Green thumbs are already sprouting in Cold Lake.
Following a successful inaugural year, the Cold Lake Community Garden Society is getting a head start on gardening season to ensure everything is in place for spring.
There will be a number of new additions to the community garden this year that will attract both the old and the young to get their hands dirty.
“We have partnered with three schools and they're going to be incorporating some science classes, botany classes and outdoor living skill classes into the garden,” said Cathy Aust, president of the society.
The initiative will see students from Cold Lake Middle School and North Star Elementary School taking car of the garden from opening until they're out of school in June. For the summer months, kids enrolled in the FCSS garden gnome program will take over until students return to school in the fall.
Cold Lake Outreach School students will be using their skills to benefit the community as well, making benches in their word working class for the garden.
At the end of the harvest, students will be hosting a supper with the vegetables they helped grow.
“I think it's really important kids learn where their food comes from. Last year, we had Cold Lake Middle School assist with harvest and we had one little boy who was pulling carrots out of the ground and said ‘I didn't know they came from here, I thought they came from a bag at Sobey's,'” said Aust, adding that it's not just a garden, but a learning opportunity.
“The people that are going to survive this economic downturn are the people that know how to can and grow gardens. I think it's important to learn sustainable living skills.”
In addition to the student-made benches, the society has applied for a grant to help finish some other infrastructure projects that have been on their wish list. If they're successful, which they'll know by the end of the month, the grant will cover framing for all 62 beds in the communal garden. They will also be able to build another shed to allow for separate storage of volunteer tools and equipment and a 17-foot by 17-foot greenhouse, if they receive further approval from the city.
On the other end of the age spectrum, thanks to the generosity of the local Lions Club, there will be three new raised beds for seniors this summer.
“If we do get our grant, there will be a comprehensive seniors program. We will have a concrete pad build when you first come into the garden so that it's accessible for walker, wheelchairs and canes, and it's a safe environment so that they're not walking on uneven ground,” explained Aust. “I had a conversation with a gentleman from the Lions Club and if we don't receive the grant, I can go talk to them and they will build the other raised garden beds, which I thought was absolutely phenomenal.”
The Cold Lake Community Garden features 62 plots in the communal harvest garden and 42 plots in the family area for gardeners to rent out. In their first year, the society had about 12 plots rented out. According to Aust, they've already exceeded that this year and are encouraging gardeners to reserve their spot soon.
“We've already have a couple seed sponsors as well, the Lakeland Credit Union and FM Graphics. We will be approaching the people who sponsored plots last year, as well as reaching out to the community and hopefully receiving some support.”
Seed sponsors are businesses, or individuals, who buy a plot in the communal garden. Volunteers take care of those plots for the season, with all of the food harvested being donated to the Cold Lake food bank.
“Seed sponsorships aren't about giving a donation and getting marketing for your company, although those opportunities are there with the program. What's really important is that we're helping our own with the produce going to the food bank. We're doing what we can to help the people in Cold Lake,” expressed Aust.
With the hunt for seed sponsors and gardeners to rent plots already underway, the society is also looking for volunteers to help maintain the garden. Anyone interested in volunteering, renting a plot, or becoming a seed sponsor can send an email to [email protected] or send them a message on Facebook at Cold Lake Community Garden Society.
