2011Community Garden Awards Nominations

We invite all current and interested community gardeners to come share their experiences; hear from gardening experts; bring their children to enjoy crafts and activities; renew your Community Garden Associate Membership (with the opportunity to participate in the free SEED swap); and enjoy the chance to network with the many community gardeners in the Capital region. There is no charge for this event although donations to support SFE's programs are always welcome. For more information, go to our online Calendar and click on "SFE Annual Community Garden Potluck".

Sponsored by St. Andrew's Centre, Brookfield Residential and the City of Edmonton.

If you have a passion for community engagement and volunteerism, we invite you to join the Community Outreach Working Group.  A task list was developed around the upcoming Annual Community Garden Potluck – information coming soon!  If you'd like to help, email areni@sustainablefoodedmonton.org.

Our Little Green Thumbs indoor gardening program is underway with 12 schools added to the roster this year! Many thanks to the volunteers, teachers, parents and various other organizations and individuals who make this program a reality for so many children and youth within the City of Edmonton.

The City of Leduc's community garden program is a great way for residents to have their own personal garden space. Garden plots cost $25.00 and are 25' x 40' in size. Plots are open from May to September annually.

The garden plots are under the care of the Public Services department. Our staff administer the program and provide a number of services to care for the area. Garden plot services include:

• Tilling and plot stakes
• Seasonal watering

Location: 
Near 4801 44 street, Leduc.

Returning Gardeners
You will be sent a letter in February offering you the same plot as the previous year. You will have until March to pay for it in order to reserve it.

New Gardeners
If you have not rented a plot before you can be put on our waiting list. Plots will be assigned to new gardeners after March 15. Applications are available for download below, or can be picked up in February from the Public Services Shop or the Civic Centre.

Three Easy Ways to Pay

• Mail your cheque for $25 to the City of Leduc, #1 Alexandra Park, Leduc, AB. T9E 4C4 Attn: Finance (Garden Plots).
• Pay in person at the civic centre. Payment options include; debit, Visa/Mastercard, cash or cheque.
• Pay in person at the Public Services Shop located at 3718 - 48 Avenue. We accept cash or cheque (sorry, no electronic services at this office).

For more information, please visit Leduc.ca, or call the Public Services department at 780.980.7133.

9610 Morinville Drive

Morinville United Church

• 10 raised 4x8 plots
• Community Perennial garden
• Composting bins
• Tool Locker

Our mission is to promote urban and organic food production and community building in and around the Morinville area. The Morinville Community Gardens will provide a forum to connect with neighbours and share our cumulative knowledge on plants and food. Together we will create accessible spaces that operate on the principles of inclusion and respect for each other and the environment.

Visit us on Facebook

Phone: 780-939-3892

Champlain Park 99 Ave and 104 St. 

12 12x15 in ground plots 
8 6x15 in ground plots
Composting bins
Water source
Community Perennial beds
Shed

Our mission is to promote urban and organic food production and community building in and around the Morinville area. The Morinville Community Gardens will provide a forum to connect with neighbours and share our cumulative knowledge on plants and food. Together we will create accessible spaces that operate on the principles of inclusion and respect for each other and the environment.

Visit us on Facebook

Phone: 780-939-3892

ECOS's Campus Community Garden began in 2003 and was created to give community members a way to be more sustainable in their food production. Eight years later, the garden has accomplished that goal and so much more. Not only does it provide space for people to grow local and organic food in a collective setting, it also builds a sustainable and energetic community. We are run completely by volunteers that do not take ownership over the crops, but share and work together in the production. The Campus Community Garden provides many opportunities to educate community members about a variety of topics including gardening, composting, harvesting, food security, and sustainable lifestyles. Events are held at the garden twice a month to bring the community together and reinforce the role of community gardens in creating a sustainable culture. Once a week we host salad parties at the garden where volunteers bring salad ingredients and we harvest lettuce to enjoy the fruits of our labour together. Something powerful is created when we can use food to build community spirit and positively affect our environment. At the Campus Community Garden we also have a responsibility to work in our community to improve its overall quality. Organizations that we have worked closely with are the Campus Food Bank, the Green and Gold Garden, Edmonton Naturalization Group, and the Autism Society of Edmonton. The Campus Community Garden will continue its significant role in the community and its responsibility to promote sustainable change.

Last week, I had an opportunity to sit in on the inaugural meeting of the Alberta Food Policy Council. Newly formed and just getting started, the food policy council brings a diverse group of food-related stakeholders to investigate and review how the Alberta food system is run and develop recommendations to ensure a local, secure and sustainable food system is maintained. The vision can easily be summed up here:

"We can be leaders in municipal and regional food-related policies and programs; we can support regional farmers and food producers; we can expand urban agriculture and food recovery opportunities; we can promote composting and the preservation of healthy soil; we can encourage humane treatment of animals raised for food • we can support sustainable agriculture and preserve farm land resources • we can improve access to healthy and affordable foods; we can increase the health of all members of our province; we can talk together and teach each other about food; we can celebrate the diverse food cultures of our province; we can facilitate the transition from Industrial Agriculture practices to Sustainable Agriculture methods."

While the Council is still evolving, there are many municipal, provincial and national bodies working at a grassroots level: re-claiming our local food economy and ensuring its sustainability.  With the rise of multinational agro business, the increasing loss of fertile agricultural land to development and the distancing of those who live in urban areas away from their food and food production, we are letting something truly valuable slip away. 

Enough people have begun to realize just what this loss could mean and are working to ensure that we consider more than just the easy economics. There is a deeper cost to the way we've been getting our food in North America; from the people that grow it, to the way it's produced and transported, we are damaging not only each other, the earth and ourselves, we are mortgaging our children's future health, food quality, and food accessibility.

It's time to get involved or just to get educated about the food system we currently employ in North America.  There are some great things happening but there are also some sickening practices that have been allowed to continue.  When it comes to our health, our planet and our children, we cannot sit back and do nothing.  Consider a small act: join a community garden in your area; buy produce from a local farmers' market while we're in season; plant your own herb garden; volunteer with Sustainable Food Edmonton; teach your children about the rich history of agriculture in this province and where their food comes from; write a letter to your city councillor, your MLA or your MP to ask that food policy be included in the discussion...there's an amazing amount you can do today!

For more information, visit the Alberta Food Policy Council facebook page.

Our Community Garden engages its community by offering low income residents the opportunity to learn how to garden and supplying them with garden supplies. We teach them how to grow their own food and also help them beautify their community. Our community garden also allows for different members from the community to come together and get to know one another. Members help each other in gardening matters and also educate each other based on their garden knowledge. As well our Community Garden offers workshops, such as composting and natural pesticide use in order to better inform members on how to care for their gardens and help the environment.

We here in the Highlands are a tight group. Never have I lived in a neighbourhood where residents truly rallied for each other as they do here. Be it an illness, new baby or worse, there always seems to be a group of people offering meals or a ride or a play date as a gesture of help to others. Nor have I lived anywhere where so many people know each other. Potlucks, Friday night fire pits and pub nights are all common practice here.

And the gatherings aren't new or recent - it all started back in the 50's when a group of neighbours wanted a hall they could meet at to dance, have family BBQ's and group functions. This hall was built and used regularly for 50 years until it was too old and decrepit to repair.  By this time, generations of families enjoyed meeting at 6112 113 Ave for get togethers. The day came in the spring of 2008 for the hall to be torn down but the need for a place for people to gather still remained.  Strong community spirit
also remained, again rallying a group of folks to start up a long talked about garden in which the community could continue to cultivate friendships, create memories and gather. This garden came together in record time (2 months!) and has been full ever since.

The local kindergarten class has been involved in the garden also, teaching youngsters how things grow and where their food comes from. The garden is located on the site of the old hall, the roots of our garden are planted deeply into the past while we continue to grow into the future.