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Outdoor Education
in The Farms: An Allerton Folk School
Flower Arranging Workshop
with Maggie Taylor
Flower Arranging Worshop
Led by: Maggie Taylor, Delight Flower Farm LLC
Tuesday, May 7, 2024
6:00 - 7:30 pm
Mansion Dining Room
Registration Deadline: April 30, 2024
Skill level: Beginner
Registration fee: $70/person
Course Description
Delight Flower Farm welcomes you to Allerton to learn how to arrange flowers like a pro. Gather with friends & friendly folks to learn about a variety of spring flowers and the bouquet-making elements, including tulips, ranunculus, snap dragons and more. Participants will get to play with fresh cut flowers grown on Delight Flower Farm. Vases are included so participants can design their own bouquet to take home or gift to someone.
About the Instructor
Maggie Taylor, DFF farm owner has been farming flowers and leading workshops since 2011. Trained as an artist, she loves turning natural materials into objects of joy, and empowering others to do it too. Depending on the time of year she may be teaching about fresh flowers or winter evergreen wreaths. Maggie's teaching style is accessible, informative, encouraging and often humorous! Other capable farm crew members assist in teaching large groups.
The Magic of Light and Cyanotype Photography
with Crystal Hartman
Experience Level: Beginner
Learn about cyanotype, one of the oldest known photo processes, at The Magic of Light and Cyanotype Photography from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Saturday, May 18 in the Greenhouse Auditorium. Originally used to document botanical specimens, cyanotypes are made by treating a surface – paper or cloth – with iron salts which then react to ultraviolet light.
Prior to the workshop, paper will be pre-coated with the cyanotype chemistry so it will be dry and ready to go. Participants will them be guided through a fun, straightforward process of creating beautiful prints while receiving a bit of history from instructor Crystal Hartman on the process and the magic of light. You will practice observing nature and create compositions inspired by what is seen.
Those taking part will create several prints and experiment with various timings and placements as they experience camera-less photography and the joy of recording the beauty of nature.
$40/person. Register by May 11. All sales are final.
If you will need disability-related accommodations to participate, please email owarren@illinois.edu.
About the instructor
Crystal Hartman is an artist and jewelry designer whose work explores interconnectivity through lines and layers. Utilizing traditional and experimental practices in metalsmithing, drawing and artists books, she explores possibilities of harmonious living to advocate for the natural world.
Hartman shows her work in galleries and public art spaces across the United States and abroad. As an artist-in-residence at Delight Flower Farm in Champaign, she developed a series of cyanotypes celebrating the native plants and flowers of Eastern Illinois. She works on ecological principles through local land-based sources and through community.
Foraging Walk
with Michael Baker
Former Allerton In-Residence naturalist Michael Baker will return to the Park to conduct a Foraging Walk from 3 to 4 p.m. Saturday, May 18. The meeting place will be announced later.
Baker, a professional forager, will give demonstrations of the current uses of edible plants and mushrooms during the walk. Participants will be introduced to a variety of wild edible plants and mushrooms and be instructed on which plants to avoid.
$25/person (all ages). Register here by May 15. All sales are final.
If you will need disability-related accommodations to participate, please email Olivia Bunting at owarren@illinois.edu.
About the instructor
Michael Baker is a professional foraging educator and podcaster in the Chicago suburbs. His show, the Wild Edible World podcast, seeks to educate anyone who will listen on edible plants and fungi, what they taste like, and where you can find them. He is also a co-founder of Remnant Roots non-profit which seeks to adopt vacant lots and turn them into native plant sanctuaries.
About The Farms
The Farms: An Allerton Folk School, offers classes, workshops, and gatherings focusing on art, wellness, outdoor education, storytelling, and science. All experiences value hands-on, experiential teaching and learning, and are facilitated by and for the members of the community.
Will run
Intro to Beekeeping
with Maggie Wachter
Experience Level: Beginner
Learn about honey bees, one of the most unusual insects in the world, at Intro to Beekeeping from 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday, May 19 in The Studio. Bees can survive under diverse climate conditions and are one of the few insects that produce food for humans. And such a food! Keeping honey bees happy and healthy is essential.
In this class taught by Maggie Wachter, learn the basics of starting a new hive: how to get bees, the honey bee life cycle, nutrition, equipment and what to do about mites. Would-be beekeepers and others with a lively interest in nature are welcome.
$20/person. Register by May 16. All sales are final.
If you will need disability-related accommodations to participate, please email Olivia Bunting at owarren@illinois.edu.
About the instructor
When Maggie Wachter began her social work degree at the University of Illinois in 2008, she had no idea that she would become a beekeeper. As for honey, she kept a single jar in the back of her kitchen cabinet for recipes. Today she is a master beekeeper who never eats sugar.
Maggie received her first hive as a gift in 2008. By 2010, she was enrolled in the Master Beekeeper course at the University of Florida. From there, things happened quickly to turn her life around. In 2012, she started teaching beekeeping for Parkland Community Education and today she is a beekeeping teacher, honey judge, mead maker and master beekeeper.
Along the way, she met fellow beekeeper Steve Halfar. Together, they pollinate apple orchards, chase black locust honey and keep their 50-odd hives thriving. They have participated in honeybee research at the U of I and USDA.
During the summer, you can find Maggie and Steve selling honey at the Urbana Market at the Square on the first Saturday of every month. They are thrilled to be at Allerton to share their enthusiasm for nature and honey bees with others.
Trail Manners and Safety for Hiking with Your Dog
with Jenna Tompkins
Experience Level: Beginner
Learn the guidelines for bringing your dog to a public park in Trail Manners and Safety for Hiking with Your Dog presented by Willow Branch Doggie Daycare from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, May 24 in the Meadow Picnic Area.
In this interactive class, dog owners* will learn the basics of trail safety and manners for dogs. At Allerton and elsewhere, pets are expected to follow guidelines to not disturb wildlife or encroach on the lives of others. Many of these manners are based on the National Park Service’s BARK Ranger Program: “Bag your pet’s waste, Always leash you pet, Respect wildlife, Know where you can go.” In this class, instructor Jenna Tompkins will also cover safety, what to bring on walks, emergency supplies and common toxins and hazards that should be avoided on the trails.
$20/person. Register by May 20. All sales are final.
*NOTE: For safety reasons, pets should NOT be brought to this session.
If you will need disability-related accommodations to participate, please email owarren@illinois.edu.
About the instructor
Jenna Tompkins has been a dog trainer for several years, training more than 300 dogs. She is currently the Training Program Director at Willow Branch Kennel. She is certified through the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers (CPDT-KA), and is a AKC certified Canine Good Citizen Evaluator, a FITDOG instructor and a member of the Association for Professional Dog Trainers (APDT).
Bee Hive Observation (full series)
with Maggie Wachter
Join us on a bi-monthly basis as we observe how honey bees manage hive activity during the summer at Bee Hive Observation on June 2 & 15, July 7 & 21 and Aug. 4.* Classes will include an overview of seasonal influences, followed by a peek inside the hives to observe honey bees at work. Traditional and Flow Hives will be discussed.
Participants should wear long sleeves and pants, loose-fitting garments and no open shoes. You should also bring a protective bee veil and unscented rubber gloves.
$90/person for the entire series or $20/class. Register here for the entire series by May 31 or two days before each individual class.* All sales are final.
If you will need disability-related accommodations to participate, please email Olivia Bunting at owarren@illinois.edu.
*Individual class links:
— Sunday, June 2, 1-3 p.m. in The Studio
— Saturday, June 15, 2:30-4:30 p.m. in The Studio
— Sunday, July 7: 1-3 p.m. in the Greenhouse Auditorium
— Sunday, July 21, 1-3 p.m. in The Studio
— Sunday, Aug. 4, 1-3 p.m. in The Studio
About the instructor
When Maggie Wachter began her social work degree at the University of Illinois in 2008, she had no idea that she would become a beekeeper. As for honey, she kept a single jar in the back of her kitchen cabinet for recipes. Today she is a master beekeeper who never eats sugar.
Maggie received her first hive as a gift in 2008. By 2010, she was enrolled in the Master Beekeeper course at the University of Florida. From there, things happened quickly to turn her life around. In 2012, she started teaching beekeeping for Parkland Community Education and today she is a beekeeping teacher, honey judge, mead maker and master beekeeper.
She has also participated in honeybee research at the University of Illinois and the USDA.
About The Farms
The Farms: An Allerton Folk School, offers classes, workshops, and gatherings focusing on art, wellness, outdoor education, storytelling, and science. All experiences value hands-on, experiential teaching and learning, and are facilitated by and for the members of the community.
See the complete summer session here.
Bee Hive Observation 6/2
with Maggie Wachter
Join us on a bi-monthly basis as we observe how honey bees manage hive activity during the summer at Bee Hive Observation on June 2 & 15, July 7 & 21 and Aug. 4.* Classes will include an overview of seasonal influences, followed by a peek inside the hives to observe honey bees at work. Traditional and Flow Hives will be discussed.
Participants should wear long sleeves and pants, loose-fitting garments and no open shoes. You should also bring a protective bee veil and unscented rubber gloves.
$90/person for the entire series or $20/class. Register here for the entire series by May 31 or two days before each individual class.* All sales are final.
If you will need disability-related accommodations to participate, please email Olivia Bunting at owarren@illinois.edu.
— Sunday, June 2, 1-3 p.m. in The Studio
— Saturday, June 15, 2:30-4:30 p.m. in The Studio
— Sunday, July 7: 1-3 p.m. in the Greenhouse Auditorium
— Sunday, July 21, 1-3 p.m. in The Studio
— Sunday, Aug. 4, 1-3 p.m. in The Studio
About the instructor
When Maggie Wachter began her social work degree at the University of Illinois in 2008, she had no idea that she would become a beekeeper. As for honey, she kept a single jar in the back of her kitchen cabinet for recipes. Today she is a master beekeeper who never eats sugar.
Maggie received her first hive as a gift in 2008. By 2010, she was enrolled in the Master Beekeeper course at the University of Florida. From there, things happened quickly to turn her life around. In 2012, she started teaching beekeeping for Parkland Community Education and today she is a beekeeping teacher, honey judge, mead maker and master beekeeper.
She has also participated in honeybee research at the University of Illinois and the USDA.
About The Farms
The Farms: An Allerton Folk School, offers classes, workshops, and gatherings focusing on art, wellness, outdoor education, storytelling, and science. All experiences value hands-on, experiential teaching and learning, and are facilitated by and for the members of the community.
See the complete summer session here.
Backpacking for Beginners
with Kelly Tang
Experience Level: Beginner
Experience the outdoors in a new and exciting way at Backpacking for Beginners from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Saturday, June 22 in The Studio and outdoors.
Backpacking is an extremely rewarding activity that requires skill, knowledge, preparation and physical conditioning. In this class, Kelly Tang will cover what equipment to use, route planning, safety and more. You will emerge from this session with the knowledge and desire to start your backpacking journey. This class will include an outdoor, hands-on portion (weather permitting).
$75/person. Register by June 15. All sales are final.
If you will need disability-related accommodations to participate, please email owarren@illinois.edu.
About the instructor
Growing up in Chicago, Kelly Tang lacked outdoor experiences as a youth. But as an adult, she embarked on a journey to explore outdoor recreation. A transformative camping experience in the Boundary Waters ignited her passion for camping and backpacking, leading her to seek out pristine and untouched natural settings.