Growing People Newsletter - Fall 2007 - Part B
Content
Gardeners In Community Development
Ever Growing
Fall 2007
Gardeners In Community Development 901 Greenbriar Lane Richardson, TX 75080 www.gardendallas.org
Dallas Area Community Gardening Dallas Area Community Gardening
A project of Organic Gardening Magazine and Aveeno Skin Care Products
On July 28, over 100 gardeners, church members, volunteers, supporters, and special guests, Therese Ciesinski from Organic Gardening Magazine and Kaitlin Meiser and Rita Hale from Aveeno Skin Care Products, proudly dedicated Our Saviour Community Garden’s 2000 gallon water catchment system, pavilion and new landscaping. dening Association, Aveeno Skin Care Products, and Karpenko AIA took an interest in the project and brought GICD and Tim Bonner together. The 2000 gallon cistern came from The Rain Well, and was installed by Greg Whitfield, who rushed to get it installed the day before the ceremony. The cedar posts used in both the pavilion and our new vineyard came from Sutton Tree Service in Eustace, TX. Many thanks go to the Growing and Giving home schoolers who made the festive banner that wrapped around the cistern. Also Blue Mesa Grill catered a delicious TexMex lunch. Hardworking volunteers who helped make the day so special include the Our Saviour team who made the grounds and construction site ready for visitors; volunteers from Heifer International who set up an information booth; Boy Scout Troop 783 and all the gardeners and attendees who helped with the pre-ceremony workday and planted and mulched the landscape areas.
Our Saviour WaterWorks 2007:
What’s in this issue:
Hope Receives Certications Fresh from the Asian Garden Reward Cards GICD Classes Letters Fall Planting Times Let Us Give Thanks Report from ACGA Conference Salsa Class Salsa Recipe 6 6 2 3 3 3 4 5 2 2
WaterWorks 2007 Pavilion
Dedication ceremony
GICD WISH LIST:
garden benches garden tool shed new lap top computer wheelbarrows gardening tools canning jars Mantis tiller Kubota tractor with loader and tiller friends with trucks volunteers
Knowing that community gardens bring together people of all ages, ethnic backgrounds, and experiences to create beautiful green places in their neighborhood and recognizing the vital importance of water conservation, Organic Gardening Magazine joined forces with the American Community Gar-
Nature’s Path Foods to bring rainwater harvesting systems to 20 community gardens in 2007. Our Saviour Community garden was the only community garden in Texas chosen to receive one of the systems. A 20’x30’ outdoor pavilion was constructed which serves the dual purpose of collecting rainwater from its tin roof plus serving as an outdoor educational classroom and social gathering place. The addition of this system makes Our Saviour Community Garden serve not only as a flag ship community garden but also as a model for rainwater harvesting. Many thanks go to Tim Bonner of Tim Bonner and Associates, Inc. who not only designed and built the innovative pavilion but also completed its construction in record time, and under budget as well, thus allowing more funds to be spent on landscaping. We are grateful that Matt
Rita Hale, from Aveeno Skin Care Products, helping to install plants donated by Aveeno
Therese Ciesinski, Senior Editor of Organic Gardening Magazine
Mission: improving the quality of life in neighborhoods through community gardening
Ever Growing Gardeners In Community Development
Summer 2007 www.gardendallas.org
Page 2 [email protected]
Hope Garden Receives Certifications
Hope Community Garden is proud to be certified as both a Texas Discovery Gardens Butterfly Habitat and a National Wildlife Federation Wildlife Habitat. As a certified Butterfly Habitat, Hope Garden provides the proper nectar sources, host plants and environmental conditions for all stages of a butterfly’s life cycle: egg, caterpillar, pupa, and adult. The front flower beds, native wildflowers along the alley fence, and zinnias and cosmos in many gardeners plots are a magnet for many different types of butterflies. Just a few of the butterflies seen in the garden include swallowtails, skippers, commas, question marks, Painted Ladies, Gulf Fritillaries, hairstreaks and Monarchs and, of course, many, many cabbage white butterflies (considered an agricultural pest) whose caterpillars feed on plants that are members of the mustard family. Host plants for swallowtail caterpillars that have been planted in the garden include dill, parsley, fennel and rue. In addition to being a butterfly habitat, Hope Garden has also been designated as a NWF Wildlife Habitat providing shelter, food, water and nesting sites for wildlife. Birdhouses and birdbaths provide shelter, nesting sites and water, while buckwheat, insects, and many vegetables (to the dismay of those gardeners who want the perfect ripe tomato) provide food for many varieties of birds. Hope Garden has also occasionally been the garden cafeteria for neighborhood
Eastern Black Swallowtail on zinnia
free ranging chickens and bunny rabbits as well as hosting other assorted creatures. To have your own yard or community garden certified as a Butterfly Habitat, contact Texas Discovery Gardens at Fair Park.
Area Community Gardens
Coppell Community Garden: www.coppellcommunity garden.com Education Community Garden at Dallas: www.educationcommunitygarden. org Gardeners in Community Development: www.gardendallas.org GreenHill School Garden Plano Community Garden www.jlplano.org—click on “outreach
projects”
UTD Student Garden UTD campus
Know of a community garden? Send information to [email protected]
To receive Wildlife Habitat certification through the National Wildlife Federation go to www.nwf.org.
Fresh From the East Dallas
Fall and winter bring on new crops at the East Dallas Community Market and Garden. Until the weather cools, summer crops such as amaranth greens, basil, bitter melons, eggplant, ivy leaf gourd tips, lemon grass, long beans, loofah, Malabar spinach, peppers, snake gourds, taro stems, water spinach, and wax gourds are still available. However as fall arrives and throughout the winter, look for many types of greens, including mustard, lettuce, and green onions. Most of the greens are freshly picked while still small, a size not normally found in stores. These baby greens are exceptionally tender and sweet. The East Dallas Community and Market Garden is located at 1416 N. Fitzhugh and is open every day. In general, bunches of freshly harvested produce cost $1.00 each. Saturday and Sunday mornings are the busiest times, with some specialty produce selling out quickly.
Grocery Store’s Reward Cards Support GICD
Do you shop for groceries? Of course!! Well, if you shop at Tom Thumb or Kroger, here’s a quick and painless way to support GICD at no cost to you. Just link your Tom Thumb or Kroger reward cards to GICD’s organization and a percentage of your purchase price will automatically be donated to us. To link your Tom Thumb reward card with GICD, just fill out a Good Neighbor Application Form at the Customer Service Desk with GICD’s Tom Thumb account number 6714. Then just be sure and use your reward card every time you shop. And, if you are a Kroger shopper, pick up a Kroger Share Card from Don Lambert or Rebecca Smith, or contact GICD at 972-231-3565 or [email protected]. We will happy to send you a card, along with our many thanks.
Upcoming Events at GICD
Classes, Classes, Classes—- see page 3 for details Oct. 6—Garden Party at East Dallas Garden and Market 3-6:00 April 19, 2008– Plant Sale at Asian Garden April 26, 2008– Plant Sale at Our Saviour
Ever Growing Gardeners In Community Development
Summer 2007 www.gardendallas.org
Page 3 [email protected]
GICD To Offer Three Classes: Starting a Community Garden, Seed Saving and Master Composter Certification
GICD will be offering three classes this fall. The first, Starting A Community Garden will be held on Saturday, September 15, at Our Saviour Community Garden, 1616 N. Jim Miller Road, from 2:00 to 7:00 p.m. Led by Don Lambert, who is the Executive Director of GICD and has extensive experience in starting and running community gardens, and the GICD training team, this class will include what should be considered before starting a community garden, finding suitable space, recruiting volunteers and leaders, sources of funding, etc. The cost is $30.00 and includes a stir-fry lesson and light dinner from the garden. If you are thinking about starting a community garden, or just want to learn more about starting community projects, this is the class for you. Then on Saturday, October 13, a Seed Saving class will be offered at Our Saviour Community Garden from 9:00 to 11:30. This class will teach the basics of saving all types of seeds collected in the garden. Participants will help save seeds for GICD’s community gardens as well as being able to take home some varieties of seeds for their own use. The cost for this class is $15.00 for an individual or a family. The third class will offer participants the opportunity to become a certified Master Composter. A.L. Nickerson, Master Composter and certified instructor (as well as being a Master Naturalist), will teach this nationally recognized program. The 16 hour course, on November 1-3, will enable the students to educate the public about composting, vermiculture (worm raising) and their importance to our soils and environment. There will be two evening classes (November 1-2) that will be held at Central Market at Lovers Lane and Central Expressway from 5:30 to 9:30 as well as an eight hour class on Saturday, November 3, from 8:30-4:00 that will be held at Our Saviour Community Garden for hands-on experience. Participants will make their own wire compost bin and receive all written material, including a book on composting. The three day class costs $45.00 and includes lunch on Saturday. In order to receive Master Composter certification, participants must volunteer as a Master Composter in their communities for 40 hours within the following year. GICD is very excited to be able to offer these classes to the public and spaces should fill up quickly. To sign up for any of these classes, send a check made out to GICD to 901 Greenbriar Lane, Richardson, TX 75080.
Letters, We Get Letters………….
Thank you so much for letting me know about all these great gardens. Saturday I went to the Asian market and bought lemon grass, peppers, my Mom bought eggplant, and something that looked like spinach—I am not sure what it is exactly. Late Sunday afternoon we went by and loved Hope Garden full of ripe tomatoes, then to the Pleasant Grove garden. One of the ladies working in her plot even gave me some basil. Their operation with the new cistern, the compost pile with explanation and bee hive were also impressive. All in all a great garden tour and very inspiring. I took along the newsletter and read it to my husband as we went along. Thank you again– a great Sunday garden viewing afternoon. Ann Lamb, Dallas County Master Gardener Project Manager - Gardens
And one from a child who came to the garden during a school tour:
Broccoli Beets Carrots Collards Kale Lettuce, leaf Lettuce, butterhead Lettuce, heading Mustard Peas, English and snap Radish Spinach Squash, summer Turnip TRANSPLANTS: 8/25-9/15 8/25-9/15 8/25-9/15 8/25-9/15 Brussels Sprouts Cabbage Cauliflower
FALL PLANTING TIMES FOR NORTH TEXAS
SEEDS: Beans, bush and pole 8/01-8/20 9/01-9/15 8/01-8/20 8/01-9/01 8/25-10/01 9/01-9/15 8/25-9/10 8/15-8/25 9/01-9/20 9/01-9/20 9/01-10/10 8/20-10/01 8/01-8/20 8/25-10/01
Thank you for leeting us go see the garden. I like all the thing that you all shode me. All the thing like the pumkin, squash, pepper, worms, okra and all the stuff and thank you for the cake and juice. It was good and I wish I went agin. I will always remember this day.
Ever Growing Gardeners In Community Development
Summer 2007 www.gardendallas.org
Page 4 [email protected]
Garden Gleanings:
Let Us Give Thanks
Let us give thanks for a bounty of gardeners, volunteers and supporters:
For generous ones with hearts and smiles as bright as their blossoms; For feisty ones as tart as apples; For continuous ones, who, like scallions and cucumbers, keep reminding us that we’ve had them; For crotchety ones, as sour as rhubarb and as indestructible; For handsome ones who are as gorgeous as eggplants and as elegant as a row of corn, and the others, as plain as potatoes and as good for you. For funny ones, who are as silly as Brussels sprouts and as amusing as Jerusalem artichokes, and serious ones, as complex as cauliflower and as intricate as onions; For ones as unpretentious as cabbages, as subtle as summer squash, as persistent as parsley, as delightful as dill, as endless as zucchini, and who like parsnips, can be counted on to see you throughout the winter; For old ones, nodding like sunflowers in the evening-time, and young ones coming on as fast as radishes; For loving ones, who wind around us like tendrils and hold us, despite our blights, wilts and witherings; And finally, for those now gone, like gardens past that have been harvested, and who fed us in their times that we might have life thereafter.
For all these, and more, GICD gives thanks.
Author Unknown
Ever Growing Gardeners In Community Development
Summer 2007 www.gardendallas.org
Page 5 [email protected]
Report from the ACGA Conference
GICD was well represented by Don and Tiah Lambert, Amanda Brown, Rebecca Smith and Nancy Wilson at the annual American Community Garden Association Conference held in Boston from August 9-12, 2007. The following is an article written by Nancy Wilson about her experiences at the conference: Our visit to the community gardens and urban farming projects in Boston was incredibly eye-opening to a novice like me. Listening to program directors from all over the United States and Canada made it clear that community gardening has broad applications. Some of the most interesting Neighbors banded toprojects are ones inspired by and sustained out of local need. gether to address neighborhood quality of life focusing on eye-sore vacant lots and vacant lots being used for illicit and illegal purposes. Out of the need to find creative solutions arose beautiful gardens which unite neighbors and build a sense of community. Gardens also provide safe places for children to play and for cross-generational and cross-cultural relationships to develop. Many programs developed gardens as a tool to teach teenagers about personal responsibility. Kids vie for these positions and commit to them. The self esteem they developed from their garden experience was amazing. The kids we met not only learned about gardening, but they learned to work with others, to supervise other kids, to develop business plans, to market their vegetables, to take care of the earth and plants and each other. They were enthusiastic and articulate—and their land had fewer weeds than many of the adult gardens! The things that made me most envious of the gardens I heard about were that they seemed to have plenty of workshops training gardeners how to grow and how to cook the food they grew. They also offered a lot of socialization—places to gather together to talk or to hold events like cookouts or musical performances. Many gardens spun their sense of community into outreach to address literacy issues, self esteem issues, and personal development issues. Over and over, Neighbors in cities today don’t much know one another. We drive home from work, pull into our garages, go into our houses and stay there until we climb back into our cars. Gardens offer a place to bring people out of their houses and into a beautiful place—what a respite they offer! Community gardens met the needs of cities and citizens by increasing the safety of neighborhoods by removing sites where crimes happen, eliminating eye-sore trash dumps or weed-eaten lots, providing nutritious food to populations with little access to good food and providing life changing out-reach to troubled kids, ex-cons, struggling immigrants and others. Gardens were able to span across cultural and economic barriers through people sharing common interests. Gardens were also the Gardeners in Community Development A 501 c (3) Non-Profit Organization Board of Directors Cathi Haug, President Amanda Brown, Vice President Carolyn Bush, Secretary A.L. Nickerson, Treasurer Patsy Aguilera Azenath Wright catalyst for unusual partnering such as bringing books and literacy programs to kids who came to play or work in the garden and homework mentors who met neighborhood kids in the garden. I was surprised at the diversity of non-profit organizations that center on community gardening. funded Not only are these organizations by philanthropic grants, they are we heard examples of 90% community and 10% gardening.
HARVEST DONATIONS
4231 Pounds
backed by city governments and citizen organizations that care about quality of life issues like green space, open space, air quality and the mental and physical health aspects enhanced by gardens. We heard several examples of city mayors and city environmental departments who supported and promoted the gardens not only for the greening of their cities, but also for the promotion of public health and safety. It struck me that Dallas is an environmental Neanderthal compared to cities larger and smaller than we are.
Donated to area food pantries
Don Lambert, Executive Director Support Community Gardening
Watch a video about donation gardening at Our Saviour Community Garden:
http://www.wfaa.com/mojo/ or http://www.wfaa.com/video/index.html? nvid=171935
Your tax-deductible donation will support GICD’s community gardening programs. Any and all donations are gratefully accepted!! Please make your check payable to: GICD and send to 901 Greenbriar Lane, Richardson, TX 75080
Interested in volunteering?
East Dallas Community and Market Garden: contact Don at (972) 275-8473 or [email protected] Hope Community Garden: contact Carolyn at (214) 328-0102 or [email protected] Our Saviour Community Garden: contact Rebecca at ( 214) 564-5801 or [email protected]
Ever Growing Gardeners In Community Development
Summer 2007 www.gardendallas.org
Page 6 [email protected]
Salsa Class and Tiah’s Special Salsa Recipe
About twelve people attended the salsa making class on July 6, learned about the proper methods of canning and made Tiah’s Special Salsa and Sweet and Hot Peppers with produce freshly picked from the gardens. In addition to having a good time chatting while slicing tomatoes and
TIAH’S SPECIAL SALSA
Ingredients:
4-5 lbs. tomatoes, chopped 1 lb. sweet peppers, chopped 1/4 lb. hot peppers, chopped 2 bunches cilantro, chopped fine 1 bunch green onion, chopped fine 1 sweet onion, chopped fine 2 Tbsp cumin powder 2 Tbsp salt 1 Tbsp black pepper 1/4 cup brown sugar -or more for sweet salsa 3 Tbsp olive or canola oil 1 pint bottled lemon juice
Directions:
Heat oil in a deep stainless steel pot until hot and sauté the sweet onion for 2-3 minutes. Add green onion, cilantro, peppers, cumin salt, and black pepper, Stir for a few minutes. Add in the chopped tomatoes and sugar. Bring to boiling point. Lower heat and simmer for 1 hour, stirring often. Get jars and lids ready (washed, sterilized and hot). Put bottled lemon juice in each jar: for one pint jar add 1 Tbsp or for one quart jar
Slicing and Dicing peppers, each class member took home a pint jar of salsa. The members of the class also made three dozen extra jars of salsa and peppers which will be sold to raise money for GICD.
Tiah Lambert
add 2 Tbsp. Fill jars with hot salsa, add lids and screw on rings. Process in boiling water bath: pint jars for 35 minutes and quart jars for 45 minutes. Remove from bath, cool, and label.
Gardeners In Community Development 901 Greenbriar Lane Richardson, TX 75080
Ever Growing
Pass-a-long this newsletter: help sow the seeds of community gardening. To subscribe or un-subscribe, or to offer suggestions, contact [email protected]
Ever Growing
Fall 2007
Gardeners In Community Development 901 Greenbriar Lane Richardson, TX 75080 www.gardendallas.org
Dallas Area Community Gardening Dallas Area Community Gardening
A project of Organic Gardening Magazine and Aveeno Skin Care Products
On July 28, over 100 gardeners, church members, volunteers, supporters, and special guests, Therese Ciesinski from Organic Gardening Magazine and Kaitlin Meiser and Rita Hale from Aveeno Skin Care Products, proudly dedicated Our Saviour Community Garden’s 2000 gallon water catchment system, pavilion and new landscaping. dening Association, Aveeno Skin Care Products, and Karpenko AIA took an interest in the project and brought GICD and Tim Bonner together. The 2000 gallon cistern came from The Rain Well, and was installed by Greg Whitfield, who rushed to get it installed the day before the ceremony. The cedar posts used in both the pavilion and our new vineyard came from Sutton Tree Service in Eustace, TX. Many thanks go to the Growing and Giving home schoolers who made the festive banner that wrapped around the cistern. Also Blue Mesa Grill catered a delicious TexMex lunch. Hardworking volunteers who helped make the day so special include the Our Saviour team who made the grounds and construction site ready for visitors; volunteers from Heifer International who set up an information booth; Boy Scout Troop 783 and all the gardeners and attendees who helped with the pre-ceremony workday and planted and mulched the landscape areas.
Our Saviour WaterWorks 2007:
What’s in this issue:
Hope Receives Certications Fresh from the Asian Garden Reward Cards GICD Classes Letters Fall Planting Times Let Us Give Thanks Report from ACGA Conference Salsa Class Salsa Recipe 6 6 2 3 3 3 4 5 2 2
WaterWorks 2007 Pavilion
Dedication ceremony
GICD WISH LIST:
garden benches garden tool shed new lap top computer wheelbarrows gardening tools canning jars Mantis tiller Kubota tractor with loader and tiller friends with trucks volunteers
Knowing that community gardens bring together people of all ages, ethnic backgrounds, and experiences to create beautiful green places in their neighborhood and recognizing the vital importance of water conservation, Organic Gardening Magazine joined forces with the American Community Gar-
Nature’s Path Foods to bring rainwater harvesting systems to 20 community gardens in 2007. Our Saviour Community garden was the only community garden in Texas chosen to receive one of the systems. A 20’x30’ outdoor pavilion was constructed which serves the dual purpose of collecting rainwater from its tin roof plus serving as an outdoor educational classroom and social gathering place. The addition of this system makes Our Saviour Community Garden serve not only as a flag ship community garden but also as a model for rainwater harvesting. Many thanks go to Tim Bonner of Tim Bonner and Associates, Inc. who not only designed and built the innovative pavilion but also completed its construction in record time, and under budget as well, thus allowing more funds to be spent on landscaping. We are grateful that Matt
Rita Hale, from Aveeno Skin Care Products, helping to install plants donated by Aveeno
Therese Ciesinski, Senior Editor of Organic Gardening Magazine
Mission: improving the quality of life in neighborhoods through community gardening
Ever Growing Gardeners In Community Development
Summer 2007 www.gardendallas.org
Page 2 [email protected]
Hope Garden Receives Certifications
Hope Community Garden is proud to be certified as both a Texas Discovery Gardens Butterfly Habitat and a National Wildlife Federation Wildlife Habitat. As a certified Butterfly Habitat, Hope Garden provides the proper nectar sources, host plants and environmental conditions for all stages of a butterfly’s life cycle: egg, caterpillar, pupa, and adult. The front flower beds, native wildflowers along the alley fence, and zinnias and cosmos in many gardeners plots are a magnet for many different types of butterflies. Just a few of the butterflies seen in the garden include swallowtails, skippers, commas, question marks, Painted Ladies, Gulf Fritillaries, hairstreaks and Monarchs and, of course, many, many cabbage white butterflies (considered an agricultural pest) whose caterpillars feed on plants that are members of the mustard family. Host plants for swallowtail caterpillars that have been planted in the garden include dill, parsley, fennel and rue. In addition to being a butterfly habitat, Hope Garden has also been designated as a NWF Wildlife Habitat providing shelter, food, water and nesting sites for wildlife. Birdhouses and birdbaths provide shelter, nesting sites and water, while buckwheat, insects, and many vegetables (to the dismay of those gardeners who want the perfect ripe tomato) provide food for many varieties of birds. Hope Garden has also occasionally been the garden cafeteria for neighborhood
Eastern Black Swallowtail on zinnia
free ranging chickens and bunny rabbits as well as hosting other assorted creatures. To have your own yard or community garden certified as a Butterfly Habitat, contact Texas Discovery Gardens at Fair Park.
Area Community Gardens
Coppell Community Garden: www.coppellcommunity garden.com Education Community Garden at Dallas: www.educationcommunitygarden. org Gardeners in Community Development: www.gardendallas.org GreenHill School Garden Plano Community Garden www.jlplano.org—click on “outreach
projects”
UTD Student Garden UTD campus
Know of a community garden? Send information to [email protected]
To receive Wildlife Habitat certification through the National Wildlife Federation go to www.nwf.org.
Fresh From the East Dallas
Fall and winter bring on new crops at the East Dallas Community Market and Garden. Until the weather cools, summer crops such as amaranth greens, basil, bitter melons, eggplant, ivy leaf gourd tips, lemon grass, long beans, loofah, Malabar spinach, peppers, snake gourds, taro stems, water spinach, and wax gourds are still available. However as fall arrives and throughout the winter, look for many types of greens, including mustard, lettuce, and green onions. Most of the greens are freshly picked while still small, a size not normally found in stores. These baby greens are exceptionally tender and sweet. The East Dallas Community and Market Garden is located at 1416 N. Fitzhugh and is open every day. In general, bunches of freshly harvested produce cost $1.00 each. Saturday and Sunday mornings are the busiest times, with some specialty produce selling out quickly.
Grocery Store’s Reward Cards Support GICD
Do you shop for groceries? Of course!! Well, if you shop at Tom Thumb or Kroger, here’s a quick and painless way to support GICD at no cost to you. Just link your Tom Thumb or Kroger reward cards to GICD’s organization and a percentage of your purchase price will automatically be donated to us. To link your Tom Thumb reward card with GICD, just fill out a Good Neighbor Application Form at the Customer Service Desk with GICD’s Tom Thumb account number 6714. Then just be sure and use your reward card every time you shop. And, if you are a Kroger shopper, pick up a Kroger Share Card from Don Lambert or Rebecca Smith, or contact GICD at 972-231-3565 or [email protected]. We will happy to send you a card, along with our many thanks.
Upcoming Events at GICD
Classes, Classes, Classes—- see page 3 for details Oct. 6—Garden Party at East Dallas Garden and Market 3-6:00 April 19, 2008– Plant Sale at Asian Garden April 26, 2008– Plant Sale at Our Saviour
Ever Growing Gardeners In Community Development
Summer 2007 www.gardendallas.org
Page 3 [email protected]
GICD To Offer Three Classes: Starting a Community Garden, Seed Saving and Master Composter Certification
GICD will be offering three classes this fall. The first, Starting A Community Garden will be held on Saturday, September 15, at Our Saviour Community Garden, 1616 N. Jim Miller Road, from 2:00 to 7:00 p.m. Led by Don Lambert, who is the Executive Director of GICD and has extensive experience in starting and running community gardens, and the GICD training team, this class will include what should be considered before starting a community garden, finding suitable space, recruiting volunteers and leaders, sources of funding, etc. The cost is $30.00 and includes a stir-fry lesson and light dinner from the garden. If you are thinking about starting a community garden, or just want to learn more about starting community projects, this is the class for you. Then on Saturday, October 13, a Seed Saving class will be offered at Our Saviour Community Garden from 9:00 to 11:30. This class will teach the basics of saving all types of seeds collected in the garden. Participants will help save seeds for GICD’s community gardens as well as being able to take home some varieties of seeds for their own use. The cost for this class is $15.00 for an individual or a family. The third class will offer participants the opportunity to become a certified Master Composter. A.L. Nickerson, Master Composter and certified instructor (as well as being a Master Naturalist), will teach this nationally recognized program. The 16 hour course, on November 1-3, will enable the students to educate the public about composting, vermiculture (worm raising) and their importance to our soils and environment. There will be two evening classes (November 1-2) that will be held at Central Market at Lovers Lane and Central Expressway from 5:30 to 9:30 as well as an eight hour class on Saturday, November 3, from 8:30-4:00 that will be held at Our Saviour Community Garden for hands-on experience. Participants will make their own wire compost bin and receive all written material, including a book on composting. The three day class costs $45.00 and includes lunch on Saturday. In order to receive Master Composter certification, participants must volunteer as a Master Composter in their communities for 40 hours within the following year. GICD is very excited to be able to offer these classes to the public and spaces should fill up quickly. To sign up for any of these classes, send a check made out to GICD to 901 Greenbriar Lane, Richardson, TX 75080.
Letters, We Get Letters………….
Thank you so much for letting me know about all these great gardens. Saturday I went to the Asian market and bought lemon grass, peppers, my Mom bought eggplant, and something that looked like spinach—I am not sure what it is exactly. Late Sunday afternoon we went by and loved Hope Garden full of ripe tomatoes, then to the Pleasant Grove garden. One of the ladies working in her plot even gave me some basil. Their operation with the new cistern, the compost pile with explanation and bee hive were also impressive. All in all a great garden tour and very inspiring. I took along the newsletter and read it to my husband as we went along. Thank you again– a great Sunday garden viewing afternoon. Ann Lamb, Dallas County Master Gardener Project Manager - Gardens
And one from a child who came to the garden during a school tour:
Broccoli Beets Carrots Collards Kale Lettuce, leaf Lettuce, butterhead Lettuce, heading Mustard Peas, English and snap Radish Spinach Squash, summer Turnip TRANSPLANTS: 8/25-9/15 8/25-9/15 8/25-9/15 8/25-9/15 Brussels Sprouts Cabbage Cauliflower
FALL PLANTING TIMES FOR NORTH TEXAS
SEEDS: Beans, bush and pole 8/01-8/20 9/01-9/15 8/01-8/20 8/01-9/01 8/25-10/01 9/01-9/15 8/25-9/10 8/15-8/25 9/01-9/20 9/01-9/20 9/01-10/10 8/20-10/01 8/01-8/20 8/25-10/01
Thank you for leeting us go see the garden. I like all the thing that you all shode me. All the thing like the pumkin, squash, pepper, worms, okra and all the stuff and thank you for the cake and juice. It was good and I wish I went agin. I will always remember this day.
Ever Growing Gardeners In Community Development
Summer 2007 www.gardendallas.org
Page 4 [email protected]
Garden Gleanings:
Let Us Give Thanks
Let us give thanks for a bounty of gardeners, volunteers and supporters:
For generous ones with hearts and smiles as bright as their blossoms; For feisty ones as tart as apples; For continuous ones, who, like scallions and cucumbers, keep reminding us that we’ve had them; For crotchety ones, as sour as rhubarb and as indestructible; For handsome ones who are as gorgeous as eggplants and as elegant as a row of corn, and the others, as plain as potatoes and as good for you. For funny ones, who are as silly as Brussels sprouts and as amusing as Jerusalem artichokes, and serious ones, as complex as cauliflower and as intricate as onions; For ones as unpretentious as cabbages, as subtle as summer squash, as persistent as parsley, as delightful as dill, as endless as zucchini, and who like parsnips, can be counted on to see you throughout the winter; For old ones, nodding like sunflowers in the evening-time, and young ones coming on as fast as radishes; For loving ones, who wind around us like tendrils and hold us, despite our blights, wilts and witherings; And finally, for those now gone, like gardens past that have been harvested, and who fed us in their times that we might have life thereafter.
For all these, and more, GICD gives thanks.
Author Unknown
Ever Growing Gardeners In Community Development
Summer 2007 www.gardendallas.org
Page 5 [email protected]
Report from the ACGA Conference
GICD was well represented by Don and Tiah Lambert, Amanda Brown, Rebecca Smith and Nancy Wilson at the annual American Community Garden Association Conference held in Boston from August 9-12, 2007. The following is an article written by Nancy Wilson about her experiences at the conference: Our visit to the community gardens and urban farming projects in Boston was incredibly eye-opening to a novice like me. Listening to program directors from all over the United States and Canada made it clear that community gardening has broad applications. Some of the most interesting Neighbors banded toprojects are ones inspired by and sustained out of local need. gether to address neighborhood quality of life focusing on eye-sore vacant lots and vacant lots being used for illicit and illegal purposes. Out of the need to find creative solutions arose beautiful gardens which unite neighbors and build a sense of community. Gardens also provide safe places for children to play and for cross-generational and cross-cultural relationships to develop. Many programs developed gardens as a tool to teach teenagers about personal responsibility. Kids vie for these positions and commit to them. The self esteem they developed from their garden experience was amazing. The kids we met not only learned about gardening, but they learned to work with others, to supervise other kids, to develop business plans, to market their vegetables, to take care of the earth and plants and each other. They were enthusiastic and articulate—and their land had fewer weeds than many of the adult gardens! The things that made me most envious of the gardens I heard about were that they seemed to have plenty of workshops training gardeners how to grow and how to cook the food they grew. They also offered a lot of socialization—places to gather together to talk or to hold events like cookouts or musical performances. Many gardens spun their sense of community into outreach to address literacy issues, self esteem issues, and personal development issues. Over and over, Neighbors in cities today don’t much know one another. We drive home from work, pull into our garages, go into our houses and stay there until we climb back into our cars. Gardens offer a place to bring people out of their houses and into a beautiful place—what a respite they offer! Community gardens met the needs of cities and citizens by increasing the safety of neighborhoods by removing sites where crimes happen, eliminating eye-sore trash dumps or weed-eaten lots, providing nutritious food to populations with little access to good food and providing life changing out-reach to troubled kids, ex-cons, struggling immigrants and others. Gardens were able to span across cultural and economic barriers through people sharing common interests. Gardens were also the Gardeners in Community Development A 501 c (3) Non-Profit Organization Board of Directors Cathi Haug, President Amanda Brown, Vice President Carolyn Bush, Secretary A.L. Nickerson, Treasurer Patsy Aguilera Azenath Wright catalyst for unusual partnering such as bringing books and literacy programs to kids who came to play or work in the garden and homework mentors who met neighborhood kids in the garden. I was surprised at the diversity of non-profit organizations that center on community gardening. funded Not only are these organizations by philanthropic grants, they are we heard examples of 90% community and 10% gardening.
HARVEST DONATIONS
4231 Pounds
backed by city governments and citizen organizations that care about quality of life issues like green space, open space, air quality and the mental and physical health aspects enhanced by gardens. We heard several examples of city mayors and city environmental departments who supported and promoted the gardens not only for the greening of their cities, but also for the promotion of public health and safety. It struck me that Dallas is an environmental Neanderthal compared to cities larger and smaller than we are.
Donated to area food pantries
Don Lambert, Executive Director Support Community Gardening
Watch a video about donation gardening at Our Saviour Community Garden:
http://www.wfaa.com/mojo/ or http://www.wfaa.com/video/index.html? nvid=171935
Your tax-deductible donation will support GICD’s community gardening programs. Any and all donations are gratefully accepted!! Please make your check payable to: GICD and send to 901 Greenbriar Lane, Richardson, TX 75080
Interested in volunteering?
East Dallas Community and Market Garden: contact Don at (972) 275-8473 or [email protected] Hope Community Garden: contact Carolyn at (214) 328-0102 or [email protected] Our Saviour Community Garden: contact Rebecca at ( 214) 564-5801 or [email protected]
Ever Growing Gardeners In Community Development
Summer 2007 www.gardendallas.org
Page 6 [email protected]
Salsa Class and Tiah’s Special Salsa Recipe
About twelve people attended the salsa making class on July 6, learned about the proper methods of canning and made Tiah’s Special Salsa and Sweet and Hot Peppers with produce freshly picked from the gardens. In addition to having a good time chatting while slicing tomatoes and
TIAH’S SPECIAL SALSA
Ingredients:
4-5 lbs. tomatoes, chopped 1 lb. sweet peppers, chopped 1/4 lb. hot peppers, chopped 2 bunches cilantro, chopped fine 1 bunch green onion, chopped fine 1 sweet onion, chopped fine 2 Tbsp cumin powder 2 Tbsp salt 1 Tbsp black pepper 1/4 cup brown sugar -or more for sweet salsa 3 Tbsp olive or canola oil 1 pint bottled lemon juice
Directions:
Heat oil in a deep stainless steel pot until hot and sauté the sweet onion for 2-3 minutes. Add green onion, cilantro, peppers, cumin salt, and black pepper, Stir for a few minutes. Add in the chopped tomatoes and sugar. Bring to boiling point. Lower heat and simmer for 1 hour, stirring often. Get jars and lids ready (washed, sterilized and hot). Put bottled lemon juice in each jar: for one pint jar add 1 Tbsp or for one quart jar
Slicing and Dicing peppers, each class member took home a pint jar of salsa. The members of the class also made three dozen extra jars of salsa and peppers which will be sold to raise money for GICD.
Tiah Lambert
add 2 Tbsp. Fill jars with hot salsa, add lids and screw on rings. Process in boiling water bath: pint jars for 35 minutes and quart jars for 45 minutes. Remove from bath, cool, and label.
Gardeners In Community Development 901 Greenbriar Lane Richardson, TX 75080
Ever Growing
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