Tastes of Summer: Farmers' Markets and Herbs

Yesterday, we were the Market Hosts at the Plymouth Farmers' Market! It could not have been a more beautiful day at Plimoth Plantation with children pogo-sticking, homemade ice cream sandwiches, and fresh local produce!

At our booth, we hosted a free herb pet making activity with the intention of letting children get their hands dirty. Turns out, all ages were really into it! Children and adults had fun planting basil, green onions, chives, etc. in recycled pots and containers! Fresh herbs really are one of the best tastes of summer and it can be easy to grow your own in a small space!

In addition to growing herb pets this summer, we are also hoping to grow the next generation of farmers or environmentally engaged youth through our Young Organic Gardeners program. This program puts teen volunteers to work in Bridie's Garden, the organic community garden at the Plymouth Area Coalition for the Homeless in Kingston. All produce grown is donated to the Coalition's Food Pantry. We are currently seeking additional youth between the ages of 15-18 years to help out in the garden on Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 9:30am to 10:45am. The program will run from July 10 through Aug 16. No prior gardening experience is needed.




For more information about the program, click here: http://www.wickedlocal.com/duxbury/news/education/x57813022/Young-Organic-Gardeners-program#axzz1zTQBo1SO

OR email: Sarah Kugel, Garden Coordinator at skugel@wildlandstrust.org

3 Towns, 50 People, Many Thanks!

Over Earth Week, we worked in 3 towns with 50 volunteers!  Now we want to share our many thanks to our volunteers - for their time, inspirational energy, and hard work:


Kingston - 4/17/12 and 4/18/12

Thank you to Bridie's Garden Volunteers- Together we're growing hope for a better, brighter, and more sustainable food future, while helping meet the fresh food needs of the Plymouth Area Coalition for the Homeless!

   

Pembroke - 4/20/12

Thank you to the Wildlands Trailrunners and Walkers- who utilize our Preserve trails and help motivate others to partake in passive outdoor recreation!  They're also showing great support for our 2nd Annual Run for Conservation! You can click the photos below to enlarge and read the text and later this week you'll be able to register for the 5k run/walk event on June 9 here: https://racewire.com/register.php?id=1779

 

Brockton - 2/22/12

Thank you to the Keep Brockton Beautiful Day Volunteers- who pulled 15 bags of trash and stacks of tires and miscellaneous debris out of our 120-acre urban Brockton Audubon Property. Thank you to the Brockton Mayor's Office for organizing the town wide clean-up and for providing trash bags, food, water, and trash removal.

 

With your help, every day can be earth day and and every week can be earth week. Together we are all helping to save the special places of southeastern Massachusetts! To find out about upcoming volunteer opportunities, email: admin@wildlandstrust.org

For the Love of Garlic

On Friday, I swung past Hannaford Supermarket in Kingston and bought a pack of 6 organic garlic bulbs for $1.99. I then headed to our community garden at The Plymouth Area Coalition for the Homeless in Kingston (Bridie's Garden) to plant them. Since it was Veterans Day, there was no school and 3 kids staying at the shelter were able to come out and help me in the garden.

Rock label

We separated the bulbs into individual cloves (there were probably 70 cloves) and planted them about 1" deep along two edges of the garden (using rocks as labels so everyone will know where we planted them).

Making a rock label

We had been avoiding the center of the garden since it was recently tilled and with all the rain - was quite the mud pit. BUT THEN, we had only a few cloves of garlic left and the brilliant idea to plant them in secret spots throughout the garden. So, we ventured from the garden's edges where we had begun our planting and into the mud, when I heard a little girl yell "I'm stuck!" I thought she was kidding at first but it quickly became apparent that she wasn't! I ran out to the center of the garden and pulled her out of the mud. You could hear the suction release when she was freed. BUT THEN, I was stuck too and my shoes were sinking quickly! My feet slipped out of my shoes as I was trying to free myself... and that was the end to the white socks I was wearing. There's not much more to the story, except that everyone was laughing at the end and we can't wait to harvest our garlic next spring. For the love of garlic, gardening, and the opportunity to share that moment with some incredibly cheerful kids from the shelter.... it was totally worth it!

My shoes

 Also, our garden volunteers planted winter rye (a cover crop and nitrogen fixer) in the garden several weeks ago. We were happy to see it sprouting!

Winter rye

-Post by Sarah Kugel, Community Outreach Coordinator, AmeriCorps MassLIFT Volunteer at Wildlands Trust (skugel@wildlandstrust.org)

Hardening Off Our Crops

Memorial Day is just around the corner... so as we take time to honor our soldiers, we're also in the process of hardening off our crops that we'll be transplanting into Bridie's Garden this coming weekend!

Sarah Kugel, our Community Outreach Coordinator, AmeriCorps MassLIFT volunteer,  giving the plants she's been raising in the greenhouse a breath of fresh air, taste of direct sunlight, and contact with the light spring breeze.

Our fingers are crossed that the last frost has already passed!

Allison Gillum, our Regional Conservationist, AmeriCorps MassLIFT volunteer,  tending to the little seedlings (that aren't so little anymore!).

Bridie's Garden is the community garden that we've started at the Plymouth Area Coalition for the Homeless in Kingston, MA this year. The food grown in the garden will greatly benefit individuals and families staying at the shelter in addition to those who receive food from the shelter's food pantry.

Have a fantastic Memorial Day weekend!

-Sarah Kugel, Community Outreach Coordinator, AmeriCorps MassLIFT, skugel@wildlandstrust.org