News & Events
* UPCOMING *
Maple sugaring: Agricultural Hall and the Boston Nature Center will co-host our annual Maple Sugaring Demonstration at the Nature Center (500 Walk Hill St., Mattapan) on Sat., Feb. 17 & again on March 2.
Sugaring (tapping trees, collecting and boiling-down sap) begins in early February in eastern Massachusetts, but 'global weirding' has been pushing the start date earlier, faster. To that end, try to bike, walk, use public trans, or carpool to get to the Nature Center.
As for beekeeping, early Spring is all about ramping-up for the season ahead. If you're jus starting out, now is a perfect time to enroll in a bee school, and the Boston Area Beekeeping Association's 6-week+ bee school starts February 5th! Visit BABA's website to register; BostonBeekeepers.org
For upcoming Ag Hall workshops & happenings, check the Workshops calendar here.
Agricultural Hall?
In 1818, the Massachusetts Society for the Promotion of Agriculture built the original Agricultural Hall on Dighton Street in Brighton. It served as the hub of the Brighton Fair and Cattle Show, one of the earliest and largest such fairs in the country. In 1829, "a 17-pound turnip, a 19-pound radish, and a bough on which pears hung like a cluster of grapes were among the outstanding exhibits of that year." In 1844 the building was moved to its present location at the corner of Chestnut Hill Avenue and Washington Street.
Dr. William P. Marchione &
The Bostonian Society
Agricultural Hall
245 Amory Street
Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
617-388-7378 / e-mail Ag Hall
Open daily by appt. Calling ahead is always a good idea.
New Block
Cheesemaking classes disappeared in 2020, but we're determined to bring them back virtually or, preferably, in-person. Stay tuned...
In the meantime...
Cheesemaking
...Agricultural Hall has vegetable rennet and citric acid on hand for making fresh mozzarella and ricotta cheeses, as well as simple farm cheeses.
Hard and cream cheeses are more complex and require special cultures, tools and aging regimens. Our first hard cheese cheesemaking class was held on 3/19/17, and it was fantastic! For over two hours Harold Lieberman made a Manchego, and for two hours we watched (and sometimes helped) the magic unfold as milk made it's leap toward immortality!
Harold returned in November to show us how to make Gouda. In the Spring of 2018, we began offering participants to use cheese presses to make a Manchego. Classes have been suspended since Spring 2020.
If there is a cheese you would like to learn how to make, or if you simply want to learn how to make any cheese, send me an email at Bill(at)AgHall.com.
Canning
Jamaica Plain is full of experienced canners, several of whom offer workshops from time to time. I'll send announcements or Tweet if I see one coming up. In the meantime, if you have canning needs (glassware and more), please give us a call. There aren't that many canning supplies at Ag Hall, but I may be able to find you coupons or order the products you need for less.
If you would like to stay in touch, click over to the 'Contact Us' page.