Category Archives: News

OATHS’ Annual Art Adventure/Scarecrow in the Gardens

Posted on by

Montgomery’s Mayor Todd Strange will judge the Old Alabama Town Herb Society’s annual Art Adventure/Scarecrows in the Garden competition on Monday, September 26 at 10:00 am.  Installation of the Scarecrows will take place on Saturday, September 24th, at Old Alabama Town (Living Block area).

Rosa ParksAwards categories are Best in Show, 1st, 2nd, 3rd Place, and Honorable Mention.   The public is invited to attend.

Members of the Old Alabama Herb Society (OATHS) gather each year to create scarecrows for an annual display of Art Adventure/Scarecrow in the Gardens at Old Alabama Town (OAT).  The mayor’s office, local schools and Eat South have participated in the annual event. This year, OATHS are inviting local colleges’ art departments, and businesses to participate.

OATHS president, Duck Mara, said “We really want to expand participation in the annual event.  It’s a fun Fall event and an excellent way to get local businesses involved, and students to display their creativity to the many Old Alabama Town visitors from across the world, thus encouraging interest in the downtown Montgomery area.

scarecrowTherefore, if you are creative and are interested in participating in the Old Alabama Town Herbs Society’s (OATHS) annual Arts Adventure/Scarecrow in the Garden program, or in becoming a member of the OATHS, please contact Jean Szabo at (334) 277-6536 or Maxine Taylor for membership information at oathsblog@gmail.com. Please include Scarecrow Competition or Membership in your subject line. Also, for future events and information on OATHS, please like the OATHS Facebook page, or visit the OATHS blog at: http://www.oathsblog.com/

Thanks for a wonderful Herb Day!

Posted on by

Thank you all for making Herb Day 2016 a success!
The beautiful weather, interesting programs, variety of vendors, sponsors, music, art, plants, and attendees all contributed to the perfect day. Thanks again for your support and participation.

Patrick 8 y.o. at Herb Day 2016Patrick, 8 years old, had his own way of enjoying Herb Day!

One of our vendors said “Out of six festivals that we go to each year – this one is our favorite! It’s because of the beautiful park, the atmosphere, the variety of programs, activities and most of all it’s the people. Our sales here are better too!”

Enjoy this slideshow of photos from Herb Day.

About our Herb Day Speakers

Posted on by

About the Speakers

TiaTia Gonzalez 
9:30 a.m. “Growing and Using Turmeric – The Spice of Life”
Tia Gonzalez is the part-time Curator of Auburn University’s Medicinal Plant Garden, a part-time technician for the AU Department of Crops, Soils and Environmental Sciences, and a freelance garden designer.  She will talk about the research on turmeric cultivation underway at AU and on a few of the healthful values of the plant. Turmeric, a beautiful plant that is easy for gardeners to cultivate in middle and south Alabama, is an ingredient in curries.

Debbie BoutelierDebbie Boutelier 
11:00 a.m. “You’re Getting Warmer!  Naturally Hot Herbal Medicine”
Past president of the Herb Society of America, former Autauga County Extension Agent, and Alabama Master Gardener, Debbie Boutelier has studied medicinal uses of herbs for over 10 years and completed a three year intensive study of the medicinal aspects of herbs at the Appalachian Center of Natural Health.  She teaches nationally and gives many seminars on organic gardening, nutrition, the many aspects of herbs, and other garden-related topics.

jessinorwoodJessi Norwood 
12:30 p.m. “From South America to South of the Mason Dixon, Peppers in Culinary History”
Native Alabamian, Jessi Norwood has always loved spicy food and cooking.  It wasn’t until she tried homemade pepper jelly that she fell in love with this spicy condiment.  She began exploring how peppers enhance other ingredients’ flavors and how different types of peppers hit the tongue in different places.  Since then, she’s been hard at it growing a wild variety of peppers and pairing them with local produce.

April Program – Gardener’s Yoga

Posted on by

Old Alabama Town Herb Society Meeting
Tuesday, April 19, 6:00pm at the Loeb Center at Old Alabama Town

It’s a glorious spring day and you finally got your hands in the dirt.
It’s time for cleaning up the garden and flower beds, for getting new plants into the ground. Your hands and knees are sore and stiff – so are your neck and shoulders and your back is killing you.
You know the feeling? Then come learn and practice some easy yoga moves to limber up the joints and stretch your body back into shape. You’ll be ready to get back out there next the sun beckons.
Uschi, will show us the moves, she is a registered yoga instructor with the Yoga Alliance and has been teaching for a year.
Instead of potluck for the April OATHS meeting 4 members have volunteered to bring refreshments. They are Ryan Hoskins – Fruit Salad, Barbara Hightower – pretzels, and Ann Hamill – KeyLime pound cake.
yogaprog

In an update to this post, here are some shots of the gardeners doing a bit of yoga.

Mary Louise Garrett

Posted on by

Mary Louise was a dedicated member and a fixture of the Old Alabama Town Herb Society for approximately fifteen years. She contributed many ideas to the organization, served a term as secretary, chaired the Membership Committee for many years, as well as being a steadfast worker in the gardens. She was in charge of the Scent Garden for many years and being a lover of Roses she added many to the Garden. She reluctantly gave up chairing the Scent Garden to help us reestablish an Herb Garden at the Governor’s Mansion. She worked with Chef Jim Smith, the Chef at the Governor’s Mansion, to add culinary herbs for his use and persuaded him to present our herbal food demonstration at our 2013 Herb Day.

Mary Louise gave a lot to her community after retiring from a long and successful career as a social worker – her last professional position was Director of Social Work at Jackson Hospital. We also remember fondly that Mary Louise had a passion for Cajun Dance, a sight to behold. She volunteered with the international officers families and on occasion included her foreign friends in Herb Society activities. In addition to all this, she was a dedicated volunteer for Landmark events at Old Alabama Town.

Like the Roses she loved so much, Mary Louise could be prickly, and that, along with her humor we will sorely miss. Her dedication to the Old Alabama Town Herb Society will live long in our memories.

There will be a memorial Mass for Mary Louise on Thursday, April 14 at 6 p.m. at St. Bede’s Catholic Church, 3870 Atlanta Highway, followed by a reception in the Parish Hall.

Click here to link to her obituary in the Montgomery Advertiser.

marylouisecommendation

Garden Workday Help Needed

Posted on by

CAM01585Assistance is needed for this Saturday, Nov. 28th, 8am to noon. Our garden work day objectives are to remove the scarecrows and store them in the Carriage House loft and then tidy up the gardens. See you Saturday with working jeans and gloves on!

Sprinklers are working!

Posted on by

The sprinklers are working again! One important mission of the Old Alabama Town Herb Society is to maintain the herb gardens at Old Alabama Town. Jane McCarthy, Kayren Pittman and other members on the garden team met with plumbers to see that repairs were made to the sprinkler system in the herb gardens. The main culprit was damage from a tent stake, but it was time for some much needed maintenance and updates.
sprinklers in Judy's garden

sprinklers in Judy's garden

Remembering Malinda

Posted on by

On October 23, in a beautiful and heartwarming service conducted by St. Bede Catholic Church, Old Alabama Town Herb Society members said farewell to one of our beloved members, Malinda Barrera. Malinda was blessed with many talents and interests. Malinda and her mother, Audrey Mara, were active members in the Old Alabama Town Herb Society and participated in creating scarecrows for the herb gardens and the annual Herb Day Event. Malinda’s talents helped make the Herb Day Children’s activities successful and fun. She will be remembered for her fun-loving attitude and enthusiasm. Her parents, Duane and Audrey, her children, Tabitha and Omar and her family are in our thoughts and prayers.

Malinda and her mom.

Malinda and her mom.

Lady Arrow, her clown persona

Lady Arrow at Herb Day.

Lady Arrow, Malinda's clown persona.

Lady Arrow, Malinda’s clown persona.