Ira Wallace | Mother Earth News FAIR

Ira Wallace is on the board of the Organic Seed Alliance and is a worker/owner of the cooperatively managed Southern Exposure Seed Exchange, where she coordinates variety selection and new seed grower contracts. Southern Exposure helps people keep control of their food supply through seed saving and sustainable gardening. Books by This Speaker: Vegetable Gardening in the Southeast

Ira will be speaking at the Pennsylvania, Kansas, Texas, North Carolina, Maryland, Oregon Fairs

Workshops

Check It Out!

Sun Growing Common and Uncommon Greens for Summer Salads and More

Salad greens are some of the most satisfying plants a gardener can grow. What else can you sow a little of in a bare patch and start harvesting just four weeks later? If you've mastered the basic greens (such as romaine, leaf lettuces, and spinach) and you're looking for something a little different, or if your salad patch looks a little peaked in mid-summer, Ira Wallace has a few adventurous ideas for you as well as tips, varieties, and timing to keep the ordinary greens coming. Learn about 10 out-of-the-ordinary greens to try this year, including some that bridge the mid-summer gap between the cool, prolific spring and fall salad seasons.

Organic Gardening

Available In:

North Carolina, Sunday 1:00-1:30 p.m., Mother Earth Living Stage

Maryland, Sunday 1:00-1:30 p.m., Heirloom Gardener Stage

Hands-on: Seed-Cleaning Techniques and Tips

Ira Wallace will shhow how to clean seeds you’ve harvested in your garden for good germination rates and shelf life. This workshop focuses on the threshing, winnowing, and screening of seeds that mature in dry pods or seedheads (such as beans, okra, and lettuce), and participants can try their own hand at winnowing. Wallace also briefly touches on the fermentation of seeds that mature wet. These methods are applicable to seeds of flowers and herbs, as well as vegetables. Take home handouts and seed samples. Note: An extra pass is required for this workshop. Space is limited, get your passes today

Modern Homesteading Organic Gardening Hands On

Available In:

Maryland, Saturday 11:30-12:30 p.m., Hands-On Demonstrations

Growing Great Garlic and Perennial Onions

Learn about heirloom garlic and perennial onion varieties, from planting to cultivation and harvesting at home. Ira Wallace covers soil preparation, weed control, and disease prevention, as well as curing and storage requirements. Add these culinary essentials to your garden!

Organic Gardening Real Foods

Available In:

Pennsylvania, Friday 12:30-1:30 p.m., Heirloom Gardener Stage

Texas, Sunday 11:30-12:30 p.m., Heirloom Gardener Stage

North Carolina, Sunday 3:30-4:30 p.m., Heirloom Gardener Stage

Oregon, Sunday 10:00-11:00 a.m., Heirloom Gardener Stage

Grow More, Work Less: Expert tips for your vegetable garden

Simple tips and techniques for adding self-sowing annual, perennial, and biennial vegetables to your garden. Learn how to save time and money in your edible landscape, permaculture beds, or any vegetable garden.

Organic Gardening

Available In:

North Carolina, Saturday 5:00-6:00 p.m., Homestead Hustle Stage

Maryland, Sunday 10:00-11:00 a.m., Heirloom Gardener Stage

Garlic, Onions, Shallots, Perennial Onions, and Leeks: Choosing the right fall-planted alliums for your garden!

Fall is the perfect time to plant garlic, shallots, perennial onions, and leeks. Learn about what distinguishes the different alliums, uncommon and everyday. Look at samples and leave with a sample of something new and fun to plant in your garden this fall. Ira Wallace curates the Heirloom Allium collection at Southern Exposure Seed Exchange.

Organic Gardening

Available In:

Kansas, Sunday 10:00-11:00 a.m., Heirloom Gardener Stage

Maryland, Saturday 2:00-3:00 p.m., Heirloom Gardener Stage

Extending the Harvest: Creating a four-season garden

Learn how to plan, create, and produce garden bounty all year. This workshop focuses on the all-season garden, including in-depth succession planting, planting summer crops for a fall garden, and fruit planting for late winter.

Modern Homesteading Organic Gardening

Available In:

Pennsylvania, Sunday 10:00-11:00 a.m., Heirloom Gardener Stage

Kansas, Saturday 2:00-3:00 p.m., Heirloom Gardener Stage

Texas, Saturday 5:00-6:00 p.m., Heirloom Gardener Stage

Oregon, Saturday 2:00-3:00 p.m., Heirloom Gardener Stage

Beyond the Basics: Growing common and uncommon greens for exciting salads, braising greens, and more all year

Fresh-picked salad greens are among the most rewarding vegetables a gardener can grow. Ira Wallace still grows a variety of lettuces year-round in her garden, but it's the unusual greens that add so much diversity in taste, color, and texture. Let Wallace introduce you to some extraordinary greens and give you a few tips on timing and technique for stretching your salad season and livening up your braising pan, as well as adding excitement to your salad bowl in every season.

Organic Gardening

Available In:

Pennsylvania, Sunday 1:00-1:30 p.m., Heirloom Gardener Stage

Kansas, Sunday 1:00-1:30 p.m., Heirloom Gardener Stage

Oregon, Sunday 1:00-1:30 p.m., Heirloom Gardener Stage