LiveSmart BC Community Hero
Community garden teaches self-reliance
Eating and ensuring a locally grown food supply is important to the Nanaimo Community Gardens Society.
The society features a garden and rented allotment plots to create a unique, community-grown garden to teach people about the importance of homegrown food.
The society says its mission is to work with people and families to grow more food that will create a healthy community and sustainable environment. The community garden has grown vegetables, including carrots, asparagus and more for more than a decade. Depending on the season, the varieties of produce can change.
"It's worth the work," said Emily Harrison, education program co-ordinator. "Everything they'll learn here they can take home and apply to a backyard garden and the health benefits from local, organic food are unlimited." The Nanaimo Community Gardens Society moved further south in Nanaimo earlier this year, taking up roots at 14th Street and Cranberry Avenue after 15 years in the Old City Quarter.
Community food self-reliance can also help preserve land, conserve resources and bring people together.
Choosing locally grown food can ensure no pesticides, extra packaging or fuel was used to deliver food to plates. Through several programs and services, the Nanaimo Community Gardens Society teaches participants some skills and resources needed to grow, cook and preserve food.
People can also explore healthy and healing opportunities through gardening. Volunteers at the site have said neighbours help build community spirit while they learn about food and its nutritional value. With a shift in food movements all over the world, such community gardens have become more popular in recent years as interest in local food grows. Several food initiatives have sprouted from the Nanaimo Community Garden Society over the years, including a gleaning and seed-sharing program. Pick captain Dana Gullison reported volunteers harvested more than 13,000 pounds of fruit last year, the majority of which likely would have gone to waste. This spring, about 75 volunteers will start picking raspberries, cherries and more.
A portion of the haul is distributed to local charitable groups in need of fresh food.
Seed-sharing helps maintain the diversity of fruits and vegetables. People are encouraged to save seeds from their garden. The society also works to help people choose food that can help positively impact the environment. For information, visit www.nanaimocommunitygardens.ca.
