Free gardening classes offered in March

Every year, Fulton County Cooperative Extension extols the benefits of gardening to residents wanting to plant a garden or start a compost pile.  Aside from improving our environment and providing a fresh source of flowers, fruit and vegetables, many overlook the other benefits that gardening provides.

GARDENING IS A GOOD WORKOUT

The physical benefits of gardening are often discounted because people don’t think of it as “real” exercise. But, gardening offers the same benefits as other forms of exercise. A person can burn as many calories in 45 minutes of gardening as they can in 30 minutes of aerobics. Depending on the task they are doing, they use many different muscle groups and increase flexibility and strength.

GARDENING IS AN EXCELLENT STRESS REDUCER

Cold weather will soon be the primary forecast for local weather.  According to local weather experts, the month of January is the coldest month in the City of Atlanta and Fulton County.  Fulton County Cooperative Extension wants to encourage residents who use space heaters to keep their homes warm to pay close attention to safety tips when using the equipment.

Residents should know that heating an entire home using space heaters alone is a safety hazard.  Most people are not aware war that space heaters should only be used as a back up for the main heating system of a home.  However, according to the Department of Energy, the unsafe use of electric space heaters are the cause of more than 25,000 residential fires, 300 deaths, and almost 6,000 emergency room visits per year. 

Cooperative Extension offers the following safety tips:

• when using space heaters be, sure to use newer models that shut off when tipped over
• if