SUNDRE – Once a plain plot of grass that produced nothing, the site of the Sundre Community Garden has since grown to become a thriving source of primarily homegrown produce as well as some perennials.
The raised garden beds – two were added this year bringing the total to 30 – are rented by green thumbs who plant a wide array of varieties from carrots, onions, beets and peas to lettuce, cucumbers, zucchinis and kale as well as plenty of others.
More than a dozen gardeners gathered for a pizza party on Wednesday, Aug. 6 at the fenced-in site immediately adjacent to the Myron Thompson Health Centre’s parking lot to celebrate the 10th anniversary.
Darlene Bauer has been renting plots since 2020 and also volunteers to manage the garden’s compost bin, a task that requires weekly attention.
Bauer, who was among those who came out to celebrate, enjoys being involved and regularly visits the garden to tend to her crops, which include pees, lettuce, broad beans, cucumbers, bush beans, onions, carrots, beets, zucchini, and kale.
Also attending the pizza party were Dolores and John Dercach as well as Linda Martin, who have all rented plots since the very beginning.
Dolores previously served as the society’s chair and Martin was part of the steering committee that planted the seeds and laid the groundwork more than 10 years ago.
Martin only has so much room available in her own backyard and is glad for the opportunity to have more space to grow fresh produce.
“This looks amazing this year,” she said about the garden.
The sense of community has kept her keen on coming back ever since 2015, and she has every intention of continuing to stake her claim on a raised bed next season.
Spearheaded by a local committee under the coordination of the Greenwood Neighbourhood Place Society, work on the project began in the spring of 2014.
The community garden was unveiled in 2015, made possible courtesy of grant funding in the amount of $25,000 through the federal government’s New Horizons for Seniors Program with an additional $3,000 from Alberta Health Services’ Thrive for Wellness Program.
Further enhancing the site were numerous contributions from the local business community.
The society has identified numerous benefits associated with a community garden, including but not limited to:
• providing a chance to garden, which promotes physical activity, decreases mental fatigue, and helps reduce stress;
• offering older adults a chance to impart their knowledge with rookie green thumbs;
• empowering plot holders to have more control over their own food;
• fostering a greater sense of community spirit along with an opportunity to network and make new connections by meeting others who share a passion for gardening; and
• increasing not only community beautification but also biodiversity while improving air quality.
