Help Needed at the Farmington
Community Gardens
It was exciting to be a part of the effort
to get the Farmington Community Gardens started in 2011 and I feel it has been
a great way to get back to the town’s roots and show people how rewarding
growing some of your own food can be. I was happy to see our move to
incorporate as a non-profit go smoothly and I have always felt we have terrific
support from businesses in town who help sponsor us by donating items to the Gardens.
We’ve had much community support and assistance over the years, but with that
being said, committed volunteers have lessened and we really do need them to
keep the Gardens established. We need that assistance to keep up with general
maintenance and to start more intensive projects with the schools and other
groups.
We need people to clear leaves and
debris from the border beds up front and most of the food growing beds. We need
people to move and spread compost for the year into the growing spaces. The
perennial plantings from previous years need regular care and watering
throughout the season. We need people to help with planting and care of the
wild daises, Shasta Daisies, and Black-eyed Susans that we transplant from the
meadow to add visual flair to the garden and to sell at Hay Day to raise money
for the Gardens. Most of the bulbs and shrubs, mints, chives, red and yellow
onions, and Egyptian onion also need tending and watering through the season.
The areas around the growing spaces
and the walking paths need to be mowed often and trimmed. The decorative and flowering
trees need to be tended and watered and the Bittersweet and Locust trees, both
terribly invasive plants, need to be cut and pulled up. As nature has settled
back into the cleared space, weeds are always a problem, so getting rid of as
many of those as we can is also a high priority.
In order to maintain our status as a
non-profit, we need a robust Stewardship Committee, which functions as our
Board of Directors, to guide and govern the organization. The committee needs several members, but most
importantly, two key officer positions are vacant, one being a Secretary, for
effective communications. It would be highly beneficial to have at least a few
others on the committee who want to help brainstorm and implement ideas. The
Stewardship Committee meets regularly during the growing season and directs the
business of the group and decides and coordinates what projects will be done.
You don’t have to be a gardener or have a space to be a Steward.
Currently we are operating with a
skeleton crew and we need to know if there is still community interest and if
that interest can manifest as the assistance we need to maintain the Gardens and
help the organization grow and prosper. If you would like to commit to the Gardens
contact me at fcg@metrocast.net. If you need more information about the
Farmington Community Gardens please visit www.farmingtoncommunitygardens.org. I
look forward to hearing from you.
Kyle Leach
FCG Chair
