Vegetable gardening popular again

EILEEN FISCHER
Environmental concerns, high food costs make vegetable gardening popular again -
There isn't any hard data on how many of us in Connecticut are raising our own vegetables. In fact, it's not a statistic the state's Department of Agriculture can even hazard a guess on. But with the growing concern over the environment, the increased demand for organic, locally farmed produce and increasing food costs, anecdotally, it seems, more of us are interested in planting home gardens. Bill Duesing, executive director of Connecticut's Northeast Organic Farming Association (www.nofa.org) in Oxford, which has about 800 members, has been gardening since 1969. While gardening is the No. 1 hobby, according to the National Gardening Association, over the years, Duesing said he's seen the popularity of vegetable gardening wax and wane. It was growing in the 1970s, he said, but slacked off in the '80s and '90s. Today, he said, "I think we're approaching a perfect storm of problems with climate change and high food prices" that is resulting in people once again returning to the earth.

This time, he said, "this may be a trend that lasts for a longer time."

"Edible gardening is going to continue to grow," said Charlie Nardozzi, a senior horticulturist with the National Gardening Association in South Burlington, Vt. Traditionally, he said, it's people in their 50s or older who garden, but he predicts younger people will pick up on the trend. In 2007, he said, 25 million, or 22 percent, of
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American households had a vegetable garden. That number has held steady for about five years, he added, but what did increase, by 22 percent, is the amount of money spent on the gardens. Next year, he believes, there will be an increase in their number, too.

"What happens in the edible gardening category is when the economy gets rough, people want more control in their lives and one way to do that is to grow their own food," he said. "The bigger picture is concerns about the safety and quality of foods and [people] are concerned about their carbon footprint."

But, planting a vegetable garden can seem intimidating — Where to start? What to plant? How can I keep the deer from eating everything? If you're concerned that you don't have all the answers, or the space, joining a community garden may be one solution. "The wonderful thing about a community garden is there's someone who knows what they're doing," said Cordalie Benoit, president of the Connecticut Community Garden Association. "You don't have to be friends to do a community garden; it's a true cross-section of society that's arbitrary.

"And people learn from each other," she said. "It's not that hard. Kids can do it. Old people can do it. [Gardening alone] in your own backyard can be discouraging."

In Connecticut, there are 80 community gardens, she said. Some are located in urban areas where you'd expect to see them, such as Bridgeport and New Haven, but they're also in upscale communities, such as Darien and Westport.

"They're everywhere," Benoit said.

A plot can be large or small, ranging in size from 8- by 4-feet to 10- by 20-feet. Generally, families work a plot together, she said. But, there are many ways to run a community garden.

In New Haven, where Benoit lives, she gardens at the Williams Street Community Garden. The maintenance is done as a group and the harvest is divided among the members, which includes about 30 families. In Bridgeport, there are 20 community gardens with 200 families involved, said Robert Halstead, president of the Bridgeport Community Land Trust. Over the last two years, the number of participants has increased by about 50 percent, he said. Halstead attributes the rise to better maintenance of the gardens, which has given them better visibility in the community and improved people's impression of them. Lynn Pritchard, a Land Trust board member and captain of the Burroughs Community Garden in the Black Rock section of Bridgeport, has been gardening for 18 years and prefers gardening with others. "You can garden alone, but you're getting to know your neighbors and know who's around. It makes the neighborhood safer," she said.

About 18 families and children who go to the Burroughs Community Center are involved with the garden. Pritchard's two children garden, too, and thinks it's a great idea for youngsters for many reasons: They learn about nature, where their food comes from, and watching something grow that they planted is a great source of pride, she said.

The garden's main crops are tomatoes, kale, collard greens and beans, said Pritchard, who started hundreds of heirloom vegetable seeds in her home for planting in the city gardens. There are plans, she said, to expand the Burroughs' garden.

"We are seeing more interest because of the cost of fresh food," she said. Before the recent opening of a Stop & Shop supermarket nearby, the garden was the only source of fresh vegetables for some families, she added.

In Milford, Linda Ball works for the Park and Recreation department supervising the Bensen-Crump Community Garden in Eisenhower Park, a job she's had for 17 years. There are 135 plots on three acres, said Ball.

"Interest in the garden has been pretty steady," she said, but in the last few years people have been calling earlier and earlier to get on the waiting list, which this year swelled to 25 people. Seniors, especially, are concerned with the high cost of food, she said, and want to keep their plots and more people are even planting winter crops, she said. They are even talking about canning, which seems to be on the rise again after being almost nonexistent for years, she said.

"Last year about 25 gardeners grew for themselves and also participated in Plant a Row, or PAR," an initiative to help feed the hungry, she said. "We set aside two plots for PAR that volunteers took care of.

"We totaled 716 pounds of food that was donated" to local soup kitchens and shelters, she said, proudly. The National Gardening Association has a free, monthly e-mail newsletter on edible gardening. For details, visit www.garden.org.

BEGINNER'S GARDEN

• Start small. Horticulturist Charlie Nardozzi from the National Gardening Association said plant a 3- by 5-foot bed that's in full sun in an area that you'll pass by frequently.
• What to grow? Bush beans, summer squashes, tomatoes, any greens, swiss chard and peppers are good first choices, said Nardozzi.
• Keep the garden low maintenance. Mulch around beds and plants. Visit the garden every other day and spend 10 minutes weeding instead of once a week.
• Get the children involved with planting seeds, harvesting carrots, fun stuff, not just pulling weeds. Once they're invested in the garden, they'll discover how great-tasting fresh veggies are.
• Container gardening is easier than ever with the new self-watering containers and specially mixed potting soil — don't use garden soil in containers, said Nardozzi.