Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
6.
THE YEAR-ROUND COMMUNITY
Keeping It Fun
We are all dependent on one another, every soul of us on earth.
—G. B. Shaw
There are many wonderful things about gardens. They tune us in to the seasons of the year, they help us
understand patience, and as the year progresses and we experience bounty, drought, drama, and excite-
ment, they give us joy and make us feel alive. By holding activities within the garden that support and
celebrate the seasons, the volunteers, gardeners, and community members become more invested in all
the lessons and joys that the community garden offers. Plan activities to engage the community inside
and outside the garden, from one season to the next, throughout the year.
PROGRAMS GROW WITH THE GARDEN
With the Peterson Garden Project, we wanted to create a space where gardeners had a place to learn how
to grow food alongside their neighbors. What we didn't want was to have them running in, harvesting
their lettuce, and running out again. In our situation—a busy urban environment—we knew that to en-
gage our community fully, we had to use the garden to solve other challenges in our gardeners' lives.
The easiest thing we did in the garden was to fulfill our mission: providing educational opportunities
for gardeners. In our first year, this involved basic gardening instruction in the spring, to get people com-
fortable with growing. We figured that gardening isn't that difficult, so once people had a place to grow
food, along with some basic instruction, they'd get started and we could go from there.
After our first year, we learned that getting people started in the spring was not enough. Slowly, we
added additional educational sessions with instructions on harvesting, insect control, and other relevant
topics. Eventually, we started sharing cooking tips because we found that although people were really in-
to learning to grow food, they often didn't know what to do with their food once it was ready to harvest.
As the needs of our community changed, and as we collectively learned the needs of the gardeners,
our programming and offerings evolved to meet those needs. When you're just starting out, you can only
do what you can do, and you have to begin somewhere. It is important to do your best with your new
garden and also to not bite off more than you can chew. Whatever activities you pick to keep your garden-
ers connected, do them well. It is better to do a few things that have awesome results, than a lot of activ-
ities of minimal value that wear your volunteers out. Remember your mission and keep your projects on
track. And as the garden matures and more leaders arise to take on new projects, integrate them when the
time seems right. Don't rush the garden or the community.
