Culpeper County resident Sheila Jackson, top, chats with participants in her ‘Growing Herbs for the Beginner’ workshop last Saturday at The Carver Center on U.S. 15 near Cedar Mountain. People smelled and sampled various herbs Jackson grows at Carver’s Agricultural Research Center, learning how they can become value-added products for their use or sale.
Jackson’s daughter, entrepreneur Kae Walker, bottom left, demonstrated how she makes health care products, such as lotions, soaps and scented sprays, in her home kitchen, relying on the plants grown at Carver.
The free presentations, hosted by Virginia State University’s small-farm outreach program, drew 45 people from the Culpeper region, Charlottesville, Richmond, Fredericksburg and Maryland.
Jackson will offer an herb garden tour later this spring.