppers, eggplant and potatoes, as well as a mini orchard with plum, apple, blueberry, pawpaw and elderberry groves. The gardens also feature ornamental flower beds and “pollinator beds” filled with native flowers and perennial shrubs that support beneficial insects such as bees, wasps and flies.
“We recently installed a new greenhouse, which we're looking forward to using to germinate seeds and overwinter cold-sensitive plants,” Ferrier said.
