A 50'X50' garden will generally cost at least $1,000 t

1
Gardens
And the Community
Connecting the Church
The Benefits of Community Gardens
Starting a Community Garden
A Proposal for Area Churches
Benefits for the Church Community ?Creates
community and partnership within the church by
allowing different age groups to work
together ?Brings life and beauty to the Church
land ?Provides opportunities for parishioners to
work with their hands and be outside ?Brings
in wholesome, fresh food to the church for things
like potlucks and food pantries ?Provides
a bridge between the Church and the neighborhood
giving opportunity for relationship
formation and outreach Benefits for the
Surrounding Community ?Shared work helps to
build friendship and solidarity around a common
vision of the good ?Allows people without
adequate land to grow their own food ?Helps
create a more sustainable local food
network ?The natural beauty of the garden
enhances the scenic quality of the surrounding
neighborhood ?Provides a venue to teach area
children about agriculture ?Recent studies have
shown that community gardens have psychological,
economical, sociological benefits for people
?Bring about a sense of pride and ownership for
ones community and the environment ?For more
benefits see http//www.communitygarden.org/whatg
ood.php
How to Get Started 1. Find out who is
interested. Alert congregation members, but also
contact your Neighborhood
Association to see if other community members are
interested in starting a garden 2.
Make sure that there is at least one community
member, possibly a Church Staff member, who
can take charge of maintaining a
committee of neighbors for the care of the
garden. 3. Choose a site. Make sure
the site gets at least 6 full hours of sunlight
daily (for vegetables). 4. Test your
soil for lead. Lead, found in some kinds of
paints before 1978, can cause a serious
health risk to people. If lead is in the
soil, leafy green plants will absorb it and
ingesting these plants can be
harmful. Check out www.ci.grand-rapids.mi.us/inde
x.pl?page_id3222 for more
information on Grand Rapids Programs.
5. Identify a water source! If there is no
building on the site, negotiate with a neighbor
to use water from their house.
6. Consider how the garden should be
organized, how many plots are needed and who
should get which plots.
7. Make a set of rules for those who want to
have a plot in the garden. Ensure that all
gardeners are aware of the
time-commitment to gardening and create a
standard for neatness. By
establishing this before the garden is planted,
problems can be avoided and/or dealt with
quickly and efficiently. 8.
Consider a community compost heap. This is an
excellent way for neighbors to reduce their
waste. Be very intentional about
informing every community member about what can
and cannot be put in the
compost. 9. Be aware that the first
several years may not be as fruitful as expected
the soil will take a while to
develop into good nourishing soil. 10.
Make a sign! Let your neighbors know about the
garden! 11. Prepare the land and plant
your food 12. The American Community
Garden Association has an excellent fact sheet
with ideas for starting
a community garden. http//www.communitygarden.org
/starting.php Construction Costs A 50X50
garden will generally cost at least 1,000 to
construct and prepare for the first growing
season. However, a garden can be prepared for
only 200 and later gradually improved if it
proves successful. But the more money put into
beautifying the garden, the more it will be
enjoyed an unimproved plot of land will likely
not draw participants and the garden will not be
a lasting success. ? Tool Shed 400 (Tools can
also be kept in storage room or a simple large
bin.) ? Tools shovels, rakes, hoes, spades,
hoses, wheelbarrow, gloves 300
(Alternatively, large tools for construction
can be brought by church members, and smaller
tools can be donated by members) ? Small fence
to ward off vandals 200 (If the
neighborhood is involved, vandalism and theft
will be minimal in most cases even without a
fence.) ? Raised beds (lumber and soil) 75
each ? Bench, Path materials, Bulletin
board Cost Varies ? Soil test Lab Test 100
DIY Test 15 Operational Costs Once the
garden is well established and running
efficiently, production of vegetables will be
one-tenth the wholesale price. The following
costs can be redeemed by renting plots out to
gardeners for a season or possibly by selling
some of the produce of the garden. ?Water 20
/ month ?Mulch Fertilizers Pest repellents
Seeds and young plants 1/10 wholesale
The social and economic significance of community
gardening is gaining recognition in West
Michigan. Neighborhood organizations, schools,
businesses, and other groups currently operate
about a dozen community gardens in the Grand
Rapids area. Through this poster, we hope to
encourage area churches with open land to
consider starting a garden for their members and
neighbors.
Links ?www.foodshed.com - Greater Grand Rapids
Food Systems Council - Working to promote and
coordinate community gardens in West
Michigan ?http//www.communitygarden.org -
American Community Gardening Association (ACGA)
- Numerous resources and tips for starting a
community garden
Examples of Existing Gardens
Webster Church Community Garden ?Located in the
heart of Webster Township, near Ann Arbor . ?6
plot are available every summer ?Designed for
people with physical limitations ?Church,
community members local boy scouts continue to
build and maintain the garden areas ?Church
provides land and water ?Built on the property
of Webster United Church of Christ
Heartside Peace Garden ?Located at the
intersection of Wealthy and Commerce Ave.
?Garden was created in 1996, focusing primarily
on the homeless in the neighboring areas ?The
vegetables grown by Richa, maintainer and
founder of the garden, are donated to Well
House homeless shelter ?6-10
plots available for gardening each summer ?Land
and water provided by Catholic Secondary
Schools ?Contact richa_at_safe-mail.net
Grand Rapids Community Gardens ?http//www.foods
hed.net/committees/gardens.htm