Community CROPS September 2008 Newsletter
Sunset Community Farm Open House
Monday, September 15th, 5:30-7:30pmThe ever popular farm tour has been scheduled for Monday, September 15th, this year. We welcome everyone to come out and enjoy an evening seeing the farm and meeting our farming participants. There will be a variety of delicious foods to sample and vegetables to buy. It's a great opportunity to see how an organic farm works and see how our project has grown. New this year is a large hoophouse for season extension.
Visit our Farm Tour page for directions to the farm and more details.
Next Two CROPS Workshops
We have two more workshops coming up on the next two weekends that you won't want to miss.- Seed Saving with Farmer Bill Hawkins, Saturday, September 6th, 2pm at 46th and Pioneers
- Putting your Garden to Bed with Brad Kindler, Saturday, September 13th, 9:30am, Antelope Community Garden
Visit our Workshops page to register for these classes and to suggest ideas for others.
CROPS Summer Donation Campaign
You may have received a donation letter in the mail. Don't delay in sending it back--your contributions will help us meet the demand for more community gardens, more workshops, and more ways for people to grow food for themselves. You can also donate on-line at our Donations PagePerhaps you can help us with some of the items we need for the project, such as:
- Split rail fence rails (we have posts)
- A truck or van for the farm
- Trowels, weeders, and other hand tools
CROPS Farmers' Market Going Strong
We've seen many of you at our farmers' market this summer, and know you've found some great vegetables to buy. Did you know that you can now use your credit card and debit card at the market? In addition to taking food stamps, we are now set up to process "plastic" as well, to make your shopping more convenient. Only three markets left -- every Thursday through September 18th. Your chance to buy freshly picked spray-free produce grown 6 miles from the market site. Visit the CROPS Market Page for details.Senior Community Gardening
by Brad Kindler – Community CROPSIn the spring of 2008 Community CROPS set out to partner with a senior housing facility to begin the cultivation of a senior community garden. Through the hard work of community partners and patience with this spring's powerful thunderstorms, our first senior garden became a reality.
Senior gardening has many benefits. Cultivating a connection to the earth, developing friendships through work, outdoor exercise, as well as fresh vegetables and good nutrition, are but a few of the many great things about gardening. But how does one begin a senior garden? Community outreach, phone calls, and dozens of emails led CROPS to an interested garden partner with Mahoney Manor, an apartment complex providing independent living for the elderly and near elderly with supportive services available.
First, sitting down with administrators and residents of Mahoney Manor, we discussed the prospects of participation with residents as well as the needs of seniors who would work in the garden. An enthusiastic response from residents and creative ideas on how to implement the project led us into designing the garden. We settled on two L-shaped raised bed garden planters approximately three feet tall. The height of the raised beds insured that seniors who have mobility problems, or were turned off by the potential challenging garden work, could garden at waist height while standing.
With funding by the Lincoln Community Foundation and labor provided by Community CROPS and AmeriCorps members, the senior community garden at Mahoney Manor has been planted with success. Our goal is to extend the project and programming to other senior organizations and assisted housing facilities in the seasons to follow. If you would like to get involved in this or other CROPS initiatives please contact us at 474-9802.
A great list of easy things you do for the earth
Consuming less means less money spent and less resources used, and it's easy! Here's a couple tips you can do right now:- "If all the households in the U.S. switched from hot-hot cycle to warm-cold, we could save the energy comparable to 100,000 barrels of oil a day."
- "The next time you picnic, set out permanent marker next to disposable dinnerware so guests can mark their cup and everyone will only use one."
For more of these great simple tips on how you can really make a difference, visit 50 Ways to Help the Planet
