sharing gardens: communities magazine #153

8/3/2019 Sharing Gardens: Communities Magazine #153

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Tbp to bottom:1. Kaitlynn and Kyra help with the haruest.2. The "mulching team" sltreading donated hay.3. A ueeding party.

That first yeat we created and maintained the gardens mostly by ourselveVolunteers did help 6n q6625isn-farmers with big equipment tilled the sand dug fence post holes; sometimes we had help with planting, weedinand mulching. But we didn't make an effort to recruit much help as it weasier to work alone, developing our systems and techniques (our relationshwas only 18 months old and, though Chris has over 40 years of gardeninexperience, I was coming to it new). Had we had the complexiry of addinother people's energy and input into the project at that time, it might habeen a bit chaotic or overwhelming, leaving everyone frustrated with texperience.

That spring, we moved from a two-bedroom house, where we paid $75month in rent, to a 1950s, park-model (plumbing hooked up to sepdc),ft. by 40 ft. travel trailer. lJ7ith work exchange of just 20 hours/month a$50 for utilities, we were able to greatly reduce our expenses. June of 200is when gas prices and unemployment began to rise sharply. P"ytrg work, our rural valley, became very hard to come by. Chris and I had some savinro carry us for a little while, and with the $1,250 we raised for the gardethrough donations, we were able to devote our full-time energy to growinthe garden and developing the model. By mid-summer we were harvestinour first fresh vegetables, with enough surplus to take a wheelbarrow fullthe food bank each week, and were able to inspire other local gardenersbegin donating their surplus there as well.In year rwo (2010), things began to grow exponentially. Chris noticedempry lot behind the local food bank. \7e approached the owner of the proerty about starting a second garden, and, without a momentt hesitation,cast his full support behind the project, paying for a new pump ro be put the well and covering the cost ofthe electricity to run it. \7e have a year-ryear agreement with him and he lets us use the land for free. The only caveis that he has the properry for sale and, if it sells, we will only be able to gaden until the end of the season, at which point we will have to find a new sir

This second Sharing Garden is located about five miles from Alpine in thtown of Monroe. Though still quite small (population 680), Monroe hasdozen or so businesses, the local high school and grade school (within sigof the Sharing Garden), a city council and mayor. \With its proximiry to thfood bank, we are able to literally wheelbarrow the just-picked vegetablestraight to our main recipients. Kids walk by the gardens on their way homfrom school and often visit with us and help us ro grow food which thehappily take home to share with their families.In 2010 we began to grow the volunteer program in earnest. tJ(/e estalished regular volunteer times at both garden sites and created an email liof interested people so we could remind them weekly of where and whewed be meeting. Though we had over 20 people on our list, our core grounumbered more like five to eight. These were the people who came weeafter week to participate in the fun and camaraderie that began to developSome of my best memories of that year were on harvest days. \Wed gstarted in the cool of the morning, empty harvest boxes piled by the gatwith the sound of bird calls, and a light mist and dew hovering on the gaden. Volunteers would arrive and Chris would direct them to areas ready fharvest. Some people liked to pair up in the bean patch, slowly moving dowthe rows, comfortably scooting along on the thick, dry straw we mulch thpaths with. Bean picking is most conducive to conversation and you couhear the murmur of people catching up on their lives, occasionally punctuated by laughter as they filled buckets and boxes with beans.

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sharing gardens: communities magazine #153

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