For the last two months, we have been diligently working on a new project within our community. The Elwood Park Community Gardens, which will consist of 30 raised garden beds for neighbors and surrounding communities to enjoy and use. Elwood Park is a historical neighborhood where the roots of agriculture run deep. It was first designated as a farming community in Manatee County over 100 years ago! Today, the community consists of homes on mainly 1 acre or more lots, where people run their business, homestead, or just enjoy the peaceful “country” in the city. So you might be asking yourself, why in the world would an “agriculture” community need a community garden? Or even, what is a community garden? We couldn’t be more excited to share with you!
According to the American Community Gardening Association, a community garden is ” A community garden is a plot of land where people can plant flowers and vegetables together. In many American cities, community gardens are transforming unused city lots into vegetable plots.” In our opinion, it’s more than just a plot of land where people can grow food or flowers, it’s the community aspect. Elwood Park residents may have their own land, but what they desire most, is to grow as a community. A space where people can find common ground through getting their hands dirty, expanding their education, and of course, delicious and nutritious foods! Community garden space allows for deeper relationships within community members. A chance to meet and communicate with neighbors that you might not otherwise. An opportunity to grow together through learning from experiences within the garden. According to the Mayo Clinic Health System, ” Social connections are important because they help lower stress, improve resilience and provide support during difficult times in life. A strong sense of belonging lowers your risk of depression, anxiety and suicide. “
There are also many health and wellness benefits to community gardens. The obvious here is, fresh produce! The first public community garden in Manatee County, Manatee Square Gardens, grew almost 1,000 pounds of food in 2022. There’s nothing better than eating produce you grew yourself. Once produce is harvested, it begins to lose nutrients, especially during shipping and stocking in stores. The fresher the produce, the increase in health benefits! By participating in a community garden and being exposed to fresh produce, the odds of a person having an improved, well-balanced diet go up! Surrounding yourself with not only vegetables and fruits, but like-minded people who enjoy gardening and eating fresh produce, can influence your food decision making. Improvement to mental health is another positive attribute that comes from community gardens, and gardening in general. According to a study by The University of Florida in the “PLOS ONE Journal, “Engaging in art and gardening activities resulted in apparent therapeutic benefits for healthy women between the age of 26–49 for indicators of depression symptomatology, perceived stress, and total mood disturbance in dosage-mediated responses. The art and gardening interventions were found to improve participants’ psychological profile elements after only four weeks of twice-weekly, one-hour sessions.” Even just a short two hours a week, can truly do a lot for one’s health!
The real question is, ” how do I find a community garden within my city or county?” The American Community Gardening Association has a great resource to assist. Their interactive map allows you to search all over the United States for community gardens! If your county or city doesn’t appear to have one, there still could be a chance! For instance, the Manatee Square Gardens in Manatee County isn’t listed on their site even though it is an active community garden. We suggest contacting your local government (city or county depending on where you live) and asking if there are any local to your area! They usually are either run by parks and rec, natural resources, sports & leisure, or even in some cases the county health department! If you still don’t find a garden, we couldn’t suggest enough, to take the initiative and try to start one. That’s exactly what we did! We found vacant, county owned land and presented the idea to our county commissioner. She LOVED it! Now months later, it’s in the final stage of design as well as being proposed for funding in July. If your county or city doesn’t have funds, look for grants. If you truly want one of the greatest assets to a community (it increases the value of local property owners by almost 10%!) advocate for a community garden! If one already exists, join it. It will be one of the best things you do in 2023.
-Written by Janyel Taylor
The Veranda View 