TA News

By Kaydence Rich

The Thetford Academy Environmental Studies and Outdoor Education class visited Mike Hebb at his home in Strafford, Vermont on September 26th. Mike is a Thetford Academy alumnus, class of 64’ and very knowledgeable about a variety of topics. We visited his house to see how he cares for his apple trees, to look at his root cellar where he stores his food, to see his moss collection and to see his homemade sawmill. 

At first, Mike showed the students his root cellar where he stores his food he harvests, including vegetables from his garden and apples from his orchard. Later, Mike showed us how he cares for his apple trees every year to keep them healthy and alive. I bit into one of his apples and it was at first sour, but then turned sweet like candy. Mike then took us around his property and showed us his moss collection. I found it fascinating how many different kinds of mosses there are. Mike also took the class down to his homemade sawmill. He demonstrated how the machine worked by milling a log. As he cut the log, the sawdust blew into the faces of my peers. When the sawdust blew in my face it shocked me. 

A big thank you to Mike Hebb for giving us the opportunity to take a tour of his home and hobbies. He taught the class about his trees and how he takes great care of them. I learned how to store food and how to preserve it. Our trip to Mike Hebb’s property gave me a broader understanding of many things we learned in class.