Report from Phil Rhoads for End of Season

[Phil Rhoads]

I believe that Rainbow's participation in the Healthy Kidz Garden with Rosedale UCC and St. Paul AME Zion was overall a very beneficial activity this summer and fall.

The positive benefits included:

1. Getting to do hands-on gardening, helping to maintain plants which had been planted previously by the two initiating churchs (Rosedale and St. Paul).

2. Getting to rototill and plant new seeds and plants for a fall crop.


3. Getting to meet and have friendly conversations with other volunteer gardeners from the other churches, and having fun working together with members of Rainbow on a new project.

4. Enjoying the "fruits of our labor" in eating vegetables grown in the garden.

5. Observing the cooperative spirit of the landowner and neighbor who allowed access to her water and stored our tools and kept an eye on the garden while we were away.

Things I would like to do differently next year:

1. Get started with the other churches at the beginning of the season; help plan the layout of the garden and help pick which vegetables to grow.

2. Expand Rainbow's goals to include starting a garden near our church, possibly on the vacant lot on 37th Street between Early and Mill.

3. Make a concerted effort to invite participation from neighbors of the garden(s) by passing out door-hangers, mailings, phone calls, etc. Start with a radius of 1/4 mile around the garden(s) and expand it up to 1 mile if resources and volunteers permit.

4. Consider holding "regular" community garden events such as a "potato digging day" or "corn picking day" and advertise it to the community. Canning tomatoes and cooking chard could be "demonstration" events. More ambitious events might be: a) we buy some apples and hold a large apple butter making event; b) we buy some flour, make an earthen oven, and bake bread in an oven.

5. Build a large arbor as an entrance to the garden (like the magnificent one at the Beanstalk Garden at KC Community Gardens on Kensington) and plant vines to climb up and cover it.

6. Expand flower growing in front of the garden; add a bench or two for passers-by to sit on and enjoy nature.

— Submitted by Phil Rhoads, Rainbow Mennonite Church, Nov. 5, 2008