Community Garden for Charity - getting started

[txdon]

I need help in setting up a plan and presentation.

Our rural Church is looking for a project to help people in the community.

We have several food banks in the towns in the county, and it could be pick if you need.

What is needed? If anyone has experience with or has set up a community garden please let me know all the pitfalls the advantages the disadvantages the requirements etc....

We have the land and water can be plumed to the garden area. Everyone out here has tractors, tools and home gardening experience.

Thanks!

[Hollow]

Great thread, I've thought about doing the very same thing. The church I go to is right in town and has a large amount of property surrounding on two sides with a couple of good spots for a community garden. I can't wait to see where this thread goes!

[forgeblast]

I can list two good books. I am trying to also put together a presentation for something on our school grounds that we can use to supplement our current lunches, and tie into our science curriculum.
the books I found most helpful were
Edible Schoolyard by Alice Waters and
How to grow a school garden by arden bucklin-sporer and rachel kathelln pringle.
(they are members of the san fran green schoolyard alliance that might also have a website).
The waters book has step by step how they created the gardens, and the pictures and links in the sporer/pringle book are very helpful.
Does your state have a master gardener program? you might find some help there, or if you could offer courses to become a master gardener it might draw in more people to the garden.
Master Gardener Program — Penn State Extension

I would make a list of who would be the major caretakers of the garden and build accordingly, make some raised beds for those that cant bend as easy. Have plan for tool security(who has keys to any sheds etc). the books listed have a lot of valid points.
best of luck!

[Triguy1]

Great thread, I've thought about doing the very same thing. The church I go to is right in town and has a large amount of property surrounding on two sides with a couple of good spots for a community garden. I can't wait to see where this thread goes!

X2....

[nwbearcat]

Best of luck...made offers, prepped ground...it was fun for folks to come plant, and they never came back to do anything past that.

[Iplayfarmer]

My church used my ground a few years ago for a community garden. Our purpose was a little different in that it was intended to be a teaching garden rather than a welfare garden. People who wanted to learn how to garden better would come out on pre-appointed days and work alongside a few seasoned experts.

All I gave was the land and the water. Everyone else took care of the rest. There were planting activities and weeding activities. When it came time to harvest there were few who actually needed the produce. I actually plowed a lot under in the fall. But, the garden served its purpose of being a teaching garden.

I know this... There were never as many helpers there as the guy in charge wanted. In spite of that it was still a beautiful garden. It put my weed patch to shame.

[samhudson3]

Hi txdon,

We have a few church/community gardens in our area:

About
http://thegardenofconcord.blogspot.c...-f-garden.html
Community Gardens in North Carolina

I bet your Extension Agent, other local churches, a Google search can find you someone local that can give you advice.

Our church started a community lunch which has become very popular. Now we've started a small garden and are kinda where you are now.

We're looking at it not from a charity angle, but more as a ministry. Our community lunch (we get the homeless, Habitat for Humanity employees, lawyers, etc.) breaking break together. Turns our Thursdays into Sundays.

[Depmandog]

In this lawsuit contentious society, make sure you due diligence on your proposed garden location.

We do work with a large real estate developer that has a charitable penchant. They had a large old building they wanted down, and then the space was to be converted into community garden space. We did the interior environmental work, another firm demolished the building and then hauled in soil from another location.

The original site didn't have too many environmental issues, but apparently no one thought to check the borrow site. Turns out the new soils had some contamination that was only discovered when the city required testing on the soil.

Long story short the soil wasn't bad enough to warrant remediation, but had enough concerns the developer scrapped his community garden idea from a fear of a lawsuit.

At the very least, if you don't know the history of the property / area, have a Phase 1 Environmental Site Assessment done. This will tell you the complete recorded history of the site and surrounding properties, along with database search to determine if there has been any environmental issues in the surrounding area.

I can get a simple Phase 1 done (no building / couple acres) for $1100-1250 in my area. Money well spent to learn if a dry cleaner was located next door back in the 60's or there was a foundry on that site in 1890.

Great project, great cause! Wish you the best in your endeavor!! Good luck.

[Western]

Don, when I was a kid our church always had a garden, as an adult this has come up several times, but getting enough interest in it always mutes it out.

I think the finer point of a church garden would be the fellowship, since much of the produce can be bought for almost the same $ with less hassle.
Workers seem to loose their "drive" after a few times out it seems, but you usually always have a couple faithful gardeners who enjoy it enough to show up when needed.

Best one we had was broke up into "family" spots, so there was a small amount of competition and if someone wasn't tending their spot ,it showed. Seemed the interest level stayed longer, set up this way.

[jinman]

Best of luck...made offers, prepped ground...it was fun for folks to come plant, and they never came back to do anything past that.

I fear you've hit human nature pretty square on the head. I was going to say that you could do a small plot at the church if there was enough room, but most likely, Don will find he is the "keeper" of the garden and will end up doing most of the work. He'll have to transport tools/tractor to the area and may find that he is doing a garden by himself a long way from his house. The best solution might be to just put the garden in on his place and invite people out to help. If they don't show up, at least he doesn't have to travel to town to do the work. He can do it at home.

Don, the bottom line is that if you want to do a garden, you should make it convenient to yourself as the primary caretaker. If you can haul veggies to the church a couple of times per week for pickup or distribution, then those chores are the one's you'll probably find the most help with. I don't know, of course. This is just my opinion from being an observer of human nature.