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News & Events


Upcoming Events


Garden 101 Workshop

Saturday, May 10, 2025
12:00 am
170 Good Counsel Dr, Mankato, MN 56001
Mankato, AL 56001
US

Learn the skills you need to grow a successful garden this year! Whether you're a beginner or want to improve your skills, this is the workshop for you!

Time TBD, more details to come.

Community Farm Opener

Saturday, May 24, 2025
12:00 am
20612 Indian Lake Rd, Mankato, MN 56001
Mankato, AL 56001
US

Join us at the Blue Earth County Community Farm to celebrate the arrival of spring! Look forward to spring related activities, games, and snacks! Fun for the whole family and FREE!

Time TBD, more details to come.

Container Gardening Workshop

Saturday, June 14, 2025
12:00 am
170 Good Counsel Dr, Mankato, MN 56001
Mankato, AL 56001
US

Want to learn how to garden but don't have the yard space? You can still grow food! Learn how to have a successful garden out of pots and containers, including herbs, vegetables and flowers.

Time TBD, more details to come.

Summer Solstice Celebration

Friday, June 20, 2025
12:00 am
170 Good Counsel Dr, Mankato, MN 56001
Mankato, AL 56001
US

Join us as we celebrate the longest day of the year! There will be games, activities, and live performances! Bring a picnic and a friend as we celebrate the light.

Time TBD, more details to come.

Vegetable Dehydration Workshop

Saturday, July 26, 2025
12:00 am
170 Good Counsel Dr, Mankato, MN 56001
Mankato, AL 56001
US

Want to learn how to preserve your garden harvest? Dehydration is a great method! Learn how to get started and connect with others wanting to learn to preserve their food.

Time TBD, more details to come.

Native Pollinator Garden Workshop

Saturday, August 23, 2025
12:00 am
170 Good Counsel Dr, Mankato, MN 56001
Mankato, AL 56001
US

Support pollinators by learning how to grow native Minnesota wildflowers!

Time TBD, more details to come.

Canning 101 workshop

Saturday, August 30, 2025
12:00 am

Want to learn to preserve your garden harvest? Canning your food is a great way to preserve that summer freshness all year! Get connected with others who want to preserve food and learn the basics on how to get started with canning.

Time TBD, more details to come.

Community Farm Closer Event

Saturday, October 11, 2025
12:00 am
20612 Indian Lake Rd, Mankato, MN 56001
Mankato, AL 56001
US

Join us to celebrate the end of the growing season at the farm! There will be fall related games and activities and refreshments. Bring the whole family, its FREE!

Time TBD, more details to come

20th Annual Earth Conference

Saturday, November 1, 2025
12:00 am
620 West, S Rd, Mankato, MN 56001
Mankato, MN 56001
US

Join us for the 20th Annual Earth Conference!

Time TBD, more details to come.

Winter Solstice Celebration

Sunday, December 21, 2025
12:00 am
170 Good Counsel Dr, Mankato, MN 56001
Mankato, AL 56001
US

Join us as we celebrate the shortest day of the year and welcome back the light with community reflection and bonfires.

Time TBD, more details to come.


LEC News and Updates


Friends of the Living Earth,

Living Earth Center was founded on the values of bringing people from all backgrounds and traditions together to share common ground, grow food, and cultivate connection. During these times that feel vulnerable and uncertain, our adherence to those values remains steadfast and unwavering. We have always been and will always be a place where anyone can come, feel welcome, be empowered to grow good things and be united in common awe of the natural world.

British author Susan Cooper originally wrote her poem, The Shortest Day, as a performance poem that was part of The Cambridge Christmas Revels in the 1970's. It has endured the test of time, and in 2019 was published as a stand alone book with illustrations by award winning author-illustrator Carson Ellis.

The poem captures the beauty, wonder, and tradition of the winter solstice and Ellis' illustrations give this book a timeless quality. From depictions of ancient dance rituals to a modern day family gathered around their fireplace, the illustrations add a layer of depth to Cooper's classic poem...

As the name would imply, what began in the spring with the planting of seeds, has concluded in the fall with the eating of sauce. The inaugural year for LEC's Seed to Sauce Program wrapped up on November 4th as families from Jefferson Elementary gathered for a pasta dinner where the sauce included tomatoes that the students had started from seed back in May.

LEC Program Manager Cora Uyigue was on hand to talk a little about the Seed to Sauce program and to share wildflower seeds saved from local area prairies...