Gardeners Wanted I: New Community Garden Leadership Team Meeting

Marion-Polk Food Share is helping coordinate launch of a new, as-yet-unnamed community garden in Northeast Salem, not too far from the Safeway at Center St.

The plan is to convert a small abandoned lot on which a house burned down some years ago and where the newer zoning laws make rebuilding difficult or impossible.  The landowner is eager to see a garden go in and has offered use of the property for essentially nothing.

Best of all, there is water already available to the lot, it's graded flat, and it gets abundant sunshine!  The local neighborhood association (Northeast Neighbors) is enthusiastic, and MPFS is trying to organize other groups as well, to ensure that there is a solid core of supporters to help keep the project going smoothly.

If you want to get in on the ground floor -- to plant the first seeds, if you will -- and help bring about this small bit of rejuvenation in the city, some to the Straub Environmental Learning Center this coming Thursday, January 9, at 5:30 p.m.  Come join with your neighbors in doing well by doing good.  Map showing SELC (marked with the big red A) below.  The garden spot is also somewhere on the map too -- want to know where?  Come and help Thursday night!

The Best Way to Learn: Help Others Learn & Do

To volunteer or for more info
Contact:  Janet Spingath, Volunteer Coordinator
jspingath@marionpolkfoodshare.org   503-581-3855 x311

Gardens Program Volunteer Opportunities

1.       Community Garden Coordinator: Coordinate operations at a particular community garden. Duties include handling plot rental applications, assigning garden plots, setting garden guidelines, organizing work days, supervising work day volunteers. 5 hour/week commitment. Commitment of one growing season preferred.

2.       Garden Instructor: Host a weekly afterschool garden program for students from a local school. Collaborate with other staff and instructors from the School-Garden Alliance, a garden education program provided by Marion-Polk Food Share and the Salem-Keizer Education Foundation. One day week per commitment. Approx. 3 hours per day.  Commitment of one growing season preferred.

3.       Edible Landscaper: Assist with upkeep, expansion and design of Marion-Polk Food Share’s Edible Landscape Demonstration Project. 2 to 3 hours per week commitment, on an ongoing basis.

4.       Work Party Captain: Lead large workdays at various community gardens throughout the year. Supervise groups of volunteers, assign volunteers to appropriate garden tasks. As available, opportunities primarily on Saturdays in Spring, Summer and Fall.

5.       Garden Educator: Share your gardening expertise through workshops, free and open to the public, on various gardening topics. AND/OR: Be available as a resource to beginning gardeners in community gardens. As available.

6.       Garden Booth Attendant: Represent the gardens program at public events. Manage informational table, be able to talk about our program with the public and distribute print materials. As available, primarily weekends.

7.       Gardens Resource Assistant: Assist Garden Resource Coordinator with pick up and drop off of garden supplies. Must be able to drive a truck. As available.

8.       Specialized Skill Volunteer: Offer volunteer services with a special skill, such as use of a tractor or rototiller, irrigation installation, carpentry, small engine repair, etc… As available.

9.       Garden Consultant: Utilize gardening expertise to assist in design of community gardens. Troubleshoot gardening challenges at community gardens, such as pest infestation or low soil quality. As available.

10.   All Purpose Gardener: Help harvest, water, weed, or whatever odd jobs need done at a community garden. May be assigned to any garden(s). As available.

11.   Garden-to-Kitchen Volunteer: Work with Community Gardens and Community Kitchen programs to provide seasonal cooking or preservation classes and/or seasonal recipes and food preparation resources for the public. As available.

Related articles

• Inheriting a Community Garden (gloriousfoodies.wordpress.com)