The initiative to build a community garden will begin this March with an informational session in conjunction with African Refuge and Just Foods. Prior to the informational session, mailings about the garden initiative will be sent to the homes of African Refuge’s constituents and updates about the project will be included in newsletters in order to generate interest and support. At the March informational session pots and seeds will be given to participants so that they can begin seeding their crops in mid April. We will utilize a small greenhouse space donated by a family in Morris County New Jersey, to start seedlings.
The project will officially be launched in the second week of June, with a clean-up day. All those interested in securing a plot will have to donate an hour to clean-up. The clean-up day will focus on clearing the roof top space for construction and planting. The Saturday following the clean-up day (June 11th) will feature a ribbon cutting day where local press and community members will meet to declare the garden space open for construction.
Work days will commence on Monday (June 14th) after the ribbon cutting ceremony. Our first task will be moving supplies to the rooftop space. The next task will be constructing raised beds; this task will most likely take three work days consisting of three to five hours of work a piece. After the beds are constructed planting and transplanting can begin.
During work day lunch breaks on Wednesdays guest speakers will come in to talk about issues relating to environmental sustainability and community development. Community members have offered to speak about green employment, what it means to be a refugee today, health conscious cooking, finance and environmental current events. The goal of these discussions will be to create an environment that is secure, peaceful and conducive to informed discussion.
No comments:
Post a Comment