This #GivingTuesday we’re raising $5,000 to support Dig It STL! (2)

Posted on November 28, 2016 by beanstalk

“My name is Kierra Graves, and I am a member of the 2016 Dig It crew. I am a rising senior of MICDS. Before beginning the Dig It program I assumed that I would be planting flowers and digging up dirt around the city. I had been referred to this job by a co-worker’s family member so I didn’t know much about what Dig It did in general. I also had some anxiety about having to work in the heat and being the “new girl” because I came later than most of the crew.

After my first day on the farm I realized this program was much more than planting flowers for a check. I quickly discovered that the crewmembers interacted more like siblings or cousins rather than co-workers. Although I had jobs where people were close I [had] never seen everyone get along so well. Also, I realized that every workshop, field trip, and task was personally helpful to me because everything I was learning could be applied to and improve the quality of my life.

The last full week of the program proved to be the most important week for me. My biggest take away from the Dig It program 2016 is appreciating my ability to make a change and having joy in doing so.

On the last Friday, as I was washing harvest crates, I really began to appreciate the work we all did here. Watching the food being packed and put into the truck made the fact that we did [the] work to feed real people. I gained so much satisfaction knowing what I was doing had a purpose. It never hit me until then that the work I put in, that we put in impacted the lives of so many people. All in all, you never know how much your actions could bless others, whether you see it or not.”

-Kierra, Dig It Crew Member 2016

Through Dig It, high school students develop agricultural and ecosystem knowledge, community leadership skills, public speaking skills, and passion for environmental stewardship.

2016 saw the expansion of Dig It STL from a summer teen employment opportunity into a year round program! Dig It STL’s expansion has been partially funded through a multi-year grant, but we need your help to fill the gap! Please consider helping us reach our goal of $5,000 by giving a gift during this #GivingTuesday. Make a difference in the life of a St. Louis teen! #GivingTuesday

Support Dig It STL this Giving Tuesday! (2016)

Posted on November 28, 2016 by beanstalk

This Giving Tuesday we’re raising $5,000 to support Dig It STL!

2016 saw such demand for our summer teen employment program, Dig It STL, that we’ve decided to expand it to a year-round program! Now, students can continue to get hands on with diverse urban agriculture and conservation initiatives around the city throughout the school year. Through Dig It, high school students develop agricultural and ecosystem knowledge, community leadership skills, public speaking skills, and passion for environmental stewardship, all while learning valuable soft job skills and earning a paycheck.

Dig It STL’s expansion has been partially funded through a multi-year grant, but we need your help to fill the gap! Please consider helping us reach our goal of $5,000 by giving a gift on November 29th- Giving Tuesday. Make a difference in the life of a St. Louis teen!

“My name is Myra and I have been working at Gateway Greening for a year and I am an alumnus for various things. I’m an Alumni intern, Dig It crew member and leader. I am 19 years old an I’m an undecided sophomore student at the University of Missouri St. Louis. For the last year I have been particularizing on what to study in college and by working with Gateway Greening I have noticed that I enjoy working outdoors and that I enjoy science more than any other specialty. I know that I will decide one day but sometimes I feel like I can’t because I don’t believe in myself as much as I should.

My defining moment was when I was offered the position to be a crew leader for the 2016 Dig It crew. When I was first offered the position I kept pushing it off because I didn’t think I would make a good leader. So after a few weeks I thought to myself if someone I only knew for a few months trusts me to take a higher position as a leader, then why shouldn’t I? So I decided to take the offer because my great, supportive supervisor, Carolyn believed in me more than I believed in myself. To this day I thank her for that push out of the tree and allowing me to fly to learn and develop self-confidence and other skills the position pushed me to have.”

-Myra, Dig It Crew Leader 2016

You can help the Dig It STL program continue to flourish by participating in #GivingTuesday on Tuesday, November 29! Click here to donate.

2016 – Ten Years on the Farm

Posted on November 18, 2016 by beanstalk

A look back at the founding, building, and overall impact of the Gateway Greening Urban Farm.

The Gateway Greening Urban Farm (formerly known as City Seeds) started out as most things do – as a “what if?” floating around the organization back in 1998. For a nonprofit dedicated to addressing food security issues through the establishment of community gardens, starting a farm that could produce more fresh produce and reach a greater number of people seemed like a natural extension of their existing programs. Pretty soon, that “what if?” transformed itself to a “how?”

Building Partnerships

To figure that out, the Gateway Greening staff went on a retreat to brainstorm what a St. Louis based urban farm should look like, and how it could be used to serve and benefit the surrounding community. The staff quickly realized that by partnering with other nonprofits and public organizations, they could significantly expand the opportunities the farm presented. With a wish list in hand, then executive-director Gwenne Hayes-Stewart began to reach out to organizations they’d like to partner with. Many of the potential partners she approached to play a role responded with an “oh cool, yes!” – provided that funding could be found to support it. According to Gwenne, it was a fun time, but a lot like starting a whole new organization.

Ultimately, Gateway Greening formed a coalition with St. Patrick Center, Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis Master Gardeners, Public Policy Research Center (PPRC) of UMSL, St. Louis Community College at Meramac, and Operation Food Search. By combining their unique resources and skill sets, the coalition was able to secure a Community Food Project Grant through the USDA Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES) to fund the project’s initial starting costs and early operational budget.

Under the original CSREES grant, the urban farm’s mission was listed as “Improve access to fresh food at low cost, improve self-sufficiency for people overcoming addiction.”

Roles of the Original Coalition Members:

Building the Gateway Greening Urban Farm

Everything seemed to be coming together: the project had a solid plan, a coalition of organizations that would work together to make the project a success, and the funding to make it happen. What they didn’t have was land.

Hayes-Stewart recalls this time period with a sense of frustration. All of the sites originally proposed had major impediments, from extensive sidewalks and hardscaping throughout the plot to deep shade caused by surrounding buildings. Fortunately Kevin McGowan, a Gateway Greening Board Member, had a solution. At the time, the Missouri Department of Transportation (MODOT) had a sizeable piece of land bordering an on-ramp for Highway 64/40, just a stone’s throw from downtown St. Louis. Coming in at 2.5 acres, the plot turned out to be an ideal location – plenty of sun, highly visible, and located close enough to St. Patrick Center to be accessible to the clients who would be working there. The contact at MODOT thought it was a great idea, and agreed to lease the property.

To use Hayes-Stewart’s words, they were the “most fabulous partners.” MODOT worked with the coalition to prepare the space, fixing up a fence along Market street – a busy street which borders the property on one side, as well as to enclose a large, open sewer in the middle of the site.

Although the land was perfect in many ways, the soil was not. Soils in most urban areas are typically referred to as ‘brownfields’ meaning the soils are poor quality and are often contaminated with industrial chemicals or other pollutants. At the time, Gateway Greening had a board member who worked in the marketing department at what is now Spectrum brands, who was able to arrange for a donation of soil that could be used to create raised berms. This would allow the farm to grow healthy food above the site’s contaminated soil. The initial plan was to create 10 berms each year over the life of the grant (3 years) for a total of 30 beds. However, that’s not quite how things played out.

One of the many things that Spectrum has sold over the years is bagged potting soil. And much like food, potting soil must be appropriately labeled in order for a business to legally sell it within the US. At some point in time, Spectrum’s production line had mistakenly bagged a large amount of potting soil in the wrong packaging, rendering it un-sellable. It sat stockpiled in a warehouse in Kentucky until the Spring of 2006. Thanks to the generosity of Spectrum and a dedicated volunteer base, all 30 of the Farm’s planned raised berms were built over a period of 2-3 months using 6 tractor trailer loads of mislabeled bagged potting soil and humus. According to Annie Mayrose, the first Farm Manager, the soil for most berms had to be laid by hand, one wheelbarrow at a time, because it wasn’t possible for heavy equipment to reach all areas of the farm, nor was there enough room for a skid steer to operate in-between beds. Ten years later, she’s still grateful to Horstmann Brothers Landscaping for donating their time and equipment to move pallets of bagged soil as close to their eventual home as possible.

Working with St. Patrick Center Clients

The beds weren’t the only thing to see explosive growth in the first season. In addition to growing food, the Farm was intended to be a place where individuals who were dealing with mental illness, overcoming addiction, homelessness, and other challenging circumstances could work part-time in conjunction with their therapy programs. The idea was that by working on the farm, clients would be able to reinforce their personal and therapeutic goals by seeing first hand what they were capable of – growing food. That would help at-risk individuals in their community, gaining self-confidence as they accomplished tasks and saw their crops thriving, and developing a healthy relationship with food,learning soft skills and the importance of a nutritional diet. The grant originally intended to serve 10 clients the first year, however, 53 clients passed through the program before the first November.

As the first full-time farm employee, Annie Mayrose has vivid memories of 2006. “That first year was rough. There was no irrigation, no shade, little storage for supplies and the harvest… we were relying on hydrant keys and 100s of feet of hoses to water everything by hand!” Beyond the physical challenges of caring for the crops, Mayrose also spent countless hours researching and building the programs offered for participating clients. “It was clear from the start that clients were having a very positive experience at the farm. There is something magical that happens when people work together, create or grow something with their hands. “These days, Mayrose laughs and groans good-naturedly when she talks about those experiences, but she’s also quick to acknowledge that even during the earliest stages, the farm had incredible volunteer support. From installing beds and watering crops to caring for the farm’s very first biodiversity initiative – growing all their own seedlings from heritage and heirloom seeds on site – volunteers played a crucial role in making the urban farm dream a reality.

Fact: The berms of the Gateway Greening Urban Farm are not straight rows, but gently undulating lines. The design was done by Master Gardener Sue Chaires to mimic the movement of the Mississippi.

Between the combined efforts of clients, staff, and volunteers, the Gateway Greening Urban Farm produced 2,200lbs of produce in its first year. Much of the produce was sold at the nearby Tower Grove Farmers Market as a way to introduce the clients to retail sales and customer service while improving their self-confidence and putting food into the community.

Pilot Food Box Program

2006 was also the year that the Gateway Greening Urban Farm partnered with what is today City Greens and other existing Gateway Greening community garden sites to pilot a food box program that sought to connect rural, low-income farmers with people living in St. Louis food deserts. This endeavor was essentially a subsidized Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program. It was a great idea, but needed a bit of tweaking. It quickly became obvious that many of the food box recipients had no experience with many of the fruits and vegetables they were receiving, so seasonal recipes and cooking resources were quickly implemented to meet the need. The Pilot Food Box Program did well for a number of years, but eventually the funding that made the subsidies possible ran out, making the boxes too expensive for the individuals who needed it. When that happened, the program became the foundation for what is today City Greens: a grocery Co-op that keeps prices affordable for everyone in their community!

2007-2009

Over the next few years the farm continued to expand. A grant from the USDA led to the addition of a native plant nursery that was installed along Pine Street to serve as source material for St. Louis community gardens, and also to attract local pollinators to the farm. Drip irrigation and other key infrastructure also began to appear as the demand for both produce and slots for new clients grew.

When asked, Mayrose is honest about the growing pains experienced during this period. She went on to explain that each year the amount of produce grown increased, causing a scramble to find enough refrigerator space to hold the food until it could be distributed. The office was quite a ways from the farm, meaning that the harvest, mowers, gas and larger items had to be loaded up into a truck and carted across St. Louis at least twice a day. And the temporary shade structures being used kept being destroyed during surprise thunderstorms.

Despite these challenges, there were hundreds of daily high points too. Mayrose also talks about what it was like to see people interacting out on the farm and the joy and sense of accomplishment the work brought to everyone. Mary Fitz, a former client who completed the Job Training program in 2008, agrees: “My life really started changing there. To see nothing, then, I was taught how to plow, to turn over the soil, and I even helped build an irrigation system. You know, I learned to garden…it was just an amazing experience.”

Even during the early years, the Gateway Greening Urban Farm drew volunteers from everywhere: Corporate CEO’s, people struggling with homelessness, high schoolers, retiree’s, and even international visitors from the hotel next door! The shared life experiences and interactions from these diverse groups made even the most daunting, physical farm task fun and meaningful.

Did you know? The Farm’s current location was formerly a backup landing pad for the nearby Children’s Hospital in the event high winds prevented a normal landing. During the early years, helicopters still occasionally landed on The Farm!

2009 – 2010 – Awards & Grants

The original CSREES grant ended, causing several changes as some organizations parted ways, and others, like Food Outreach, were added. By bringing in new partners and expanding the farm’s official focus to include more defined roles for both food distribution and education, the coalition was able to acquire a second CSREES grant that would serve as the primary funding of The Gateway Greening Urban Farm for another 3 years. While the CSREES grant was important, it wasn’t nearly as fun as the Pepsi Refresh competition!
In 2010, Pepsi launched a philanthropic social media campaign that pledged to give millions of dollars to groups that were working to “refresh” their communities through new and innovative means – winners would be decided by the general public, who would nominate and vote for their favoritegroups. Gateway Greening made not only the list, but was selected as one of 6 organizations as a ‘runner-up,’ awarding them with $50,000 infunding and national recognition. “It was a big deal” Mayrose recalls. “The Today Show came out to the farm for the bigreveal. It was live across the nation, so we had to get as many people as we could out on the farm at 5 am. It was really exciting.” Thanks to the Pepsi Refresh program, Gateway Greening was able to make critical infrastructure improvements.

At the same time, it became apparent that St. Patrick Center clients who had worked on the farm were getting hired by local landscape companies and nurseries because of their experiences growing crops. The farm staff discovered that there was a demand for people with basic landscape skills in the St. Louis area. As a result, 2010 was also the year the Jobs Training Program for St. Patrick Center clients was formally established creating a unique program where clients could focus on learning both basic job skills and green industry (landscaping, gardening, horticulture) skills at the farm in addition to receiving career counseling at St. Patrick Center. Willie McFarland was one of the first participants to go through the newly arranged program. At the time, McFarland had recently been released from incarceration, and is the first to admit that he didn’t have any skills or experience that would allow him to get a job – a key requirement of his parole. With the help of his parole officer and St. Patrick Center, McFarland found himself enrolled in City Seeds. A few weeks later, he was recruited by Horstmann Brothers Landscaping for a job – before he’d even finished the training.

The program was initially funded by a one year grant through the Wal-mart Foundation, then sustained long term when St. Patrick Center was 1 of 6 national winners to be awarded a Green Jobs Training Initiative Grant by the US Conference of Mayors. The Therapeutic Horticulture Program continued as a separate offering.

Beehives were also added to the farm in 2009, and production jumped to 10,000lbs a year as soil quality continued to improve.

6 Years In…

By 2012, the Gateway Greening Urban Farm had become a well established presence in downtown St. Louis, providing thriving job training and therapeutic horticulture programs, extensive education and volunteering opportunities to the general public, and continuing to increase its food production and distribution by leaps and bounds. The site’s infrastructure continued to improve as well thanks to special grants and individual donations. The three biggest structural changes that came about were:

1. The addition of a large shade structure, courtesy of a Specialty Crop Grant through the Missouri Department of Agriculture. This structure shelters the outdoor classroom, making it the perfect day for class on rainy days and offering a crucial cool space for clients and volunteers during the worst of summer’s heat.

2. The Mobile Mini shed was also added for secure tool storage after the site experienced multiple break-ins and robberies, resulting in the loss of expensive landscape equipment.

3. The installation of a rain garden in the center of the farm by then AmeriCorps VISTA Rachel Deffenbaugh. Although they’re well covered with grass and plants today, the farm is a network of french drains that move excess water to the rain garden where native plants trap and utilize the water, filtering it before it permeates back into the ecosystem. This project was crucial to reducing standing water on the site.

Changes on the Gateway Greening Urban Farm

Rachel Deffenbaugh came on board as the Farm Manager in 2012, following her work with Gateway Greening as an AmeriCorps VISTA. From 2012-2016, she was the driving force behind the farm’s success, managing a small team of seasonal staff, AmeriCorps VISTAs, clients and volunteers to keep both the Gateway Greening Urban Farm and its programs running smoothly day to day. Since coming on board full-time, she saw a lot of changes at the farm, starting with funding. Since the end of the CSREES grant support in 2012, the original coalition of supporting organizations has disbanded and the Gateway Greening Urban Farm has transitioned to rely on support from a variety of small grants, CSA proceeds, Neighborhood Assistance Program (NAP) Tax Credits, and individual donations.

Programming on the farm has evolved as well. For a time, the job training track included the Veterans Go! Green Job training program (created in conjunction with St. Patrick Center) which provided struggling military veterans with hands-on green industry job skills training and a basic horticulture education.

“We were all sharing a common bond. We all started getting attached to these plants, and the amazing process that not only the plant were going through but we were in ourselves experiencing the growth and the change.” – Greg Roger, former client.

What hasn’t changed is the Gateway Greening Urban Farm’s commitment to continuing to serve St. Patrick Center clients who are working to overcome homelessness, addiction, mental health issues and recidivism. As the economy recovered from the 2008 recession, our staff has seen a higher concentration of clients who need both the job training and therapeutic horticulture programs, resulting in the blending of these two distinct programs in 2016.

In a recent interview, Deffenbaugh was asked if there was a client that particularly stood out in her memory. “Several” she admits, “but Allen, a therapy client from 2012, probably stands out the most” (name changed, for confidentiality reasons). Before joining the program Allen had been a single parent, supporting his kids by truck driving. Like many drivers, Allen began to abuse drugs in order to stay awake and on the road longer in an effort to get his runs done quickly, and wound up addicted. From there, things spiraled out of control. “He’d had a rough time of things,” recalls Deffenbaugh, who has stayed in touch with Allen since he successfully completed the job training program in 2013. “When he started the program, he’d been sober for maybe a month – he always credited the program for helping him stay sober.” After completing the program, Allen went on to rebuild his life, finding both a stable home and work that allowed him to spend more time with this family. “He still volunteers with us” Deffenbaugh mentions at the end of the interview. “He’s always a big help when he visits.”

10 Year Impacts:

Over the last ten years, the Gateway Greening Urban Farm has produced more than 105,000 pounds of fresh, nutritious produce that has been distributed throughout the St. Louis region: to St Patrick Center clients and volunteers, to CSA and market customers, to food pantries, to food-security non-profits and to the City Greens cooperative. The Therapeutic Job Training Program – across all its incarnations – has helped more than 633 men and women to develop valuable technical and interpersonal job skills, as well as to develop coping skills in order to address challenges with mental illness and substance abuse. And the Gateway Greening Urban Farm has brought together thousands of volunteers from all over the region (and world!) to share stories and experiences as they work side by side between the berms.

When it’s all said and done, I could quote numbers: production quantities, volunteer hours, and employment rates galore, but the true impact of the Gateway Greening Urban Farm isn’t measured in numbers. It’s found in people like Mary Fitz and Willie McFarland. Eight years after finishing at the Farm, Fitz is still putting her skills to use at Global Market, where she preps, wraps, and displays delicious peppers and other produce in their produce department, and still loves to garden at home. As for McFarland, he’s been back to the farm on several occasions as a teacher, training new groups of clients in the skills and techniques he regularly uses in his work for Horstmann Brothers Landscaping. I can’t help thinking that he summed up the entire farm experience best when we spoke last: “It opens up doors, so many other doors to opportunities that weren’t there. When I look at the options this opened up since I learned this… I literally got a skill I can use that betters the whole situation, for me and everybody associated with me.”

Researched and Written by Erin Wood, AmeriCorps VISTA

Edited by Annie Mayrose, Rachel Deffenbaugh, and Jenna Davis

Perennials in the Fall Garden

Posted on October 25, 2016 by beanstalk

When it comes to gardening, it’s a well known fact that every gardener has their own way of doing things – and that’s okay! But it does mean that sometimes experienced gardeners send conflicting messages to newcomers about when, and how, to approach seasonal tasks in the garden. This October we’re looking at perennials in fall: what they are, how they behave, and different reasons gardeners may choose to cut cut back their perennial plants in now, or wait till spring.

What is a Perennial?

Perennials are plants that come back year after year, producing new stems, leaves and flowers each growing season only for the above ground portions to die back during the winter months. Daylilies, peonies, purple coneflower and hostas are all examples of perennial plants commonly found in St. Louis gardens.

When Should I Cut Back my Perennials?

The first rule of fall garden clean-ups: unless something is seriously diseased, wait for it to starting dying back before you cut back! The cooler temperatures of fall signal to trees, shrubs and perennials to begin preparing for winter, starting by storing up food and energy. Many plants will actually start this process by pulling nutrients out of their leaves and stems, moving them down into their root system to be used as fuel throughout the winter. This is what causes our plants to “dieback” in stages over a period of weeks each fall. By waiting until plants have died back to clear them from the garden, gardeners are ensuring a stronger, healthier plant will return next spring.

Best Practice for Cutting Back Perennials:

Although there will always be exceptions, most perennials do best when gardeners cut them back to approximately 1 inch above soil level, and remove the dead plant material from the area. This prevents gardeners from accidentally damaging shallow roots while cutting and the remaining stems also serve as “I am here!” markers for anyone mulching, digging, or planning to add plants to existing beds in the following year.

Not sure if you should cut back a specific plant? Swing by your local garden center to ask about best practices in your neighborhood, or send us your questions at [email protected]!

3 Reasons to Cut Back Perennials in Fall:

Reduce Problems with Pests & Diseases Next Year

It’s a well known fact that the biggest challenge in gardening isn’t necessarily getting things to grow. Sometimes, it’s all a gardener can do to prevent pests and diseases from hijacking the harvest! Despite not being food crops (usually) ornamental perennial plants are still susceptible to a range of diseases, insects, and other pests that can leave plants looking lackluster or downright unhealthy by the end of the year. By cutting back and removing dead leaves and stems, gardeners can encourage healthy new growth the following spring without the risk over overwintering a garden menace.

Drop by the University of Missouri Extension to learn more about preventing disease in the garden.

Tip: Bare soil often becomes compacted and loses much of it’s surface nutrients as winter snows and rains leach them away. To protect your soil, cover bare areas with a 3-4 inch layer of compost or plant a cover crop such as annual rye grass in fall.

Maintain Plant Size

Some perennials (and many ornamental shrubs) can grow to impressive sizes over the course of a single summer – and keep growing the following year. Prevent plants from outgrowing their space by cutting them back during the fall when there’s less risk of shock or attracting pests!

A Tidy Appearance

Gardens bursting with crops and stunning flower displays in summer give way to withered stalks and wilted leaves in fall – something that isn’t always appreciated by the neighbors. If your garden is in a public or highly visible space, consider cutting back perennial plants as they die back to keep your garden looking well-maintained and cared for to earn a little good will from the neighborhood.

Looking for a way to keep things looking tidy without cutting back everything? Try removing a few things at a time, then stepping back to check the overall effect. We recommend starting with peonies, daylilies and hostas while leaving hydrangeas and coneflowers for last. For best results, cut back to 1 inch above the soil level.

3 Reasons to Leave Perennials Standing in Fall:

A tidy garden may be aesthetically pleasing to the surrounding neighbors, but there are several benefits to leaving dead stalks and leaves in the garden over winter.

Winter Shelter for Local Wildlife

One of the downsides of living in an urban environment is the lack of habitat for local wildlife, and this can be especially challenging during the winter when small animals are most in need of shelter from wind and predators. For gardeners aiming to encourage and support local wildlife populations, waiting to cut back perennials until spring can provide additional cover and shelter.

Looking for a good reference to building a wildlife-friendly garden habitat? Check out this excellent guide by Penn State Extension Service.

Winter Food Source for Local Wildlife

Thanks to the Grow Native campaign, more and more of the perennials we see around St. Louis community gardens are actually native plants, such as purple coneflower, and they provide more than colorful seasonal interest. Many native species also serve as a valuable food source for local wildlife throughout the winter months – if you leave the dried seedheads and berries intact. Black-eyed Susans, purple coneflowers, and sunflowers are some of the most common plants we find in gardens that we recommend letting stand.

Looking for ways to add natural food sources to the garden? Stop by the National Wildlife Federation and the Missouri Botanical Gardens to learn more.

Winter Interest

Winter is a beautiful season in its own right, but by the time January rolls around the lack of visual interest found in many modern landscapes can leave gardeners feeling dull. Give your garden a bit of visual interest this winter by leaving perennials with interesting architecture or colorful stems and berries standing until late winter/early spring.

Stop by the Gateway Gardener for a little winter interest inspiration.

The Takeaway

At the end of the day, there’s pros and cons to cutting back perennials at any time of year, meaning it’s up to each individual gardener to decide what is the right time and method for their garden – there’s no right or wrong way!

Meet the Wild West Community Garden

Posted on October 18, 2016 by beanstalk

Wild West Community Garden – Growing Friendships, Educational Opportunities and Vegetables Since 2011

Images of flowers and produce grown in the Wild West Community Garden.

By Chrissie McConnell, Wild West Community Garden Leader, Advanced Master Gardener

There is no a better way to tell our story than to sit down with Jodi Smedley, the visionary and founder of our spectacular garden. I had the perfect opportunity to sit down with her and she will be the first to tell you it took a village- Here’s our story…

McConnell: Where did your inspiration and vision come from?

Smedley: A really difficult situation, the sudden death of my brother Gregg. We both shared a passion for gardening. This was a way to turn a very difficult situation into something beautiful and remain connected via The Gregg Witwen Memorial Garden.

McConnell: Can you share how this vision became a reality?

Pizza garden at the Wild West Community Garden.

Smedley: There was available land on the Wildwood Family YMCA property. I saw the perfect opportunity! I proposed the idea. A focus group was identified and there were about thirty people on board with this plan. From there a steering committee was developed all with the help of Nathan Brandt the Horticulture Specialist with the St. Louis MU Extension program. Initial funding was procured through local, community businesses and supportive individuals.

McConnell: What was your connection with the YMCA at this time and how did they support this vision?

Smedley: At the time I had been working in the membership department and to- date I have been employed at the Wildwood Family YMCA for fifteen years. The mission of the garden is to provide a peaceful, neighborly and safe setting that encourages gardeners to gather, socialize, learn and share the benefits of organic gardening, environmental stewardship and community support through bounty sharing to local food pantries. Growing a healthy community is consistent of that with the YMCA, being youth development, healthy living and social responsibility.

McConnell: Can you share some of the important organizations, groups and businesses that have contributed to the garden’s development and growth over the past six years?

Smedley: Some of the fabulous people that have helped us include Lucky’s Market, Corporate Y Partners, St. Louis Master Gardeners, AmeriCorps, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Eaton Bussmann, Kohl’s Ellisville and of course Gateway Greening and the Wildwood Family YMCA!

McConnell: The groundbreaking for the garden was in 2011 and now it’s 2016! How has the garden grown and flourished?

Smedley:

1.We’ve expanded and now have 55 raised garden beds and are land locked.

2.We have a Lucky’s Market Learning Garden with 8 raised beds in which children’s educational programming occurs, including YMCA day camp activities. There is a worm bin, pizza garden and a pollinator garden.

3.The P.A.R. program (Plant -A-Row For The Hungry) has been developed.

4.We have developed designated berms for our native pollinators. We won the Gateway Greening 2016 award for Best Biodiversity in a Garden.

5.In 2016 funding was secured for a youth educator.

6.We are an official Monarch Waystation.

7.Homeschool programming has been developed.

8.Taste of The Garden events in conjunction with The University of Missouri Extension Program.

9.Strong communication development through our garden newsletter, section leaders, steering committee, adult education programs, garden committees and e-mail garden tips.

10.The most generous individuals who give their time sharing their talents and knowledge way beyond our garden guidelines.

McConnell: Our beautiful oasis also lends itself to offer individuals peaceful rests, reflection and relaxation watching the sunset on a cozy bench or watching the abundance of butterflies on the wide array of flowers. It is definitely an experience for all of our human senses to enjoy.

Jodi is currently the Corporate and Community Collaborator for the Wildwood Family YMCA and a Master Gardener.

The Wild West Community Garden –Growing a Healthy Community One Garden at a time! We are located on the property of the Wildwood Family YMCA in Wildwood Missouri- c’mon out!

Fresh Starts Community Garden

Posted on October 18, 2016 by beanstalk

Once upon a time, in the city of St Louis, MO, there was a certain vacant city lot, and on it was nothing but tall grass and equally tall weeds. It was also a dumping place for plenty of trash, in all forms from various places and people. So one lady, by the name of Rosie Willis, decided something positive should be done about that city lot – a blight on the whole area.

A garden! That would create beauty as well as a great source for fresh, organic vegetables for the surrounding neighborhood residents. This was in the year of our Lord 2009. So what did Rosie do? Well, first she asked her neighbors if they would like a vegetable garden on the lot, where all the trash, mean weeds and grass was growing. Everyone was thrilled about such an idea! So, as spokesperson for her neighbors, Rosie went to City Hall. There, she checked all the records are kept on local land and buildings, and discovered that the land belonged to the Comptrollers Office. The director was eager to lease the land to Rosie’s community group for only $1.00 dollar for five years!!

Hallelujah, hallelujah! The land was theirs, and Rosie and her neighbors could start their garden. But how???

Rosie and her neighbors didn’t have money to buy the things they needed as start up gardeners. But that didn’t stop Rosie. She sent letters to all of the surrounding churches. Unlike most communities, Rosie’s had an abundance of churches nearby. So, thinking that she would surely get help from her neighborhood churches, she contacted each pastor of every church (about 20 or more) and asked for $1 dollar. To strengthen her case, she showed proof that the community group was operating with a 501(c)3, under the umbrella of the Neighborhood Organization at that time. In the end, not one church responded to their request for help, not even the churches located on the same city block as the garden.

Determined to succeed, Rosie turned next to their city Alderwoman, Marlene Davis, for financial help. After many late night emails, early morning emails and phone calls from Rosie to the Alderwoman, the answer was still “we don’t have any money right now, but we’ll work on it.” So Rosie kept at it. She and her neighbors were challenged with so many obstacles and stumbling blocks while starting their garden: no money, no tools, no seeds, no lumber for raised beds, and even worse – no water. The community had to run water from across the street to garden the few plants they had. Any “no” you can think of, Rosie and her neighbors heard it.

One day, Rosie heard about a small grant being offered by Operation Bright Side (OBS). She worked with Mary Lou Green (of OBS) to apply, and they got the grant! Now, the garden could really get started, and it did! Rosie and her neighbors purchased gardening tools and flower bulbs to start beautifying the space. A local lumber company in the neighborhood agreed to sell them $435 dollars worth of lumber for $130, and even when the gardeners couldn’t pay the bill, he brought the lumber anyway, cut and ready to build 19 raised garden beds! And through it all, Rosie kept emailing her Alderwoman, keeping her up to date on the obstacles and successes of the neighborhood gardeners. The Alderwoman listened, and rewarded their persistence by approving funding not only for the one lot Rosie and her neighbors had begun gardening on, but also to expand the space onto another six lots on the same block!

Over time, Rosie and her neighbors have worked hard and worked magic in their new garden: The Fresh Starts Community Garden. They transformed it from a wasteland of trash, weeds, tall grasses and drug needles to being awarded the Best Community Hang-Out Garden by Gateway Greening. Today, they are blessed with great local support and even volunteer help from all over the country. Next year, they’ll celebrate the gardens 9th birthday! Where has the time gone?

Story by Rosie Willis – Fresh Starts Community Garden Leader

Volunteer Impact in STL

Posted on October 3, 2016 by beanstalk

AMEN Mission group volunteering at The Gateway Greening Urban Farm

Thanks to our Volunteers! We’ve had a successful summer!

Summer is nearly over, but that’s okay because it has been a successful one thanks to all of our generous volunteers! As of August 13th, we’ve had the pleasure of working with 2582 group volunteers and 152 individual volunteers in 2016. That makes a total of over 11,900 volunteer service hours supporting St. Louis Garden projects! This diverse volunteer core represents the educational, corporate, faith-based, non-profit sectors and more! Thank you for serving your community. We’d like to highlight a few groups to showcase their impact at Gateway Greening and across St. Louis neighborhoods.

AMEN at The Gateway Greening Urban Farm.

YouthWorks on the Farm

AMEN St. Louis embraces the neighborhood around them by providing mission opportunities with local organizations. AMEN volunteers have spent time just about everywhere for Gateway Greening. From Gateway Greening’s Urban Farm to several of the community gardens, AMEN St. Louis’ work with us is greatly appreciated.

“AMEN St. Louis is a ministry of Oak Hill Presbyterian Church on the south side of St. Louis City. We host youth, adult and intergenerational mission teams from around the country. Part of our mission is to provide volunteers to various non-profits, ministries and missions throughout the St. Louis area. A week would not be complete without a day spent at a Gateway Greening Community Garden or the City Seeds Urban Farm. Our groups enjoy a bit of St. Louis summer weather while building relationships with community volunteers, Gateway Greening Staff, and each other. Helping to grow healthy food for the St. Louis community is an added bonus. We appreciate the partnership we’ve developed with Gateway Greening. ” – Donna Cook

Volunteer Day at Clay Elementary School Garden

On July 16th, Rise STL’s Rise Young Professionals Board, The Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis Young Lawyers Association, and LinkStL came to help at Clay Elementary’s Cougar School Garden in Hyde Park. Through their help, the Cougar School Garden has been revitalized and will continue to be a source of learning for all children in the community! We reached out to one these amazing organizations to hear what they had to say about volunteering:

“The Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis (BAMSL) has a proud tradition of community engagement and service to others, and the community gardening and engagement initiative at Clay Elementary is the latest example of the organization’s ongoing commitment. BAMSL members were honored to partner with the Young Professionals Board of Rise Saint Louis, Gateway Greening, and Link St. Louis, Inc. on this important community gardening project. This volunteer project not only allowed us to care for the Clay Elementary Cougar Community Garden while the students were away on summer break, but it also introduced many volunteers to a part of Saint Louis that they had only driven past. Working with these wonderful organizations – and engaging with community members – reminded us of an important truth: that we are all in this together. BAMSL hopes to continue its work with these partners on significant community engagement projects going forward.

Metro High School at Bell Garden

Bell Demonstration and Community Garden had seven Metro High School students volunteer recently. We spoke with a couple of those students and asked how they became involved.

Ella Catherine said, “I heard it through a friend who also made their school a friend of Gateway Greening [Volunteer Group].”

Sasha Mothershead heard through her environmental club and from Ella Catherine.

These students, all upperclassmen, are all either involved in gardening, agriculture, or conservation and it doesn’t just end there. On top of volunteering Saturdays with Gateway Greening, each, in their various spare time, are either on debate team, running for their cross country team, involved with the school newspaper, taking advanced courses through the International Baccalaureate Program, and continuing to dedicate volunteer hours to other great organizations.

A great take away from the day was that they made friends with some of the Bell Community gardeners who gave the students tomatoes and sweet potatoes. Sasha said, “Being able to work with the people you’re helping is also cool.”

Individual Spotlight: Susan Baron

Total Lifetime Volunteer Hours with Gateway Greening: 200 hrs!

Susan Baron is a committed volunteer at Gateway Greening’s Bell Demonstration Garden! While living in New Hampshire, Susan had been involved with a community garden project, but when she moved she knew she wanted to continue to support that type of work here in St. Louis. Susan looked online and found Gateway Greening! We got in touch with Susan and asked her about her volunteer experience with our organization.

“Being a volunteer for Gateway Greening means getting up early on Saturdays, finding calm in weeding and picking bugs off of brassicas, experimenting with new ways to do things, being able to talk vegetable gardening with friends and coworkers, and having a good supply of Gateway Greening grocery bags, garden gloves, and t-shirts. I love having a place to go where I can watch the progress of the plants and be a part of a community of people tending a patch of ground.”

She also stated: “I think my favorite moments have been conversing with other volunteers while tending the garden. Having a common (and somewhat tedious) task seems to set the stage for conversations that take a little more time and go a little deeper than most daily conversations.

Also, sometimes I look up from my task–whatever it is–and realize I’m really happy. Sometimes the people and plants and weather all combine in a way that reminds me of all the beauty and goodness in the world.”

Meet the Central Reform Congregation Community Garden

Posted on September 21, 2016 by beanstalk

Growing Community at Central Reform Congregation Community Garden, and Beyond

Welcome to Central Reform Congregation Community Garden

One of the fundamental goals of the Central Reform Congregation (CRC) is to strengthen the bonds of our community through communication and participation, while continuing our work of Tikkun Olam — the repair of the world. Our landscape includes an area we call “Common Ground,” located at the northeast corner of the property, a circular area of paving stones intended to welcome members of the surrounding community, in this diverse urban setting. In this garden space, we have placed a public sculpture as a landmark where the community is welcome to gather for marches, candlelight vigils, or prayer services.

We have added 4 raised beds this spring to grow food and donate it to the local food pantry. We are building community with the gardens in the area, including the garden at Next Door and the Central West End farm, with the desire to build a thriving network. One day, we would love for the folks who use the food pantry to take over the gardening and maybe open a garden store for them to sell food and goods.

-Ben Fox, Garden Leader

Learning in the Central Reform Congregation Community Garden

I moved to St. Louis from Jackson, Mississippi hoping the weather would be cooler and less humid. I was wrong. And now, instead of working in an air conditioned office, my daily work life has changed dramatically. I moved to St. Louis at the end of July to work for The Amir Project, an organization that teaches young adults to run educational gardens at summer camps. In St. Louis though, Amir began a year-round initiative aiming to work with local community gardens in the hopes of providing support. More specifically, I work with the Garden of Eden at the JCC in Creve Coeur, the Central West End Farm, the Central Reform Congregation Community Garden, the Next Door garden, and the Transgender Memorial Garden.

Through each garden, I’ve met people and made friends who have each taught me something unique, which made me realize how truly innovative the garden classroom is. At the Central West End Farm, under the tutelage of Arthur Culbert, I not only learned interesting things about plants and veggies, but also how to sustain a gift-garden. I learned to infuse vinegar with herbs, package the product, and sell it to community members, which ultimately brings money back to the garden for seed and seedling money. I know these are skills I will take with me moving forward. I am grateful that even though air conditioning is comfortable, that I got out of the office setting and into the garden setting. Gardening in St. Louis very quickly introduced me to the folks of the city, and I was able to meet and befriend people of all ages.

-Arielle Nissenblatt

Celebrate National Farm to School Month in October

Posted on September 21, 2016 by beanstalk

October is National Farm to School Month, a time to celebrate connections happening all over the country between schools and local food!

Farm to school enriches the connection communities have with fresh, healthy food and local food producers by changing food purchasing and education practices at schools and early care and education settings. Students gain access to healthy, local foods as well as educational opportunities such as school gardens, cooking lessons, and farm field trips.

Over the past decade, the farm to school movement has exploded across the United States, reaching millions of students in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Farm to school is an important tool in the fight against childhood obesity and food insecurity. In addition to improving child health, when schools buy local, they create new markets for local and regional farmers and contribute to vibrant communities, a win-win-win scenario!

Farm to School – Across the Nation

In March, the USDA released the results of its 2015 Farm to School Census, and the results are exciting!

In 2015 approximately 42,587 schools across the United States actively participated in Farm to School programs, reaching 23.6 million students nationwide.
During the 2013-2014 school year, participating schools purchased $789 million worth of local products from food producers – farmers, ranchers, and even fishermen!
54% of the 5,254 school districts surveyed reported having at least one edible school garden. (In the 2013-14 school year, they reported 7,101 active school gardens providing fresh food and education opportunities!)

Farm to School – What’s happening in Missouri?

According to the 2015 Missouri Farm to School Survey, at least 911 schools (143 school districts or private schools) used locally grown food in school meals or snacks during the 2014-2015 school year, with the average school district spending 3% of their budget on local products.
In the 2009-10 school year, the most popular locally grown items purchased in Missouri Farm to School programs were apples, melons, cucumbers, tomatoes and peppers.
The Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 authorized and provided funding to the USDA to establish a Farm to School Program to provide grants and technical assistance in implementing farm to school programs to improve access to local foods in eligible schools.
In 2016 the School District of Springfield R-12 was awarded just over $90,000 to increase student access to locally sourced produce and expand food and nutrition education by the USDA.

Farm to School – What’s happening in STL?

In 2016, the Ferguson-Florissant School District was awarded $91,500 to partner with St. Louis University and local farms to integrate and expand its farm to school program.
Gateway Greening currently supports 65 school gardens across 19 school districts in St. Louis. 25 of those school gardens are at St. Louis Public Schools! Over 600 teachers across the region use these gardens as outdoor laboratories, serving 12,000 students.
Gateway Greening youth educators are working with 300 students each week in their school gardens as part of the Seed to STEM program. These students will be out having a Farm to School Harvest Party in October!
Fifteen youth participated in Gateway Greening’s teen employment program, Dig It STL, on the Gateway Greening Urban Farm this summer. 45 additional youth participated in other Youth Conservation Corps programs at YCC member organizations, including EarthDance and Seeds of Hope Farms. These students learned about soil, plant science, nutrition and teamwork while fully engaging in the work of the farm from planting to harvest to selling at North City Farmers’ Market… and weeding, lots and lots of weeding.

The 2016 National Farm to School Month theme, One Small Step, will highlight the simple ways anyone can get informed, get involved and take action to advance farm to school in their own communities and across the country. Join the celebrations by signing the One Small Step pledge and take one small step to support healthy kids, thriving farmers and vibrant communities this October.

Whether you are a food service professional, a farmer, a teacher or a food-loving family, there are plenty of ways to celebrate and get involved in National Farm to School Month! The National Farm to School Network offers a variety of free resources on its website, www.farmtoschool.org, including posters, stickers and a communications toolkit.

Learn more about National Farm to School Month, how you can get involved, and sign the pledge by visiting www.farmtoschool.org.