November 2018
G
Fall Meeting Grows Inspiration
iven the up and down weather we have experienced in the last few weeks, it is hard to believe we had such a perfect fall day during the Regional Meeting at the garden in early October. All four regions came together at the Ozarks Food Harvest Home Garden, located just outside of Rogersville. Twenty four individuals from 14 different agencies and representing 10 counties were in attendance. The meeting was hosted by Ozarks Food Harvests’ own Master Gardner, Full Circle Garden Program Coordinator Alexa Poindexter and Full Circle Garden Assistant Rob Medlen. Attendees were given a tour of the grounds which include 76 raised garden beds, two high tunnels, and a 30x30 field patch. While some might think the garden season would be wrapping up, the Full Circle Garden Team had a variety of growing projects still underway. From this garden alone, 10,582 pounds have been harvested from a variety of fruits and vegetables, such as radishes, carrots, various lettuces, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, onions, beets, green beans, potatoes, and spinach. The Full Circle Garden Team and an annual group of volunteers also harvest crops from other gardens in the area, including the Victory Gardens, Fassnight Creek Farms, Millsap Farm, Lewis Family Garden, Burton Farms, and the list keeps growing. This hardworking group of volunteers has harvested nearly 40,000 pounds of food this year!
IN THIS ISSUE
Agencies listen to Alexa Poindexter talk at the OFH Garden
During the meeting, Alexa stressed the importance of three main factors for first time gardeners. The first, making sure to build a team around you. “Everyone wants to get the garden started, but when it’s 100° outside and you don’t have a committed team to help you get the job done, the garden will struggle,” Alexa told the group. The second major factor in the likelihood of having a successful garden is making sure to have a water source near your garden. Nobody wants to carry buckets and buckets of water to the garden every day during the summer months if there is not a water source nearby. The third factor is location, location, location. For first time gardeners, if you can have your garden close to your facility, as opposed to miles away from your kitchen or pantry, you will be more
OFH Inclement Weather Policy Holiday Delivery changes Is SNAP fraud a problem? Garden Highlights
likely to tend to it regularly. All three of these factors can be met by first starting a straw bale garden. If you would like information on straw bale gardens, Alexa would be more than happy to share some tips! Overall, the meeting was a great way to network and brainstorm with other kitchens and pantries, who are also interested in gardening. We hope that all who attended were inspired to either expand existing gardens, reach out to partner with outside organizations to grow their garden programs, or begin a first time garden. Either way, Alexa left one final thought, “please get connected, share your resources, partner with outside organizations, develop teams, and have fun!” Happy planting!