What Can a Community Garden Do for Penn Yan?

In addition to providing gardening space to town residents who are currently lack it, and fostering an atmosphere of cooperation and civic pride, here are some other ways a community garden can contribute to Penn Yan.

Plant a Row for the Hungry

Approximately 33 million people in America, including 13 million children, suffer from hunger, and the demand for hunger assistance has increased by 70% in recent years. What can we do to help our neighbors who are in need?

Plant a Row for the Hungry is a campaign that encourages gardeners to grow and donate surplus produce to food banks and soup kitchens, to help meet the growing need for hunger relief. 

The Penn Yan Community Garden could do something as simple as collect and donate surplus harvest from its members. Or we could take it a step further by creating dedicated garden space for our local food bank, Food for the Needy, which could be planted and cultivated by volunteers to provide an ongoing supply of fresh and nutritious food to people in need.

Garden Mentoring

2011 Backyard Gardens program, 
conducted at private homes in 
Penn Yan, Dundee, and Rushville

In 2011, Milly's Pantry conducted a small pilot program called Backyard Gardens to teach food gardening skills to low-income families. 

We could integrate this concept into a community garden by creating an on-site mentoring program for novice gardeners. 

This mentoring service could utilize the skills of the Yates Cooperative Extension's Master Gardeners, local farmers, or anyone with gardening know-how, to help people who are new to growing learn basic skills needed to cultivate healthy and productive crops, as well as the best times and varieties to plant in our climate. 

Children's Educational Programs

A teaching garden or children's garden could be created as a fun space for local kids to connect with the outdoors, learn about gardening and how food is produced, taste real, fresh-off-the-vine flavors, and see how garbage can be recycled into compost.

Cooperation with local schools could provide opportunities for students to enjoy environmental education outside of the classroom, and special garden programs designed for young audiences could give kids something fun to do during the summer or on weekends.

Community Composting

We could reduce Penn Yan's impact on the environment by conducting a community composting program. 

Kitchen scraps and yard waste could be dropped off at the garden to be composted by volunteers. Local food service businesses and groceries could also reduce their waste and benefit the community by contributing their spoiled produce and leftovers. 

Composting is fun and easy and would provide a great source of fertilizer for our gardeners, remove some of the burden on our local landfills, and offer opportunities to learn about sustainable gardening, soil fertility, and soil organisms. 

Tool Lending Library

The right tool for the right job can make any garden task easier, but the cost of putting together a really comprehensive set of tools can quickly add up. For families on a budget, good tools may simply be out of their financial reach.

The community garden could provide a tool lending library to its members, by collecting and refurbishing old or donated tools from county residents who want to clear the clutter out of their barns and garages. Serviceable tools that would otherwise end up in the scrap heap can become a public resource to assist new gardeners.