Warm greetings from The People’s Garden! It is July, and there is more to take care of now because we have gone from seeing the little seeds germinate to full blown raised beds that are overflowing with vines and large plants, blossoms galore and we will soon be picking cucumbers, green tomatoes, hot peppers and squash. We planted, we watered (God did most of that), we weeded, and mowed, and now we are spending a lot of time weeding and harvesting. One important thing before I go on…Thank you to those who help build fences, weed, mow and trim around all the 54 raised beds, and thank you to those who donated plants and seeds at the beginning of the season. Thank you to those who donate funds to help with our utilities and supplies. We appreciate you very much.

It is a great pleasure to see the plants grow and begin to give us real produce that we take into the pantry shoppers. They are so appreciative, and we like handing them what we have worked so hard to grow. So far, the food from the garden has been salad greens, lettuce, spinach, arugula, radishes, green onions, and some early snap peas…things that like cool weather. We will be thinning the turnips, so we will have greens to offer, and some beet greens too. We have taken out the arugula and spinach and the radishes are out too…none of those like hot weather. You will want to see what we plant in their place. Come visit! Come help! Come to see what we are all about!

We know many people want to volunteer for their community but don’t know where to go or how to help. If you don’t know much about gardening,, how to weed, how to build fences for critter control, or how to water the plants (there is a better way), be looking for announcements about how to sign up for an actual class about how to volunteer. The class will be held in our wonderful Learning Center at the garden. (If you sign up for the class you will be eligible to win a nice prize.) Even weeding takes a little know-how. We all know a lot and have a Master Gardener on staff. We want everyone to be able to plant and take care of their own garden, as well as The People’s Garden. It is more important than ever to be self-sufficient. It is also very important that you learn to volunteer to help others, help your neighbor, help your family, and help those in need who are not able to get enough food to thrive.

We would like to keep you all informed about the progress we are making in the garden, hence the once-a-month articles, and about how the harvest is this season. We grow hundreds of pounds of fresh vegetables for the Agape Distribution food pantry. There are three regular workers, not usually all on the same day. Some of us go on different days, whenever we are loose from our calendars. We sometimes work 4-5 hours in the mornings keeping the garden beds beautiful and productive. We always have a priority list and first on that list is providing food for those who need it. Next it might be taking care of inspecting plants for insects and diseases. Since we are vigilant, there is little of that. We depend on nature to take care of almost all those problems, and it works most of the time. No Japanese beetles and no tomato worms for two years. Now that I have said that something else will pop up, like the army worms last year that took out our chives. Birds help by eating insects (we can use more bird houses but not bird feeders), and bats help too (we have a bat house). See if you can find a few minutes, or an hour to come and see what is going on.

We like to place decorations in the garden beds, not only for cuteness but to hopefully foil the groundhogs, as they don’t like changes to their surroundings. See if you can find Jeanne Rae, Aunt Mildred, and Martha Lois, a rhinoceros, or a funny rooster. Bring a painted rock, a toy or a dinosaur if you want to and place it somewhere in one of the garden beds. We love surprises! We encourage all ages to be involved in gardening in some way.

We need your help right NOW, we REALLY do, and we like hearing your suggestions, hints, and compliments too. All workers in the garden are volunteers. If you can come regularly, once a week for an hour, that is very important and helpful to us. We have gloves, water, air conditioning, porta john, tools, birds that sing to us, and usually a snack. Plus, we will have fun. You will enjoy working alongside us. There are a variety of jobs, like building, fencing, weeding, planting, harvesting, hauling soil, and watering. If you want to be sure we are there, call 937 726 9525. Plan ahead if you can.

The collard greens are big now. You should see how big! I cooked a few to see how they are, and I enjoyed that with my supper. They are great. Have you ever tried them? I put a little cayenne pepper in the ones I cooked. I found many recipes online. The broccoli is starting to form heads and the cabbage is getting bigger too. I am always looking forward to butternut squash, acorn squash, okra, and this year, we have some blue hubbard squash. Do you know what a trap crop is? Do you know what little flower helps keep the tomato worms off your tomatoes? We plant things together that are companions, and we find that things grow better with their favorite companion. Ask about this and get information about how to improve your harvest. We have learned much in the 10 years of producing vegetables for the pantry. This is our excitement, our work since retiring, and it is what we look forward to every day. We can’t wait to work with you, so please come and help us.

On July 29 we will be at the Farmer’s Market again on the square in Sidney. We will have a raffle prize for those who want to try to win it. Oh, and by the way, we have a big need for funding, so if you like what we do, please help us. We do not sell any vegetables, as all the production goes into the pantry for hungry people. It takes at least $5,000 to pay for the utilities, the porta john, any building supplies, equipment repairs/replacement, gas for the mowers, plants, seeds, and unexpected expenses. If you can direct us to a donor who can help or if you can help us, please let us know right away. Many thanks to all those who help and donate to help us keep this community effort going. We encourage you to call with questions, information, offers to donate and suggestions too. Call 937 726 9525. Leave a message with Conelia.

The writer is a Master Gardener and a coordinator of the People’s Garden. Reach her at 937-726-9525.