Garden E-News: July 9, 2010
Patty Zehl
In This E-Newsletter - July 9, 2010
Ø Each item in the following content list is connected with a link to the article to help save you some scrolling time.
Ø If you’ve missed any past E-News issues, go to: http://www.cacscw.org/gardens/newsletters/newsletters.htm
- Events - This Week and Beyond
- Olbrich’s Home Garden Tour: July 9-10
- Madison Fruits & Nuts - Potluck July 11
- Community Garden Leaders Gathering - July 12
- Wisconsin Farm Center Organic Vegetable Production Workshop - July 12
- “Evening Walk” - Insect Identification – July 13
- Garden History and Documentation - July 14
- Olbrich's Blooming Butterflies - July 14 thru August 8
- “Evening Walk” - Disease Identification – July 23
- Class: Canning Pickles - July 24
- Community Gardens Bike Tour - July 24
- City of Madison Community Gardens Committee Meeting - July 27
- UW West Madison Research Station Vegetable Variety Trials - July 28
- “Evening Walk” New and Heirloom Veg Cultivars - Aug 4
- ACGA'S Annual Conference - Aug 5-8
- “Evening Walk” - Fruit Trees and Plants – August 10
- Class: Drying Fruit, Vegetables & Herbs - August 10
- Class: Freezing Fruits, Vegetables & Herbs - August 11
- Compost Workshop - August 15
- Class: Making Homemade Jams & Jellies - August 21
- Urban Horticulture Day - Aug 21
- Class: Solar Drying: Veggies, Fruits & Flowers - Aug 24
- Class: Canning Tomatoes & Salsa - September 4
- Growing Power’s Urban & Small Farm Conference September 10-12
- MACSAC’s 4th annual Bike the Barns - Sept. 11
- Martinis & Zucchini - Celebrating the Bounty of Troy Gardens - Sept. 15
- AHTA Conference - Oct 13-16
- Class: Canning Fruits & Applesauce - October 16
- Job or Volunteer Opportunities
- FYI
- Neighborhood Challenge - One Vegetable at a Time
- Join the Community Gardeners Listserv
- Fruit Trees in City Parks
- REAP's New YouTube Channel
- Workplace Vegetable Gardens
- Farm to Hospital Programs
- H.R.4971 - Greening Food Deserts Act
- Incredible Edible Todmorden Movement - Food Self Sufficiency
- Farming Concrete: Measuring Food Production in NYC’s Community Gardens
Olbrich’s Home Garden Tour: July 9-10
Experience a world of garden wonders on Olbrich’s Home Garden Tour, featuring edible and ornamental gardens. Tour private home gardens in northeast Madison neighborhoods and collect ideas for your own garden on Friday, July 9 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday, July 10 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Many of the gardens on this year’s tour creatively include edible plants. Some gardeners chose to plant a large vegetable garden, while others have simply chosen to add vegetables or herbs in containers. Also see creative patios, soothing water features, and bold, attention-grabbing plants; wander through intimate, shady backyards or stroll through sunny areas dotted with vegetables.
During the tour, enjoy a stop at Troy Community Gardens to see first-hand how gardening can be a community effort. Be inspired by creative solutions to gardening problems, beautiful landscapes, and interesting homeowners during Olbrich’s Home Garden Tour. Pastries and sandwiches will be available for purchase onsite from Manna Cafe during the tour.
Tickets are available at the Greeter Desk at Olbrich Botanical Gardens,
Fellys Flowers and Jung Garden Centers.
For more information and ticket outlet locations visit:
http://www.olbrich.org/events/homegardentour.cfm
or call 608-246-4550 Return to Contents List
Madison Fruits & Nuts - Potluck July 11
We want to invite you to our first fruity-licious potluck on July 11 at the Wil Mar Center at 1pm. (Location Info: 953 Jenifer St. | Madison, WI 53703 | Phone: (608) 257-4576)
Everybody is especially encouraged to bring a fruit-themed dish and, FYI, a bottle of wine on a table is not going to upset the Wil Mar center folks. $1.00 per person donation pays for the space.
We'll talk about fruit trees we are growing or just enjoying along our walks. We'll talk about fruit, swap some plants and dig into some good food. And we will also talk about how we're going to be pushing forward with a variety of plans to foster this form of urban agriculture. Want to be involved in making a gleaning map of urban fruit? Want to plant a new orchard in your neighborhood next spring? Want to help put pro-fruit policies in place? Bring your ideas and energy and meet others who want to work with you.
Questions - drop us a note at this address or call Carol Gruba at 608-341-8547 or Jim Winkle at 259-1812.
Community Garden Leaders Gathering - July 12
Topics: Helping new gardeners succeed & Plant disease identification and treatment
Monday, July 12, 2010, 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm
Bridge-Lake Point-Waunona Community Garden
All current and aspiring community garden leaders, along with gardeners and community members, are invited to this two-topic gathering. A panel of new and experienced community gardeners will discuss gardening and organizational methods to help new gardeners succeed with their community garden ventures during the first hour of the gathering. Dr. Brian Hudelson from the University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Plant Pathology will share information about diagnosing and treating plant diseases during the second hour.
Come and learn about common plant diseases found in vegetable gardens, methods to apply at your community garden to help ensure success for new gardeners, and spend time with other gardeners in a beautiful setting. Snacks and Hmong and Spanish translation will be provided.
RSVP by July 9 to Nicole Craig, 246-4730 x208, Nic...@cacscw.org (habla español). For Hmong, contact Yee Ythao at 770-1074. The Bridge-Lake Point-Waunona Community Garden can be found at the 5000 block of Raywood
Directions: In Waunona Park, 5000 block of Raywood Road near the south shore of Lake Monona, behind the Broadway PDQ. Parking is available on surrounding residential streets. Rain location is Bridge Lake Point Waunona Neighborhood Center, 1917 Lake Point Drive.
Return to Contents List Wisconsin Farm Center
Organic Vegetable Production Workshop - July 12
The Wisconsin Farm Center is presenting a one-day (10am - 3pm) workshop on the basics of organic production and rules for organic certification, including a field visit to Tipi farms in Evansville. Instruction will be in English, Spanish, and Hmong.
Location: St. Joseph Parish
1905 W. Beltline Highway
Madison, WI 53713
Workshop registration required.
For more information:
English – Kathy Schmitt 1-800-942-2474
Spanish – Melba Obando 608- 575-3492
Hmong – Chia Thao (608) 575-1696
“Evening Walk” - Insect Identification – July 13
Learn about insect identification – hands-on in the garden at the West Madison Agricultural Research Station Trial and Demonstration Garden.
Join Phil Pellitteri, Entomology Specialist, University of Wisconsin, Extension; beginning at 6:30p.m.
All programs are OPEN TO THE PUBLIC – free parking, a donation is requested. The garden is supported through donations and grants.
For more information: http://www.cals.wisc.edu/westmad/
Garden History and Documentation - July 14
For those of you willing to travel…..Turnover in community gardens can be pretty intense. We often inherit these spaces from the people who came before us and hope to pass this gift on to the next person. Collecting and presenting your community garden's history is vital to its sustainability -- engaging gardeners in something larger than themselves, informing neighbors (or reminding them) what was here before the garden and the difference the garden has made in the neighborhood. And most of all, because it's just so very cool to be able to look back and say, "Oh yeah, I remember...." See how others are doing it, things to record and easy ways to make this history accessible!
This is also to help you get ideas on record keeping and documenting the triumphs, tribulations, and technicalities of the current gardening season.
Wednesday, July 14th 6:30-8:30 pm
Valley Natural Foods
13750 County Road 11, Burnsville, MN 55337
(Outside, if weather is nice. If not, then in the classroom!)
RSVP to Nadja at nadja.garde...@gmail.com
Olbrich's Blooming Butterflies - July 14 thru August 8
Experience the magnificence of free-flying butterflies while strolling through the tropical Bolz Conservatory. Live butterflies emerge from chrysalises daily in the Conservatory, including low-flyers like the playful yellow and black striped zebras and bright orange Julias. More than a dozen species of butterflies, native to both Wisconsin and the more tropical areas of the southern United States can be seen at various times during the exhibit.
For more information:
http://www.olbrich.org/events/butterflies.cfm
“Evening Walk” - Disease Identification – July 23
Learn about disease identification on vegetable, annual and perennial flowers, and fruit – hands-on in the garden at the West Madison Agricultural Research Station Trial and Demonstration Garden.
Join Brian Hudelson, Plant Disease Specialist, University of Wisconsin; from 6:30 – 8:00 p.m.
All programs are OPEN TO THE PUBLIC – free parking, a donation is requested. The garden is supported through donations and grants.
For more information: http://www.cals.wisc.edu/westmad/
Class: Canning Pickles - July 24
Learn to can pickles that taste just like the ones from the store, but come from freshly picked cucumbers from your own garden or the local Farmer's Market.
Time: 09:00 AM; Location: Christ Memorial Church, 2833 Raritan Rd., Fitchburg
Cost: To be determined
Sponsored By: Fitchburg Fields
For more information: http://fitchburgfields.org/main/index.php?id=48
Community Gardens Bike Tour - July 24
With Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz
Saturday, July 24, 9am-1pm
Family-friendly bike tour of community, youth, and food pantry gardens in Madison and Monona. We’ll tour the East High Youth Farm, Glendale School garden, and community and food pantry gardens at Monona United Methodist Church and St. Stephen’s Lutheran Church.
Sponsored by Community Action Coalition for South Central Wisconsin
Contact Nicole Craig at CAC for more information: 246-4730 ext. 208
Community Gardens Committee Meeting - July 27
Charged with preserving, expanding and enhancing opportunities for community gardening, the Community Gardens Committee works to raise the visibility of community gardening and create better understanding of its many benefits.
New business on the 7/27 agenda: City's Potential Requirement of a Lease and Liability Insurance for Urban Orchards and Edible Landscaping on Public Lands.
All meetings are open to the public, with Hmong and Spanish interpreters available to facilitate participation by all attendees.
Next meeting: July 27, 2010 at 5:00 p.m.
Where: City-County
Building, 210 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd,
Rm. 103A
For more information about the Community Gardening Committee: http://www.cacscw.org/gardens/committee%20update%20report.doc
To access the city Web Site:
http://www.cityofmadison.com/residents/communitygardens/index.cfm
UW West Madison Research Station
Vegetable Variety Trials - July 28
Organic vegetable variety trials, no-till vegetables, pest control, and fertility management
Time: 1:15pm; Host: Erin Silva
Location: West Madison Research Station; 8502 Mineral Point Rd, Verona, WI.
“Evening Walk” New and Heirloom Veg Cultivars - Aug 4
Learn how to grow, harvest, and store a variety of vegetable cultivars at the West Madison Agricultural Research Station Trial and Demonstration Garden.
Join Judith Reith-Rozelle, Assistant Superintendent of the University of Wisconsin, West Madison Research Station; from 6:30 – 8:00 p.m.
All programs are OPEN TO THE PUBLIC – free parking, a donation is requested. The garden is supported through donations and grants.
For more information: http://www.cals.wisc.edu/westmad/
ACGA’S Annual Conference - Aug 5-8
Save this date for the American Community Gardening Associations annual conference in Atlanta, Georgia. The topic is - Holistic Approach to Building Sustainable and Healthy Communities, the “Choice is Yours.”
To register go online to:
http://www.communitygarden.org/learn/training/annual-conference/conference.php
“Evening Walk” - Fruit Trees and Plants – August 10
Learn about grapes, raspberries, blueberries, apples, strawberries, and all those little unknown fruits on a “fruit walk” at the West Madison Agricultural Research Station Trial and Demonstration Garden.
Join Bob Tomesh, University of Wisconsin, Extension; from 6:30 – 8:00 p.m.
All programs are OPEN TO THE PUBLIC – free parking, a donation is requested. The garden is supported through donations and grants.
For more information: http://www.cals.wisc.edu/westmad/
Class: Drying Fruit, Vegetables & Herbs - August 10
One method of preserving your harvest for storage is dehydration. Certified Master Food Preserver Polly Reott will share tips and recipes that will allow you to enjoy your bounty months after picking.
Time: 06:00 PM
Location: Christ Memorial Church, 2833 Raritan Rd., Fitchburg
Cost: To be determined
Sponsored By: Fitchburg Fields
For more information: http://fitchburgfields.org/main/index.php?id=48
Class: Freezing Fruits, Vegetables & Herbs - August 11
Learn to preserve your harvest (and the valuable vitamins) the easy way – in your freezer! Participants will prepare and begin the process of freezing produce during the workshop and will take home produce that is ready to go in the freezer.
Time: 06:00 PM
Location: Christ Memorial Church, 2833 Raritan Rd., Fitchburg
Cost: To be determined
Sponsored By: Fitchburg Fields
For more information: http://fitchburgfields.org/main/index.php?id=48
Gardening experts demonstrate the components necessary to turn kitchen and yard waste into productive fertilizer for your vegetables and flowers. The workshop will be held in two parts - we'll start at the Fitchburg Field's Teaching and Sharing Garden on the SE corner of Lacy Road and Fahey Glen for a demonstration of our multi-bin method and then go a short distance away to Nox's house on Syene Road to see how his bins are set up. Hands-on practice will be included so that you will understand how to add materials and turn the piles to speed up the process.
Time: 1:00 PM
Location: Teaching & Sharing Garden, Fitchburg Fields
Cost: To be determined
Sponsored By: Fitchburg Fields
For more information: http://fitchburgfields.org/main/index.php?id=12
Class: Making Homemade Jams & Jellies - August 21
Learn to make delicious jams and jellies with produce from your own garden or the local Farmer's Market.
Time: 02:00 PM
Location: Christ Memorial Church, 2833 Raritan Rd., Fitchburg
Cost: To be determined
Sponsored By: Fitchburg Fields
For more information: http://fitchburgfields.org/main/index.php?id=48
Urban Horticulture Day - August 21
Want to make your green thumb even greener? Join us (10am-3pm) for the annual Urban Horticulture Field Day at the University of Wisconsin - Madison's West Madison Agricultural Research Station's - Trial and Demonstration Gardens, held, every year, on the third Saturday, in August.
It's a great place to get new ideas and answers to perplexing problems, sample fresh produce and tour one of the area's most extensive collections of flower and vegetable varieties, including many that haven't yet appeared in seed catalogs.
The field day is sponsored by UW - West Madison Agricultural Research Station staff, researchers at the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Extension staff, and Master Gardener Volunteers.
The West Madison Agricultural Research Station is located at 8502 Mineral Point Road, about a mile west of the beltline. Admission and parking are free.
Class: Solar Drying: Veggies, Fruits & Flowers - Aug 24
5:30 – 7:00 p.m.
Offered by the West Madison Garden Staff
West Madison Agricultural Research Station Trial and Demonstration Garden
All programs are OPEN TO THE PUBLIC – free parking, a donation is requested. The garden is supported through donations and grants.
For more information: http://www.cals.wisc.edu/westmad/ Return to Contents List
Class: Canning Tomatoes & Salsa - September 4
Learn to can tomatoes and salsa that tastes better than what you get from the store, but come from freshly picked produce from your own garden or the local Farmer's Market.
Time: 09:00 AM
Location: Christ Memorial Church, 2833 Raritan Rd., Fitchburg
Cost: To be determined
Sponsored By: Fitchburg Fields
For more information: http://fitchburgfields.org/main/index.php?id=48 Return to Contents List
Urban & Small Farm Conference September 10 - 12
Come to Milwaukee and help grow the good food revolution. Hosted by Growing Power—a national organization headed by the sustainable urban farmer and MacArthur Fellow Will Allen—this international conference will teach the participant how to plan, develop and grow small farms in urban and rural areas. Learn how you can grow food year-round, no matter what the climate, and how you can build markets for small farms. See how you can play a part in creating a new food system that fosters better health and more closely-knit communities.
For more information:
http://www.growingpowerfarmconference.org/
MACSAC’s 4th annual Bike the Barns - Sept. 11
All of the proceeds from this event benefit MACSAC's Partner Shares Program which helps low-income families purchase fresh, local, organic vegetables and have a direct connection with their food and farm through community supported agriculture.
In 2010, the Partner Shares Program assisted more families than ever before and provided more than 15,000 pounds of fresh vegetables to low-income families. With your help, we can reach our fundraising goal of $35,000 to make sure all of our neighbors have access to healthy food.
This spectacular fundraising bicycle ride features local farms and local food prepared by Underground Food Collective. When you participate in Bike the Barns, you not only enjoy a well-planned route spaced with sustainable, local farms and artisan delicacies, but you also are supporting an increasingly important right to our future health - the health of our neighbors, our land, our farmers, and our local economies.
For more information: http://www.macsac.org/bikethebarns/
Celebrating the Bounty of Troy Gardens - Sept. 15
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
5:00-8:00 pm
Troy Gardens, 500 Block of Troy Drive, Madison, WI 53704
Cocktails and delicious food by Marigold Kitchen/
Sardine, featuring locally sourced products like produce from our certified organic Troy Community Farm and spirits from Yahara Bay Distillery
Tickets: $65
Proceeds support Community GroundWorks’ work to nurture meaningful relationships between people and the land.
To purchase tickets or to get more information, please call 608.240.0409, or visit our website at www.communitygroundworks.org
The 2010 conference will take place at the Chicago Botanic Garden in Chicago, Illinois. Horticultural Therapy is the active or passive use of plants, gardening, gardening spaces and related activities to promote personal physical, emotional, and mental well-being.
American Horticultural Therapy Association (AHTA) is proud to announce its new partnership with the Chicago Botanical Garden
More information will become available at the AHTA website:
http://www.ahta.org/content.cfm?id=2010con
Class: Canning Fruits & Applesauce - October 16
Learn to can fresh fruits and make applesauce with produce from your own garden or the local Farmer's Market.
Time: 09:00 AM
Location: Hy-Vee Club Room, 3801 E. Washington Madison, WI 53704
Cost: To be determined
Sponsored By: Fitchburg Fields
For more information: http://fitchburgfields.org/main/index.php?id=48
Grants
Grant Pre-proposals Due: August 23
Projects to increase the purchase of food grown or produced in
Wisconsin are eligible for competitive grants this year through the Buy Local, Buy Wisconsin (BLBW) program. The deadline for 2010 grants pre-proposals is 4 p.m., Aug. 23.
"We're looking for projects that strengthen Wisconsin's agricultural economy by keeping a larger share of the dollars spent on food here in the state," Rod Nilsestuen, Secretary of the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, said. "We welcome a wide variety of ideas."
Individuals, groups, businesses and organization involved in Wisconsin agriculture, agritourism, food retailing, processing, and distribution or warehousing are invited to apply. The maximum grant award is $50,000 per project, and grant applicants must provide at least a 33 percent cash or in-kind match. Application materials are available at: http://datcp.state.wi.us/press_release/result.jsp?prid=2526
Contact: Teresa Cuperus: 608-224-5101
Volunteer Opportunities
Food Pantry Gardens - Volunteers Needed
Food pantry gardens grow and distribute fresh fruit and vegetables that are donated to food pantries, meal sites and shelters. Volunteers of all ages work and learn together in the pantry gardens — planting seeds, tending plants, and harvesting produce.
Since 2000, an estimated one million pounds of produce was donated by the Madison Area Food Pantry Gardens, in their Hershberger, Lacy and Malmquist pantry gardens. This effort led by Emmett Schulte and Ken Witte has inspired others to start their own pantry gardens.
Currently in Dane County there are 27 food pantry gardens, varying in size from 10’x10’ to 2 acres. Thirteen of these gardens are exclusively food pantry gardens where volunteers raise 100% of the food for donation. Fourteen are smaller gardens that are associated with a community garden or youth garden.
For these gardens to succeed, they need your assistance. If you can help once a month, or once a week - the contribution of your time would give neighbors in need an opportunity to eat a healthier diet of fresh locally grown veggies.
To read a recent Isthmus article on food pantry gardens:
http://www.thedailypage.com/isthmus/article.php?article=28741
For more information on volunteering in or starting a food pantry garden, contact:
Community Action Coalition, Patty Zehl:
608-246-4730, ext 234, or pat...@cacscw.org
Community Action Coalition - Volunteers Needed
Community Action Coalition for South Central Wisconsin, Inc has many volunteer opportunities (both indoor and outside) to assist with community gardens in the Madison area.
Out in the Fresh Air:
• Gardens Project Assistant – help gardens with occasional infrastructure projects like: water line installation, building signs or compost bins, landscaping and general repairs.
• Children's Plot Assistant – work with youth and youth program leaders in community youth gardens.
• Hmong & Spanish Cultural Assistant – translate at garden events, help with phone calls to Hmong and Spanish speaking gardeners and sometimes translate written materials.
Inside at the Desk:
• Events & Outreach – help plan events & gatherings.
• Data Collection and Entry – enter all the demographic data into an Access database and other spreadsheets.
• Community Gardens Program Report - collect information from garden leaders about their specific community gardens.
INTERNSHIPS: work on cataloging historical information on Madison area community gardens or managing website content.
For more information, contact Jason Clay: jas...@cacscw.org, or call 246-4730 ext. 209.
Darbo Community Garden - Mentors Needed
This summer, a group of teens will build a small enterprise from the ground up. They'll create Off the Block Salsa from concept to jar to pantry. Run through the Mentoring Positives program, this project is putting the kids, most from the multicultural Darbo-Worthington neighborhood, to work in an entirely new way and getting them experience that will last a lifetime.
It's just one of the kids' activities happening this summer at the Darbo Community Garden. Located on a 50-by-70-foot corner square of the Salvation Army Community Center lawn along Rosemary Avenue and Darbo Drive, the garden this year is teaching neighborhood kids of all ages how to dig in the dirt and grow food to feed themselves and their neighbors
All of the teens doing the project are involved with Mentoring Positives. You can contact Mentoring Positives directly at PO Box 14567 Madison, WI 53708. You can also contact Willie Green directly at (608) 819-6200 or by email at: mentoring...@hotmail.com
What can you do?
Volunteers are needed to work with the teens. Cash is needed to provide the teens some kind of stipend throughout the summer. A computer is needed to do the books and keep things organized.
To read Lynn Welch’s article “Salsa Saves the Day” in the Isthmus:
http://www.thedailypage.com/isthmus/article.php?article=29721
Join the City of Madison Community Gardens Committee
The City of Madison Community Gardens Committee (CMCGC) is currently seeking new citizen members to represent community gardeners in Madison. Representatives of certain city committees (Plan, Parks and CDBG), citizen gardeners, and staff (from the Mayor’s office and Community Action Coalition) comprise the committee. Membership is open to any Madison resident who has an interest or role in Madison's community gardens. The committee meets monthly (except in the summer months). All meetings are open to the public, with Hmong and Spanish interpreters available to facilitate participation by all attendees.
The CMCGC was established in 2005 and given the charge of preserving, expanding and enhancing opportunities for community gardening in Madison. The committee works to raise the visibility of community gardening and create better understanding of its many benefits.
The committee fosters collaborative partnerships and leverages limited resources by harnessing support for gardens from within the community and multiple units of city government. The Community Gardens Committee provides an invaluable public forum -- a place where garden advocates and city government work together to build a productive and sustainable system of community gardens in Madison.
Next meeting: Tuesday, September 28, 5-6pm
Where: City-County Building, 210 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd, Rm. 108
For more information about the Community Gardening Committee:
http://www.cityofmadison.com/residents/communitygardens/index.cfm
If you are interested in being a member of the City Community Gardens Committee, please contact Nicole Craig at nic...@cacscw.org or call her at 246-4730 ext. 208.
FYI
Neighborhood Challenge - One Vegetable at a Time
Hunger is a global problem, but the lack of fresh vegetables in our own neighborhoods is something we should be able to solve with the help of our local home gardeners.
In an effort to increase the summer supply of fresh produce at Dane County food pantries, Community Action Coalition of South Central Wisconsin (CAC) is piloting the “Neighborhood Challenge - Plant a Row for the Hungry” to collect extra produce from home gardeners for distribution to food pantries.
Individual gardeners are always welcome to take their extra produce to their neighborhood food pantry. This can sometimes become a logistics problem. Food pantries often have limited refrigeration space, resulting in the need to have fresh veggies delivered just prior to their food distribution to pantry customers. Gardeners who are at work when the pantries want delivery often give up on the idea of donating.
The Neighborhood Challenge addresses this problem, by allowing gardeners to deliver their veggies to a convenient neighborhood drop-off site before they go to work. A volunteer, recruited by the local neighborhood association, weighs the donation and delivers the veggies collected from multiple households to the food pantry when they are needed that day.
Community Action Coalition will honor the Dane County neighborhood association with the highest total weight of veggies donated between July 1st and Sept. 30th as the winner of the Neighborhood Challenge.
Home gardeners can make a difference, and this challenge is a method of making it easier for each of these gardeners to donate their excess produce to their neighbors in need - reducing hunger one vegetable at a time. If you think your neighborhood association would be interested in participating in this challenge, contact: Patty Zehl, pat...@cacscw.org, 608-246-4730 ext 234.
Join the Community Gardeners Listserv
You are invited to join the listserv for Madison area community gardeners. Go to: http://groups.google.com/group/madisonarea-community-gardeners and click on ‘Apply for group membership’.
Join the listserv to discuss community gardening questions and topics, meet other community gardeners, and receive the Community Action Coalition community gardens e-newsletter, full of great garden-related events, tips, and more!
Have you heard about the effort to get fruit trees and other edible landscaping in city parks? This will likely happen in some form, but currently the city would like to require volunteers to pay a $200 lease and purchase $1 million dollars worth of liability insurance.
Check out the public facebook page "Yum! Madison Wants Public Fruit Trees" at:
http://tinyurl.com/2d43mwo and read the "Info" tab. "Like" it to show your support.
See the Capitol Times opinion piece entitled "Remove ridiculous barriers to public fruit trees" at http://tinyurl.com/2e6hs2f
Want to re-capture Michael Pollan's stirring Food For Thought keynote speech? Need to replicate Chef Charles' pan-seared Fountain Prairie tri-tip beef? Bummed that you missed Pie Palooza? Well now you can easily relive and/or experience all of those great REAP moments.
To take a look: http://www.youtube.com/user/REAPFood#p/a
A small, though growing, number of employers are sponsoring employee-run gardens as a means for boosting employee morale, encouraging healthier eating and, in some cases, supporting local food banks.
A few employers in Dane County with workplace gardens include: Epic, Gilson Inc., WISC-TV, Ohio Medical Products and American Girl.
For more information on starting a workplace vegetable garden, contact:
Community Action Coalition, Nicole Craig:
608-246-4730, ext 208, or nic...@cacscw.org
Articles on Workplace Vegetable Gardens:
Company Gardens Reap Intangible Benefits
http://ceventura.ucdavis.edu/files/77403.pdf
Vegetable Gardens Help Morale Grow
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125055110227438411.html
Employee Gardens Provide a Low-Cost Way to Boost Camaraderie and Ensure a Healthier Workforce
http://www.winningworkplaces.org/library/features/employee_gardens_healthier_workforce.php
PepsiCo Opens Organic Garden at World Headquarters
http://www.pepsico.com/PressRelease/PepsiCo-Opens-Organic-Garden-at-World-Headquarters05262009.html
Garden Helps Employees Enjoy the Fruits of Their Labor
http://hr.blr.com/news.aspx?id=79806
Growth Opportunity
Employees harvest rich bounty from Organix-South’s community vegetable garden
http://www.npicenter.com/anm/templates/newsATemp.aspx?articleid=21798&zoneid=5
In recent years some hospitals are partnering with local farmers to improve the quality of food in their institutions. These partnerships, known as Farm to Hospital Programs, not only bring healthier food, but also help small and local farmers by providing them with increased economic opportunities.
A leader in this trend is the Center for Food and Justice (CFJ) at Occidental College in Los Angeles. They have been working to promote the Farm to Hospital Program model and implement pilot Farm to Hospital Programs throughout Southern California.
CFK started the Healthy Food in Health Care Pledge to get hospitals to serve more local fruits and vegetables, hormone-free milk, and meat raised without antibiotics or hormones. The pledge also asks health care institutions to go beyond local and healthy food purchasing and adopt practices for food waste, food packaging, and buying fair trade products. So far, over 160 facilities nationwide have taken the pledge.
If you work at a healthcare facility or are concerned about the food served at your local hospital, contact the food services director or the health education department to see about making a positive and healthful change in your community with the Farm to Hospital Program.
For more information on CFJ see: http://departments.oxy.edu/uepi/cfj/f2h.htm
For the Farm to Hospital Programs source article go to:
http://lafarmgirl.blogspot.com/2009/02/bringing-farm-to-hospital.html
For more information on a Cleveland hospital cultivating a mindset of healthy eating: http://www.cleanmed.org/2009/downloads/presentations/B6/Michael_O'Connell.pdf, and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzPys1WnBJI
H.R.4971 - Greening Food Deserts Act
Summary of Bill:
To increase the emphasis on urban agricultural issues in the Department of Agriculture through the establishment of a new office to ensure that Department authorities are used to effectively encourage local agricultural production and increase the availability of fresh food in urban areas, particularly underserved communities experiencing hunger, poor nutrition, obesity, and food insecurity, and for other purposes.
Link to Sign for Support or Opposition to Bill:
http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h4971/show
Full Explanation of Bill:
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=h111-4971
Incredible Edible Todmorden Movement - Food Self Sufficiency
The British town of Todmorden has high unemployment yet has united around the idea of becoming food self sufficient by 2018. In just two years they've started gardens in public spaces that anyone may harvest, planted community orchards, foraged fruit, and have come up with so many community gardening ideas beyond the standard ones.
For more information: www.incredible-edible-todmorden.co.uk
Farming Concrete: Measuring Food Production in NYC’s Community Gardens
The American Community Garden Association defines a community garden as "any piece of land gardened by a group of people." These spaces - peaceful enclaves where one can reconnect with their soil, food, and fellow gardeners - are meaningful across age groups and cultures, and serve as valuable assets for community identity.
Healthy food production in community gardens is especially relevant today, when the number of New York City residents who rely on emergency food and lack access to affordable fresh produce in grocery stores is increasing. In the context of a dysfunctional food system, urban agriculture is becoming even more indispensable.
No one knows just how much food these gardens are growing. That is what this project seeks to measure.
For more information on this project: http://farmingconcrete.com/
Please send a note to Patty Zehl at Community Action Coalition: pat...@cacscw.org if you would like to get off this email list, add a friend to it, or share an announcement with your fellow community gardeners in the Madison area. If you receive this email more than once, please contact me so I can remove duplicate messages.