From Sustainable Jersey:
On Saturday, October 3 from 2:00 to 4:00 pm, the green teams of Maplewood, South Orange and Millburn will be hosting a gardening workshop and party at the Rent Party garden located at the Elks Lodge on 220 Prospect Street in South Orange across from Our Lady of Sorrows church.
“Local experts will be on hand to share what you need to do now to prepare your yard/garden for spring. Participants will learn about yard detoxing, soil-testing, composting, native plants, drip-irrigation, rain gardens and more,” said Kathleen Leventhal, deputy mayor of Maplewood Township and Maplewood Green Team member. To jump start sustainable gardening and yard care, the event will include a free drawing for giveaways that include up to ten Wizard Dueling Tumbler backyard composters, soil-testing kits, bulbs and a free yard/garden consultation.
The event will also feature a social hour. Participants can kick back at the Elks Lodge after learning about healthy and sustainable yard care; a cash bar will be available.
The event serves as the launch of a new program called re:Yard developed by the green teams. “The intent is to make it easier for residents to care for their yards sustainably,” said Walter Clarke, South Orange Village Trustee, gardener and a member of the organizing committee.
Re:Yard is a community program that recognizes lawns, gardens and yards for being sustainable and reducing many of environmental impacts from standard yard care. To receive re:Yard certification, a yard earns points by satisfying requirements from credits within the re:Yard guidelines. As a yard accumulates enough points, the owner achieves different levels of certification. The program includes 31 credits covering topics such as water efficiency, sustainable materials, composting and native plants. The participant chooses the credits that best fit their individual yards.
For more information on Saturday’s event, visit: https://www.reyard.org/newsevents/
This program was made possible through a Sustainable Jersey Small Grant funded by the PSEG Foundation that Maplewood Township received in March 2013.
