Our Community Garden
Our first summer hosting a community Garden has been a great success! Rita Gordon shares the story of this wonderful service project.
On April 27, 2013, the Rotary Club of Roseville began work to prepare and plant a Community Garden to benefit Placer Food Bank. Otow Orchard, a local, family owned orchard, made a generous donation of one-fifth of an acre in Granite Bay. Tosh Kuratomi, who manages Otow Orchard, generously prepared the plot by plowing in rich compost and shaped it into rows, saving us many hours of labor & expense. Installation of an irrigation system was completed that day by Rotarians and a local Girl Scout troop under the direction of Dave Chappell, the Community Garden Consultant with Placer Food Bank.
Bush green bean seeds, donated by Soil Born Farms in Rancho Cordova, were planted in every other row. Several weeks later, Rotarians planted pepper plant starts & squash, donated by the Food Bank, and more than 100 heirloom tomato starts, donated by a neighbor. Dave and Tosh provided their expertise in selecting plants that would thrive in the local environment and match the tastes of those who use the Placer Food Bank.
Our Club has held regular workdays at the Garden every Saturday morning, with additional harvesting work on Wednesday evenings. We anticipate that this two-a-week schedule will continue for many months, as we will also be planting winter crops when our summer season is over. This service project is truly a Community Garden, as we are frequently assisted by various local Girl Scout & Boy Scout troops, faith-based groups, and volunteers sent from Placer Food Bank. We often have more children in attendance than adults, providing a valuable learning experience in where our food originates.
Our first growing season has resulted in more than 1000+ lbs. of fresh, organic produce to Placer Food Bank! Fresh produce is an area lacking in availability at Food Banks. However, because of their well-executed distribution system, our produce is delivered to their end distribution points the same day we bring it in. The vegetables received by our neighbors in need are fresher than we buy in the grocery store!
We welcome help from anyone at any of our work days. Come enjoy the peaceful, beautiful surroundings while contributing to a meaningful activity with others who believe in making their world a better place by living the Rotary credo of Service Above Self.
- Rita Gordon