Community garden producing in spite of Mother Nature

WORLAND -While the growing season was a bit behind this year due to a wet and cool spring, the Worland Community Garden, administered by the University of Wyoming Extension Washakie County Office, has had a fairly productive year.

Community Garden director and AmeriCorps volunteer Erin Day-Gennett said that last Wednesday's hard rain and hail did hit the garden "pretty hard. The squash, cucumbers, melons and tomatoes all got shredded and pocked-marked."

In an interview Wednesday morning before the storm, Day-Gennett said the tomatoes were just starting to ripen, well behind the normal ripening season in Worland. While the tomatoes were behind, Day-Gennett said the "squash went crazy," and they also have an abundance of green beans this year, including some purple green beans that turn green when cooked.

The garden has a variety of flowers, herbs and vegetables throughout the area at Newell Sargent Park.

Up at the front of the garden are several handicapped-accessible garden beds that include flowers, banana peppers and more.

EDUCATION AND PRODUCE

The purpose of the community garden is three-fold, to provide education to those wanting to learn the basics about gardening, to learn new ways to garden; to provide produce to residents through different community programs and to provide volunteer time for those who don't have a garden and like to toil in the soil.

As an educational tool, the garden uses a variety of different beds to show residents the different ways they can have a garden with limited space, using haybales, raised garden beds or gardens in a wood pallet.

They also offered classes weekly throughout the summer on Tuesdays and Thursdays on a variety of subjects. Day-Gennett said the favorite programs were bugs and wildlife.

"The garden is operated by Extension. Their whole point is education. We want people to understand where their food comes from," Day-Gennett said.

In order to grow educational opportunities, Day-Gannett is working with West Side Principal Bruce Miller and Food Services Director Heather Tauntvein about an outdoor classroom setting for students and then being able to utilize the produce in the lunch room at West Side. She said they are just in the preliminary stages of planning for this opportunity.

With the garden still open they do not have an exact number of volunteer hours that have been spent at the garden this year. People and groups come to tend to the plants, remove dead heads from the flowers and do some weeding, she said.

As for the produce, Day-Gennett said they have already harvested and distributed 150 pounds of produce, including 9 pounds on the day of the interview to a couple who came in with the specially marked community garden bags.

Day-Gennett said everyone is welcome to come and visit the garden during the open hours, Monday, Wednesday, Friday 8 to 10 a.m., and Saturday 8:30-11 a.m.

They can sample part of the produce that is grown.

As for distribution, however, Day-Gennett said the Worland Ministerial Association through the Food Pantry, Department of Family Services and Absaroka Head Start, have been given specially-marked recycle bags they can give to those who need and may be unable to afford or grow their own fresh produce. Those residents can come to the garden during regular open hours and fill up the bag.

They also have distributed produce to the Worland Senior Center, Big Horn Enterprises and O.W.L. Unlimited.

Items being harvested this year include cabbage, zucchini, onions, green beans, a Japanese variety of a small eggplant and corn. Day-Gennett said they did not plant sweet corn this year but rather corn that can be used as popcorn or to be ground up for other uses.

She said they also had several salad greens that were harvested early in the summer.

Herbs they have grown include culinary sage, dill, lavender, thyme, basil and oregano.

This year some volunteers submitted produce from the garden in open class at the Washakie County Fair with the zucchini willing a purple ribbon. The dill was also a big winner. She said all entries won purple or blue this year.

It's a community garden. It's open to everyone," Day-Gannett said, adding that there is a small sitting area for people to relax in at the garden.

The garden's hours are Monday, Wednesday, Friday 8 to 10 a.m., and Saturday 8:30-11 a.m. If people would like to arrange different hours for visiting, they can call Day-Gannett at (307) 213-9411 or Washakie County Extension Educator Caitlin Youngquist at (307) 347-3431. 

She added, "If community members have any extra produce they would like to make disappear, they can bring it to the Extension office and we would be happy to find it a home with the organizations we serve - O.W.L. Unlimited, Big Horn Enterprises, Absaroka Headstart, The Ministerial Society and Willow Creek of Worland."