Santa Rosa Snippets - October 2011
I have exciting news to share this month. Sonoma County is going to have its
first ever Community Garden Summit right here in sunny Santa Rosa! Before I tell you the details of
the Community Garden Summit, I want to share with you a little about my
community garden and the difference it has made in my life. Perhaps it will entice you to attend
the Community Garden Summit.
I cut down the weeds, broke up the soil and started to put in some raised
beds. And somewhere along the way,
the “I” became a “we” and pretty soon there were other neighbors out there. One neighbor kicked in some boards for
the beds, another brought by some tomato cages and zucchini plants, and still
another neighbor planted some seeds.
We’re in our 2nd year of the garden and we’re still
chugging along. There are 3
families who garden about 100 square feet of land. Not big by any stretch of
the imagination but I think that we’ve made a real positive impact in our
little community. We’ve become a
“bumping spot” where neighbors visit on their evening walks. It helps that we have sheep living
right behind the garden because the kids love to stop by and say hi to
them. But I’d like to think that
the garden itself is a destination point and reason for neighbors to stop by,
check out the zucchini, and get to know each other.
Our little community garden has really enhanced the
quality of my life here in Santa Rosa.
I’ve gotten to know my neighbors, grown some wonderful veggies and make
a small dent in reducing my carbon footprint – all due to creating bounty from
a derelict patch of unsightly weeds. With that in mind, let me tell you about the Sonoma
County Community Garden Summit and how you can join in the fun.
Community
Garden Summit
On Saturday, November 5th from 1-5 p.m. at the First
United Methodist Church at 1551 Montgomery Drive in Santa Rosa, there will be
speakers, workshops, and resource tables. Miles Gordon of the Mendocino
Garden’s Project and Bill Maynard of the American Community Garden Association
will be on hand to share their success stories with you.
If you aren’t involved in a community garden, this
will be the perfect opportunity to learn how to start one. If you already are involved in one,
this is your chance to share your knowledge and learn from others on how to
make it even better.
Join your neighbors and help build a community garden
network right here in Sonoma County.
And special thanks to IGROW Sonoma for sponsoring the Community Garden
Summit. For more information about
the Community Garden Summit at http://igrowsonoma.org/content/growing-together-sonoma-county-community-garden-summit.
Bayer
Farm Corn Festival
Wait!
There’s more! For everyone
interested in community gardening events, join the LandPaths’ Bayer Farm
community and celebrate its corn harvest with family-friendly activities,
entertainment, a corn-based meal, and a raffle on Saturday, October 8th , 4-7
p.m. The event is free and the
dinner tickets are $10.
Entertainment includes cooking demonstrations, a corn maze, bilingual
singalong, dancers and educational booths, plus much more! The raffle and dinner are a fundraiser
for the project
.
If you haven’t
been to Bayer Farm, you’ve got to check it out. Bayer Neighborhood Park and Gardens is a unique
collaboration between Santa Rosa Recreation and Parks and LandPaths. It is a
6-acre urban farm & city park-in-the-making in the heart of the Roseland
neighborhood just 2 miles from Downtown Santa Rosa. About 2 acres are currently used for a community garden
which is just bursting with sun flowers, corn, tomatoes and lots more. (Visit http://www.landpaths.org/ for
more information about Bayer Farm.)
BTW…you can help in the garden at Bayer Farm by
pitching in on its projects.
What’s great is that children are welcome to volunteer too. There’s lots to do including gathering
input for the compost pile, planting cover crops and watering. And if you get tired, you can always
take time out and visit the goats and chickens.
Labels: COMMUNITIES
