Zoom online meetings

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Southeast Alaska Traditional Plants Summit and Celebration goes online on Oct. 1-3

The Southeast Alaska Traditional Plants Summit and Celebration will take place on Oct. 1-3 using Zoom online meetings. There will be presentations from 1-4 p.m. each day, a plant talk meet-and greet from 4-5 p.m., and interactive discussions from 6:30-8:30 p.m.

This event is open to elders, youth, harvesters, and interested community members. It is a virtual gathering to bring together Alaska Native plant harvesters from around Southeast Alaska to learn, appreciate, and network with each other to celebrate traditional edible and medicinal plants, and to discuss and share respectful harvesting guidelines, protocols, and best practices to share with their communities. The summit will also feature plant videos and a food sovereignty showcase of projects from around Southeast Alaska.

The event will use Zoom, but people can call in by telephone, if desired. Registration is required. There is no cost to join. Here is the link to register, https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcrdeqoqDorGNGTDAXMAApAttDZdC99S-c0. To access a draft schedule, click this link.

This event is being organized by the Sustainable Southeast Partnership, the Southeast Alaska Watershed Coalition, Spruce Root, Kaasei Training and Consulting, and Planet Alaska, with support from the Native American Agriculture Fund (NAAF). Special thanks to Haa Tóo Yéi Yatee culture camp and Huna Heritage Foundation.

We are thankful to our respectful harvesting working group for helping plan this event and draft a white paper of respectful harvesting guidelines for Southeast Alaska, based on the work of the Kayaaní Commission and harvesters from around Southeast Alaska. These guidelines will be sent to all registered participants to be discussed at the last evening session. For questions, please contact Jennifer Nu at jennifer@sawcak.org

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Sitka Kitch to offer two virtual classes with Sarah Lewis

Learn how to make sauerkraut and fermented pickles, and how to cook with canned and smoked salmon during two online classes with Sarah Lewis through the Sitka Kitch. The sauerkraut class takes place from 1-3 p.m. on Saturday, July 25, and the salmon class is from 1-4 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 8, using Zoom online meetings (note, a class link will emailed to you after you register).

These online classes are the first hosted by the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen shut down in March due to the coronavirus/pandemic. Other online classes and an online fundraiser/Indian foods meal will be announced soon.

Class details are as follows (click class titles for registration links):

  • Making Sauerkraut and Fermented Pickles, 1-3 p.m. on Saturday July 25 — Sauerkraut, kimchi, and many other lacto-fermented vegetables can be easily made at home. In this class you will make sauerkraut and mixed vegetable pickles and you will learn techniques that can be easily used to make whatever probiotic pickles your heart (and gut) desires.
  • Cooking with Canned and Smoked Salmon, 1-4 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 8 — Have you canned salmon and aren’t sure what to do with it now? Have you received generous gifts of canned salmon and want to know whether it’s safe or how to cook it up? Would you like to cook recipes with your smoked salmon? This is the class for you. In this hands-on, kitchen-based class you will learn how to make several tasty recipes with canned and smoked salmon. For all experience levels.

Sarah Lewis, UAF Cooperative Extension Service Agent for Southeast Alaska, is making recipes in her home kitchen and would love for you to join her. The goal of these workshops is for participants to interact with Sarah and each other while cooking together; asking questions, seeing what others are making, and actively learning new skills (or brushing up on existing ones). The workshops will be small (a max of 12 participants per class) and will not be recorded (so you can feel free to turn on your camera, and even stay in your PJs… Sarah’s Extension Kitchen is a judgment-free zone).

Before class, students will receive a delivery of the ingredients to Sitka residents (please submit your home address when you register), as well as a list of supplies and equipment to have on hand. These classes will be offered via Zoom. Registration closes the Thursday evening before the class.

The registration deadline for the sauerkraut class is 11:30 p.m. on Thursday, July 23, and the registration deadline for the salmon class is 11:30 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 6. Space is limited, so register early to secure your place in the classes. The classes cost $20, which is half of our usual class fee. This is part of our new all-inclusive fee system (you no longer have to pay a class fee to register, then a separate food/supply fee). You can register and pre-pay using credit/debit cards or PayPal on our EventSmart page, http://sitkakitch.eventsmart.com (click on class title). For those wanting to pre-pay with cash or check, please call Chandler O’Connell or Clarice Johnson at Sitka Conservation Society (747-7509) to arrange a payment.

Current (paid) members of the Sitka Food Co-Op are now able to attend the online classes for $10 each (the co-op will cover the other $10 of your class fee). Please use the Sitka Food Co-Op ticket when you register and send an email to sitkafoodcoop@gmail.com letting them know you’re in the class. (NOTE, Only one person per Co-op household may use the Co-op discount per class. Please name that person when you register so the name can be checked against the Co-op membership list.)

For more information about the class, contact Jasmine Shaw at 747-9440. We do offer one potential scholarship spot per class for people with limited incomes, so long as we have enough students registered to make the class happen. Contact Chandler at SCS for more details about the scholarship. This class is a fundraiser for the Sitka Kitch.

The Sitka Kitch also has a new class cancelation policy. If you register for a class, then find out you can’t attend, please email us at sitkakitch@sitkawild.org and we may be able to help fill your slot through our waiting list. If you cancel from the class at least five days in advance (eg, by Wednesday the week before for a Monday class), you are eligible for a partial refund of your class fee, minus $5 for processing (in this case, $15). If you need to cancel with less than five days advance notice, there is no refund.

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UAF Cooperative Extension Service to host series of virtual home food preservation classes

Sarah Lewis of the Juneau District Office of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service will teach a series of home food preservation classes over the next couple of months as part of its An Extension Kitchen program.

These classes cost $10 each and will be hosted using Zoom online meetings. The classes usually will take place on Saturday afternoons, and topics include canning everything from zucchini pickles to chili and turkey soup. You can register for the classes and see more detailed information about each class at https://bit.ly/extensionkitchenclasses.

The class schedule is as follows:

For more information, please contact Sarah at sarah.lewis@alaska.edu or Susie at susie.wilkie@alaska.edu.
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UAF Cooperative Extension Service to host Starting a Cottage Foods Business in Alaska as online webinar

Photo from Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation website page on Cottage Food Regulations, https://dec.alaska.gov/eh/fss/food/cottage-food/

Join Sarah Lewis of the Juneau District Office of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service as she hosts a free webinar from her kitchen about the basics of starting a home-based, cottage foods business in Alaska. The class is from 2-3:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 25, using Zoom online meetings.

This class includes an intro to Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation‘s cottage foods (aka, home-based foods) regulations and information about the “non-potentially hazardous” food preservation methods that are allowed: dehydration, boiling water-bath canning, and pickling. In addition, Sarah will emphasize the best food safety and sanitation methods to use in a cottage foods business, and how a cottage foods business can continue sales during this time of social distancing.

Upcoming online classes include:

Online registration is required for each class, and registration for the cottage foods business class can be accomplished by going to this link. For more information, contact the UAF Cooperative Extension Service in Juneau at (907) 523-3280 x1 or sarah.lewis@alaska.edu.

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Southeast Alaska Gardener Conference goes online from April 15 through May 8

Registration is open for the 2020 Southeast Alaska Gardener Conference, which takes place online using Zoom meetings this year. The conference is co-hosted by Southeast Alaska Master Gardeners Association the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service, and the USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service.

This virtual conference brings together gardeners for two presentations by area garden experts on each of eight nights from 6-8 p.m. on Wednesdays and Fridays from April 15 through May 8. For a schedule, click the link below or go to https://www.seak-mastergardeners.org/index.html. The conference is free, but registration is required by going to this link and filling out the form.

Presentation topics include:

  • Wednesday, April 15, 6-6:45 p.m. — Patterns on the Land: Sustainable Landscape Design for Southeast Alaska, David Lendrum and Margaret Tharp, owners of Landscape Alaska
  • Wednesday, April 15, 7-7:45 p.m. — Growing Fruit Trees in High Tunnels, Rob Bishop of Alaska Apple Trees
  • Friday, April 17, 6-6:45 p.m. — Raised Beds, Ed Buyarski owner of Ed’s Edible Landscapes
  • Friday, April 17, 7-7:45 p.m. — Unique and Flavorful Rhubarb: Preliminary Research Results, ​David Love
  • Wednesday, April 22, 6-6:45 p.m. (Earth Day) — Panel Discussion: Growing Produce for Juneau a Worthy Endeavor a Fool’s Errand, Joe Orsi owner of Orsi Organic Produce (moderator), Bob Trousil, Sharon Fleming, Joel Boss, John Kraypek, Colin Peacock, Sarah Lewis
  • Wednesday, April 22, 7-7:45 p.m. (Earth Day) — Panel Discussion: Growing Crops “Undercover”: High Tunnel and Greenhouse Experiences, Joe Orsi (Moderator), Ed Buyarski, David Love, Will Murray and Eli Wray
  • Friday, April 24, 6-6:45 p.m. — All About the Basil (and Other Fabulous Herbs), Sarah Lewis-UAF/CEST
  • Friday, April 24, 7-7:45 p.m. — Climate Trends Affecting Gardeners; The Science and Mystique of Weather Forecasting in Southeast Alaska, NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE /NOAA
  • Wednesday, April 29, 6-6:45 p.m. — Integrated Weed Management for the Master Gardener, Geno Graziano
  • Wednesday, April 29, 7-7:45 p.m. — Yard and Garden Insects, Jessie Moan
  • Friday, May 1, 6-6:45 p.m. — Earth Worms-Garden Good Guys or Eco Invaders, Darren Snyder
  • Friday, May 1, 7-7:45 p.m. — Gardening for Pollinators-The Birds, The Bees and The Beetles, Deb Rudis
  • Wednesday, May 6, 6-6:45 p.m. — New and Exciting, Classic and Applicable, Fascinating Developments in the World of Horticulture, Dave Lendrum and Margaret Tharp, owners of Landscape Alaska
  • Wednesday, May 6, 7-7:45 p.m. — Exploring the World for Hardy Rhododendron, Steve Hootman
  • Friday, May 8, 6-6:45 p.m. — The Wow Factor; Beyond being Pretty! Growing and Using Edible Flowers, Patricia Hartman
  • Friday, May 8, 7-7:45 p.m. — Grow Your Own Soil, Samia Savell

Click below for a description of the presentations and presenter biographies.

• FINAL 2020 Southeast Alaska Gardener Conference presentations