Share the Bounty

So you think that this cold weather means summer is over and you can stop gardening? THINK AGAIN! There is still plenty of time to grow cool season crops, in fact the Lambertville community garden just planted their FIRST crops last weekend. ...and they need volunteers. If you are interested in getting involved in the community gardening effort - I strongly encourage you to join a local group.

This past summer I had the pleasure of working with Eve Minson of 'Just One Seed' and the volunteers of the Bucks County Audubon Society to grow an organic community garden at the BCAS in Solebury which donated it's harvest to the UMC Community Kitchen and Fishermans Mark Food Pantry in Lambertville. We are looking for volunteers interested in helping with next years garden also.

There is also an active community gardening organization in the Lehigh Valley with involvement from Lehigh University, Southside Gardening Initiative, Bethlehem Citizens Academy and SUN*LV (http://www.sunlv.org/) and local community organizations. I would love to see the same enthusiasm for community gardens take hold here in the Delaware Valley.

Local food is popular topic these days and as people become more educated about the need for healthy local food the demand has grown. Opportunities for participating in a local food system are getting easier to find. From CSAs, farm incubators, farm-based education programs, to backyards everywhere, farm awareness is sprouting all around us. We are fortunate to live in the Delaware Valley, an area that is home to a diverse variety of farms and acres of productive land, but the abundance does not reach everyone.

Up until a few generations ago most everyone knew how to grow their own food. Whether it was by immigrants in a new city trying to maintain a connection to the foods of their homeland or a necessity to supplement a country family’s meager income with a backyard plot, gardening has seen folks through difficult times in this country. Times have changed though and now it is has become more expensive to get access to fresh, organic food. As gardening has gone from an act of necessity to a hobby of leisure, many have forgotten how to provide for themselves with only a little plot of soil and seeds.

It seems counter intuitive that it would cost more to produce foods that have less added to them, but that is the reality of factory farming. The most affordable food is often the most processed and least healthful. Food pantries are a valuable resource for families struggling to provide needed nutrition. But because they need to rely on an inexpensive, shelf stable and simple to prepare source of food, pantries are filled with processed food. These foods are often high in salt, calories and preservatives. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Fresh produce can be grown almost anywhere with only a few resources (land, seeds, soil, tools and time) and a minimum investment. The average packet of bean seeds can yield 20 pounds of fresh food, carrots produce close to 100!


A community garden can grow more than just food, it can also grow a community!
• Acts as a deterrent to crime and vandalism and helps to draw people together
• Produces fresh, nutritious food for better health
• Builds trust, communication and common ownership of neighborhood
• Provides educational opportunities for school children to learn science, nutrition
• Provides vocational opportunities for volunteers to learn management and gardening/landscaping skills
• Provides civic leaders and health and safety officers with central venues to share information with hard-to-reach communities
• Beautifies the area with art and garden design that reflect the neighborhood cultures that make it a desirable place to live and work

Please consider getting involved! SUN*LV is a great resource as is the American Community Gardening Association but there are some local groups forming as well. Contact me and I would be happy to put you in touch with them or others interested in starting a group.