Our few work parties were limited to a small number of gardeners. However, most of the garden beds were actively managed all year, including our giving garden. Extra produce was donated to food banks as usual. We received regular deliveries of garden resources, and were able to maintain paths and other communal spaces.
This year, we’ve scheduled our mandatory spring meeting, where we’ll discuss resuming monthly in-person meetings. We have resumed regular work parties to get large projects done. Our giving garden now has an active manager who has organized the planting schedule; this will greatly increase the amount of produce that we will donate to a variety of food distribution sites. All of our garden beds have been adopted, including a perennially wet area that has been plagued with blackberries.
Updated on 4.30.22
COMMUNITY GARDENS: Viet Houng
2021 had a big impact on the Viet Huong Community Garden, with most participating gardeners avoiding working in big groups on communal projects. Most did their best, growing produce in their own garden plots.
In 2022 things are looking up, as gardeners are already starting to register for their plots to start the season.
If you are interested in the Viet Huong Community Garden, contact Xuan Man at 253.267.2949 or at manx0215 @ gmail dot com.
Original Post 6.23.21
Successful community gardens begin with a unifying vision or acquire one as they develop. Some are centered around having a communal space that allows individuals access to gardening space to grow food for themselves and their families, other gardens have the mission of providing all or most of their produce to support the less fortunate in the community. Some serve educational goals: demonstrating and teaching gardening techniques, exploring how our food system currently works and possibilities for improving it. And still others serve as honored spaces for preserving a long standing culture and tradition - keeping it alive through gardening. The Viet Huong Garden is one of these.
The Viet Huong Garden is one of the largest in Tacoma, receiving support from Tacoma Urban Land Trust, Harvest Pierce County, and the City of Tacoma. Near the downtown, it takes up half a block between South G and South 18th streets. The Garden was officially named in 2010, but many of the gardeners started there years before. It has many vegetables and flowers that are native to Vietnam and is cared for by volunteers who are predominantly Vietnamese immigrants. Its name reflects this heritage, being translated as “Scent of Vietnam”.
The garden consists of 83 plots and about 30 gardeners who take great pride in their spaces. The garden has been featured on many garden tours and used as a backdrop for choir videos created for TV. The season culminates with a large potluck of all gardeners. Until the pandemic of COVID-19 in 2020, the Viet Huong Community Garden has been part of the Harvest Pierce County Garden tour and gardeners have shared their knowledge of Vietnamise vegetables and gardening technique at many other events. Plans are being considered for resuming these events.
Out of respect for the gardeners and to honor their traditions, here are links to two wonderful videos which continue their story in their own words.
The Việt Hương Story: Keeping Culture Alive through Gardening
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1261818713998067
The Power of Urban Gardens: Việt Hương's Story
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=3389485951134197
The DuPont Community Garden had a successful 2021 season, particularly while operating under the restrictions of the pandemic. We raised 7500 lbs of produce and donated 5200 lbs of it to the Lakewood and Thurston food banks. Overall the morale of the gardeners was excellent and all our work parties, plant sales and special events were well attended. Following all the protocols of safety during the pandemic did take away a lot from the communal and social activities of the garden. However the garden provided a welcoming and safe venue in the open air where gardeners could work on their beds, at a safe distance from others. We did miss the gatherings at meals we shared on work days. We also learned that our gardeners will rise to face any challenge when they all work together and everyone is heard.
idcgardens@gmail.com
The garden is located on Power Line Road in DuPont, off Center Drive just west of the Amazon Fulfillment Center which is at 2700 Center Dr. We also welcome anyone who wants to help raise crops for the local Food Banks as we reserve several plots just for the purpose and can use help with their care.
(Click on images to enlarge)
Update Provided by Gurbir Singh, Co-director DuPont Community Garden.
In 2009, several employees at Intel's DuPont campus started a community garden, growing produce for local food banks. The original project quickly grew to include community residents, and continued to donate produce as well as growing for their own families
In 2017 Intel sold the property where the garden was located. Garden leaders worked with officials in the City of DuPont to find a more stable home for the garden, and in May 2017, relocated to its current home on Powerline Road, DuPont.
On its new site, the DuPont Community Garden has over 80 raised beds including plots inside two greenhouses. The motivation for the green houses was and is to extend the growing season providing year-round production of nourishing food. Built originally on the old location, they were moved to the Powerline Road site.
The greenhouses are one example of the constant innovation and practicality displayed by the gardeners who found the shell of a greenhouse in Olympia, dismantled, renovated, and moved it to DuPont in 2011.
But the greenhouses are only some of the innovations implemented to increase production. Quoting from Gurbir Singh, a long time member of the garden and considered one of mastermind behind many of the technical innovations,
Quoting Stu Vannerson, Co-Director, “In 2020, the Operations Team spent a lot of energy working on how to support the surge in gardening – which was a worldwide phenomenon – and mitigate the risks of disease spread. For several months, we had “hosted access” to the garden during specific time periods when gardeners could come, and we implemented an “odd-day, even-day” rotation so that adjacent plot-holders wouldn’t be there on the same day.” And these measures paid off in setting records of 62 subscribers, 18 of which were new, and harvesting 6300 lbs and donated 4500 of that to Lakewood and Thurston County Food Banks. Since the statistics are for an entire year we won’t have 2021’s for a while but things seem to be on track. With the majority of the harvest season still ahead the DuPont Garden has harvested 800 lbs of produce of which 700 was donated as of June 10. Stu says, This is on par with our best harvest years.”
New this year the Garden held fundraiser plant sales in May and June in the garden, and once a month at the DuPont Farmers’ Market in Clocktower Park.
Anyone interested in more information:
email to idgardens@gmail.com
https://www.facebook.com/search/top?q=intel%20dupont%20community%20%20garden
https://www.facebook.com/DupontCommunityGarden
Other sources shared with CFPA
DCG Newsletter Jan. 2021 https://drive.google.com/drive/u/1/folders/1Y91D6e-BB8xUnb8eer90l2E2s8uzqbFX
Includes information on:
Food Banks they serve,
2020 in Review
DCG Newsletter Fal 2019 https://drive.google.com/drive/u/1/folders/1Y91D6e-BB8xUnb8eer90l2E2s8uzqbFX
Includes information on:
Timeline of the DuPont Community Garden 2009 - 2019
DCG-Backgrounderhttps://docs.google.com/document/d/1xZFYMhxlYdOYPW0whP-rsyuzTT8Pm3Pw/edit
Includes information on:
##
“Rotating crops is important and improves yields: simple way to think about it: root- leaf-stem. . We grow garlic, kale and onions over winter, start in Feb with peas, spinach, chard and head from there into tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, cabbage, lettuce etc. We use late Winter months to prune fruit trees and berry shrubs
During the pandemic, we used the outdoors for our meetings. We have the benefit of a 10x10 canopy, set up table and chairs and we sat outdoors. One person at a time in the greenhouse unless wearing a mask. Fortunately all the stewards were very committed to getting vaccinated which allayed fears and allowed us to feel safer in each others company.
We have a plant sale beginning in late April through early May and will sell these plants as well as tomato, pepper and other veggie starts plus annual flowers/pollinators to help us meet basic operational expenses.
"In 2021, we learned about building a hoop house and did it!
"This year's goals are to make use of our hoop house. Planting winter crops for use in the food pantry throughout the winter next year.
"We also took advantage of free bricks. We will build walls to contain TAGRO for the coming season. If there are left over bricks will use imagination to update garden area making it a welcome and safe place for all.”
The EnviroHouse offers workshops, webinars, and videos to help create a natural home environment and encourage sustainability and waste reduction. Seasonable displays include garden raised beds demonstrating how to grow enviable produce and blooms. Primary landscape exhibits have interpretive signage to point out various features.
Spring workshops will continue as webinars and include experts teaching about native plants, pollinating species, growing and using herbs, nontoxic pest maintenance, worm bin composting for food scraps and garden waste, and preserving and blending spices and herbs (with CFPA’s Hal Meng in July). Join us… you’ll be glad you did!
NOTE: The EnviroHouse will have a phased reopening for visitors this spring; dates and times to be announced. Meanwhile, register for a webinar at
https://cityoftacoma.org/workshops. View recorded webinars and How-To Videos at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-7omJc_aVo&list.
Website
https://extension.wsu.edu/pierce/mg/
The website is a valuable resource for any gardener, experienced or novice: everything from how-to guidance, to events and workshops, to project assistance for community gardens. Check it out!
https://www.facebook.com/PCMasterGardener
HPC Website https://www.piercecd.org/190/Urban-Agriculture
HPC FaceBook https://www.facebook.com/harvestpiercecounty
##
Posted on 3.10.22
Blueberry Park Community Garden, located at 7402 East D Street, Tacoma 98404, was started in the fall of 2018. It sits on the Northeast corner of Charlotte’s Blueberry Park—a Metro Parks property. The garden hosts 11 individual raised beds, including accessible beds to accommodate folks who garden from a sitting position, as well as in-ground beds that are communally tended by the 40 or so gardeners.
Weekly Saturday work parties run from March through November from 9:00—10:30am. Gardeners are then free to take home produce from the communal garden beds. Extra produce is donated to the local community via scheduled food giveaways advertised through neighborhood Facebook sites, as well as Food is Free’s FIG (Food Independence Garden) share days. Additional food is donated to the Bonney Lake Food Bank.
The garden is managed by a leadership team and up to ten coordinators. Coordinators are in charge of things such as outreach, media, education, work party leaders, and treasury. Monthly meetings are held via Zoom. Efforts such as starting plants are shared within the gardener community.
Several years ago, the garden was gifted with funds that had been raised by Charlotte Valbert during her work to rehabilitate Blueberry Park. After her passing, Metro Parks held the funds and then donated them to the garden to purchase tools. Then in 2021, the garden was the recipient of a grant through Safe Streets to purchase needed additional tools. Safe Streets connected the garden with Anderson Construction who donated a metal 8X10 container to use as a secure garden shed.
2021was a great year despite losing some leadership. The garden members pulled together and really started working as an organized team. Gardeners leaned on their communal knowledge and listened and learned from each other. The garden truly flourished and became more of a teaching garden. The work of feeding the community with the over-abundance of harvest was needed more than ever, especially due to the pandemic food instability. This actually brought people to the garden who would ask questions and learn about growing food. Growing food AND growing gardeners!
What will be new this year? A decision was made to not have frequent, labor-intensive deliveries of Tagro potting soil, but to instead amend the soil with organic nutrients. Efforts will be made this year to “standardize” things like plant spacing, trellising, bed prep and drip irrigation so there will be one-stop, go-to information available anyone can access.
The garden and its community is a joyful, restorative place!
Annual membership dues are $10 for individual raised beds, or $5 for communal beds. There are current garden openings; interested parties can contact a coordinator via e-mail, Facebook or phone:
bbparkcommunitygarden@gmail.com
https://www.facebook.com/blueberryparkcommunitygarden253
253.845.9770
article by Kelly Stave
##
Posted on 5.11.21
(Click on photo images to enlarge - Photos provided by The Farm at Franklin Pierce)
The Farm at Franklin Pierce (formerly the Natural Science Resource Center—NSRC ) is a part of the Franklin Pierce School District. It sits on an 8-acre site in the Waller area of Pierce County, on the traditional land of the Coast Salish people, specifically the Puyallup Tribe (spuyaləpabš). Swan Creek flows to the west of the property. The Farm has evolved from the District’s animal husbandry and agriculture program to its current educational community farm, where many students and community members farm together every year.
Community engagement and partnerships has always been a priority for the Farm at Franklin Pierce/NSRC. When the site became vacant for several years, passionate advocacy by the community and assistance from community partners helped it begin hosting classes and programs again.
Two acres of the farm is currently in cultivation, where over 50,000 pounds of produce is grown annually. The Farm also has a small orchard of fruit trees, perennial berries, and herbs. A habitat restoration area towards Swan Creek was planted by community volunteers with native shrubs and small trees.
Franklin Pierce Food Services use the farm-fresh produce in the district’s school cafeterias. Farm produce is also available to the community through Fresh and Free Veggie Days—a weekly event that rotates through the District’s meal distribution sites. A small weekly customer-paid Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) “veggie box” program helps to support student internships on the farm. Farm produce also goes back to the community through the Eastside Nourish food bank.
The Farm welcomes school classrooms, community programs and facilities, and the public to farm field trips. It hosts Edible Gardening classes—taught to the public for free by local gardening experts. Farm staff makes themselves available to help and support other small local farmers as well.
Farm property also hosts a community garden, which is overseen by HPC and available to any community member. The garden consists of 34 raised beds that are 25 feet long by 3½ feet wide. The school district generously donated a large hoop house where gardeners can grow starts or overwinter tender perennials. The District also donated a tool shed as well as enough garden tools for everyone to use. When the Farm has extra veggie starts, they are donated to gardeners to use as well.
The garden began in 2018 and is managed by a small group of gardener volunteers. It is open year-round. Because it’s on school property, a “charter” of garden rules has been formed with input from the school, HPC, and the gardeners themselves. At this time, all the raised beds have been adopted.
To learn more about the Farm and its programs, or to schedule a tour or a volunteer opportunity, contact Farm Manager Emily Strong at 253-278-4025 estrong@fpschools.org.
To learn more about science classes at the farm contact CCR Director Sly Boskovich sboskovich@fpschools.org 253-405-9226.
The Farm website is www.fpschools.org/farm.
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/FPFarmers/.
To learn about Harvest Pierce County’s gleaning project: http://piercecountygleaningproject.org/.
Fruit Tree Education Series: https://piercecd.org/352/Fruit-Tree-Education.
To learn about community garden availabilities, contact Harvest Pierce County at 253-278-6215 or https://piercecd.org/190/Urban-Agriculture.
Hear more about the program in the words of those who participate: youth and adult alike.
No comments:
Post a Comment