SUSTAINABILITY
Community Gardens
Sprouting up in unexpected places
Community garden plots produce more than fruits and veggies
T
he benefits of community gardens are plentiful. They inspire collaboration, build community pride, grow food cost-effectively, and enrich lives in many other ways. The County hosts a few community gardens that have sprouted up in places you might not expect.
Growing more produce for mothers and children Children popped cherry tomatoes in their mouths like candy as parents watched in amazement during one magic moment that bloomed in the first year of the WIC (Women, Infants and Children) Community Garden. The County planted the WIC garden the first in Kansas - next to the Olathe Health Services Clinic last spring. Since May, volunteers have harvested more than 1,200 pounds of produce such as tomatoes, peppers, sweet potatoes, eggplants, and herbs and made them available for free to the more than 660 Johnson County WIC families.
While the federal stipend for fruits and vegetables is $10 per month for nursing and pregnant women (it’s only $6 a month for children), getting the recommended daily allowance of fresh produce can cost up to $2.50 a day. “One purpose of the WIC garden is to help supplement the diets of the mothers and children we serve,” said Laura Drake, Johnson County WIC program director. “Additionally, those that did volunteer seemed to enjoy the experience of gardening with their children.”
Providing for themselves and others At the County’s Adult Residential Center (ARC), two Department of Corrections employees came up with the seed of an idea in 2010 - providing an opportunity for the adult offenders to work in an on-site garden. “The goal of the garden was to give our clients a healthy outlet and to provide fresh vegetables for meals,” said Tom Tysver, ARC shift supervisor. Typically, 40-50 residents pick up gardening tools each season, getting involved in every step from tilling the soil to harvesting the crops. One resident said he pitched in because he had worked in gardens since he was a teenager. “Plus, it occupies my time,” he said.
Correctional Advisor Willie Glasper shows off a portion of the more than 3,000-pounds of produce grown in the ARC garden in 2013. More than a third of last season’s crop was donated to local food pantries.
In 2013, residents harvested more than 3,000 pounds of produce, with most going into dining hall dishes like a squash bake,
An Olathe WIC client and her son not only enjoyed fresh produce from the community garden, but they also volunteered there on a warm July day last summer.
cucumber salad and collard greens. Last year, the growers also donated 1,110 pounds of food to Johnson County charities and food pantries.
A sustainable partnership Johnson County Library happily teamed up with the City of Overland Park in 2011 on the city’s first community garden. Located on the lawn adjacent to the Oak Park Neighborhood Library, growers in this garden can only use organic and sustainable practices. The Library provides the earth; the nonprofit Overland Park Community Garden maintains the common areas and provides water; and gardeners pay for their plot and take it from there.
Have a green thumb? We’re here to help you kick off your gardening season. Visit www.jocogov.com/jocomag for:
WEB EXTRA
• Tips from the Johnson County K-State Research and Extension Master Gardeners • Links to community gardens all over Johnson County • Information on how to volunteer at the WIC community garden
jocogov.org
13