Gardening, Nature, & Conservation

Fortify Your Immune System with Herbs

Learn how to build a proactive “botanical shield” to help you navigate the seasonal bugs of the coming cold and flu season. Participants will learn the science of how plants help your white blood cells do their best work as we make our own elderberry syrup and garlic-infused honey.

Everyone will take home their own practical toolkit including their class-made herbal supplements, recipes, and tips for daily habits designed to keep participants standing tall and feeling well, even when everyone else is coming down with the sniffles.

Community Instructor: Lily Kunning

Flower Arranging: A Garden Centerpiece

Create a beautiful seasonal bouquet while learning about the importance of sourcing your flowers locally. As you arrange a medium-sized bouquet in a glass jar, you’ll learn the basics of floral design and take home an arrangement to enjoy.

Local flower farmer and floral designer Becca will discuss the benefits of using flowers grown close to home. As more people think about where their food comes from, she’ll explore why the flowers we bring into our homes should be part of that same conversation. The flowers used in class will come from Becca’s own cut flower farm.

Class Note: Please bring a pair of gardening gloves, if available. Some participants may find them helpful while handling the flowers.

Community Instructor: Becca Mathews

Explore the Medicinal Roots of Cocktails: Bitters

Explore the medicinal roots of cocktail culture in this hands-on workshop and discover why bitter flavors have long been valued for supporting digestion. Participants will make two blends together: one cocktail bitters and one digestive bitters.

Before cocktails were fancy and full of nonsense, they were medicine, and we’ll learn how bitters support digestion, calm the stomach, and bring your belly back online. Everyone will take home their samples, recipes, and the knowledge to keep the bitter magic going in your kitchen or home bar.

Community Instructor: Lily Kunning

Fire Cider: Spicy Roots and Kitchen Resistance

Learn the fascinating story behind the popular herbal concoction called Fire Cider as you craft your own 16-ounce jar of this fiery formula to take home and infuse. Participants will also receive recipes and explore variations, so everyone can keep the tradition alive in their own way.

Fire Cider is more than just a punchy vinegar tonic. It’s part immune support, part digestive aid, and part herbal folk hero. We’ll explore the fascinating story behind this fiery formula and how it became a symbol of preserving herbal traditions while learning best practices for making your own at home, including what to put in it, how to balance the heat, and how to use it when cold season hits.

Community Instructor: Lily Kunning

Make Your Own Harvest Wreath

Celebrate the harvest season by creating a beautiful wreath using seed heads, dried flowers, herbs, and other wild plant cuttings. You’ll be surprised how much beauty can come from the plants growing in our backyards and gardens!

Wreaths will be 100% biodegradable, using twine instead of wreath wire. All supplies are included. Participants will complete one wreath during class. Finished wreaths will be approximately 12 inches in diameter. The class will be led by 577 Organic Garden Horticulturist Samantha Day, using many of the materials harvested from the gardens at 577.

577 Staff Instructor: Samantha Day

Pressed Flower Pumpkins

Decorate beautiful autumn pumpkins without the mess of carving! In this creative, hands-on workshop, you’ll use pressed flowers and foliage grown at River Bend Homestead to transform simple pumpkins into works of seasonal art.

Participants will arrange their blooms and greenery on each pumpkin, securing them with an all-natural adhesive that enhances the natural beauty. You’ll learn simple tips for composition and preservation so your creations will last well through the season. Everyone will leave with a pair of unique, handcrafted pumpkins—perfect for displaying as festive décor or gifting to someone special.

Community Instructor: Becca Mathews

Composting 101

Whether you have a garden, want healthier soil, or are simply looking for a better way to handle food scraps and yard waste, discover the magic of composting! Learn how everyday organic materials can be transformed into a beneficial resource for your garden and the environment.

Don’t have a place to compost where you live? We’ll also explore creative alternatives and local opportunities for keeping food scraps and yard waste out of the landfill while still making the magic happen. If you’d like to leave class with the proverbial recipe for the potion AND the magic wand, composting kits will be available for purchase the day of class with everything you need to get started at home.

Class Note: Registration for this one-hour class is just $10. Compost bin kits are available to purchase as an optional add-on for $60 when registering. There will be a limited number of compost bin kits available for purchase during class as well. Payment may be made by debit or credit card, check, or exact cash.

Community Instructor: Lauren Rush, City of Perrysburg, Natural Resources Manager; Zachary Nemec, Wood County Solid Waste Management District, Outreach and Program Planner

Make Your Own Woven Acorn

Create a one-of-a-kind woven acorn using natural materials, just in time for the autumn season. Beginning with a small gourd shell as the base, participants will learn a traditional coiling technique using longleaf pine needles to create the textured top of their acorn.

Along the way, learn the basics of pine needle coiling and how this technique can be used for future projects. Longleaf pine needles will be provided for class, but the same coiling method can also be practiced at home using suitable pine needles gathered from your own backyard.

577 Staff Instructor: Samantha Day

Basket Making: Foraging Basket

Celebrate the autumn season by creating a foraging basket from natural materials, many harvested right from the gardens and grounds at 577. We will use an English ivy rim and willow spokes to form the structure of the basket, with maypop vine and flat reed filling out the body.

The English ivy, willow, and maypop vine used for the project have been harvested from the grounds at 577, making these locally gathered materials part of the finished basket. Basic “straps” will be provided, but participants are encouraged to bring or make their own strap to personalize their basket.

577 Staff Instructor: Samantha Day

A Deep Dive into Dahlias: Tuber to Bloom

From tubers to blooms, explore the full growing cycle of a dahlia plant while getting hands-on with freshly dug tubers. Learn the best time to plant, how long to wait before digging them up, where and how to store them over the winter, and whether you can save the seeds. You’ll also discover ways to encourage your plants to produce more blooms throughout the growing season.

These colorful summer blooms draw the attention of gardeners of all skill levels, and you’ll leave class feeling more confident caring for your own dahlias, whether you have one plant or a hundred.

Each participant will receive one tuber to take home, along with instructions for storing it over the winter and replanting it in the spring. Gloves will be available to borrow, but participants are welcome to bring their favorite pair of gardening gloves.

Community Instructor: Becca Mathews

Honeybees 101

Explore the fascinating and complex world of honeybees, from their behaviors to their importance in nature. Whether you are toying with the idea of beekeeping, looking for simple ways you can help our local bee population, or just love Apis mellifera, participants will gain a better understanding of these amazing and vital creatures.

Learn about the diverse and interconnected workings of a honeybee hive, explore the lifecycle and jobs of bees, see what a year of natural beekeeping looks like, and leave inspired and ready to support bees in big and small ways.

Class Note: This class is the prerequisite class needed for Beekeeping 101 classes at 577.

Community Instructor: Sara Grunberg