Community Outreach
The Community Council of the Georgia Mountain Research and Education Center provides monthly adult education programs as well as environmental education programs for children and youth in Fannin, Union and Towns counties in Georgia, as well as Cherokee and Clay counties in North Carolina.
Tours of the Community Council's Ethnobotanic Gardens are on Mondays, May through September, with the exception of national holidays.
For more information and to learn how to be involved, please contact Ray Covington at raycovington@uga.edu or (706) 745-2655.
Programs
Adult Outreach Program
The Outreach Committee of the Community Council plans seminars and workshops for adults from the surrounding communities. Seminars and workshops are held at the Georgia Mountain Research and Education Center and are offered free or at low cost to the public. Speakers are experts in their field with the ability to convey this knowledge to their audience. The University of Georgia researchers, faculty and authorities from other agencies have been included in the presentations.
Regular seminars do not require registration, but are limited to the first one hundred in attendance. Seminars are typically under two hours in duration. If you would like to receive seminar notices by email, send your online request, name and phone number to gmrec@uga.edu.
Johnny Appleseed
Johnny Appleseed is a program designed for elementary school-aged students that initiates learning outside of the classroom. The students visit the REC to learn about apple production and the infamous Johnny Appleseed. For more information, check out this episode of the Farm Monitor or this episode of Mountain Trails by Windstream TV.
Resources
For over 20 years we have hosted thousands of children for our annual Johnny Appleseed program. It marks the transition towards fall and allows the team at GMREC and our wonderful volunteers the opportunity to share our passion. While we cannot meet in person during these times, please enjoy and use the resources below to learn more about apple production.
A Visit With Johnny Appleseed - He comes out of the orchard to tell his story of planting orchards.
Storytime in the Orchard with retired educator Carolyn G.
In the Bee Hive - Pollinators are crucial for apples. This video takes you inside the hive here at GMREC.
GMREC Apple Production - The GMREC team talks about apple production basics.
Teacher Resources (pdf) - History of Johnny Appleseed, Activity Sheets, and more.
