West Asheville community garden feeds locals

On top of a gentle knoll off Sand Hill Road in West Asheville rests a small garden achieving big things. Located on county land within the Buncombe County Sports Park, with striking mountain views as its backdrop, Sand Hill Community Garden is run entirely by volunteers who grow vegetables organically to donate directly to the community.

Last year alone, the neatly tended plot donated 1,400 pounds of fresh produce to those in need.

Initiated by Lynn Pegg of Buncombe County Recreation Services, after receiving a grant from North Carolina Parks & Recreation, Blue Cross Blue Shield and Nourishing NC, the garden is now in its fourth year. Its mission — "To share garden space, knowledge and labor with all members of the community, using organic growing practices to promote community health and wellness by providing fresh produce for garden members and local people in need of food" — is working.

Part of a collective of similar local community gardens known as Gardens That Give, Sand Hill Community Garden is partner with a broader initiative to diminish hunger.

Dodging intermittent rain showers from the cover of the storage shed, where produce is weighed and recorded and tools are stored, Laura Carter, one of Sand Hill Garden's founding volunteers, talks about the garden's growth over the last four years.

"I am really passionate about it," she says as we stroll through the garden scape once the clouds break, giving way to the misty mountain view. "Outside of work and family life, this is what I have going on."

Carter's efforts, as horticulture guru and one of the garden's lead coordinating volunteers, are apparent.

Within the 4,000-square-foot plot, garden beds are divided into nine 350-square-foot rows bordered by blooming perennial flowers. The rows are noticeably well-tended, neatly edged, fixed with irrigation hoses and nearly free of weeds.

"We try and designate roles," Carter says. "It is a dedicated group and everyone feels like they are doing something positive." Each member, she says, brings a special talent to the group. Some focus on mowing while others plant or cultivate.

The garden is open to any volunteer with an interest and depends on this participation. Sand Hill's most mature member, a 90-year-old known simply as Dot, grew up on an organically operated farm long before organic was even a term. Dot brought her gardening experience to the garden last year as a new volunteer and now helps tend it regularly.

Of the routine volunteers, "three or four of us coordinate," Carter says. Considering production records and viewing the well-tended space, it is apparent that however casual, this is a project with plenty of dedication and hard work.

Regular volunteers are invited to receive a portion of the garden's harvest in exchange for a minimum of working hours. Work sessions take place each Wednesday at 6 p.m. and Saturdays at 9 a.m.

'Everything is free'

A special aspect of Sand Hill Community Garden is how the harvest is distributed. Garden volunteers harvest produce during Wednesday evening work sessions, weigh and portion vegetables equally, then participate in a free produce market every Thursday morning for community members who qualify for food assistance. "Yes, everything is free," Carter confirms.

What do shoppers think of all the fresh produce? Jan Ianniello, chair of the Free Community Meal Program in Candler, explains the reactions to the free market: "Food from the Sand Hill Community Garden is fresh that day and grown just for them. Clients find this incredible. They choose this food first, but with great respect and care that it is not wasted.

"They always ask who and where it came from. They are very grateful and so pleased that someone cares and wants to share 'first fruits,' not leftovers, with them."

Marketgoers include people from all walks of life. "Our clients include mothers searching for healthy food for children, fathers who have just become unemployed or just lost benefits, folks with food allergies whose best bet is fresh produce, families living out of cars, and young men camping out," Ianniello says.

"Today we average 85 families, about 330 people. We have served as many as 101 families in a week, about 360 people. Forty percent of those clients are children; 30 percent are senior citizens."

Pegg says she is inspired by what is happening, "When I go to the garden and see everything growing and the amounts of produce harvested from just a few working hands, I feel like we are making a difference in lives, whether it is a small child who hasn't tried a certain type of vegetable or a senior citizen who can't get outside and tend their own garden."

When asked about the project's trials, Pegg says, "Sometimes it has been a challenge to get new volunteers, but we continue to work on that. We want people to know they can live anywhere in the county and still come volunteer and take home produce, the garden space is not limited to the Sand Hill community residents.

"The current challenge is that pesky groundhog who has taken up residence at the garden."

Volunteers have since put up a fence and are working to keep the pesky groundhog out of the space, which has been part of learning what works best each season.

"Everyone involved cares about the process of growing food and knowing where it comes from," Carter says. "Volunteers want to help the opportunity exist to see food growing in the community. You can grow food and socialize and make new friends while doing so. ... Everyone brings something to the project."

"The gift of food from (the garden) has also inspired some clients who have home gardens. When two families' crop of mustard greens came in, they appeared on two Thursday mornings in a row with coolers full of fresh mustard greens. They were proud of their product and eager to share as others has shared with them," Ianniello says.

When interacting with those who receive free produce, clients are generally more than eager to have such fresh food. Even for those who are going though hard times, Ianniello recalls of one regular market shopper, "I sometimes get a smile, always a heartfelt 'Thank you!'"

LEARN MORE

• To volunteer or to make a donation, which is 100 percent tax deductible, visit www.buncombeservicefoundation.org or contact Elaine Sargent at 828-808-2645 or sargent_e@charter.net.

• Visit the garden at Buncombe County Sports Park, Sand Hill School Road, Asheville. Work sessions are 6-7:30 p.m. Wednesdays at 9-11 a.m. Saturday. Get photos and updates on the garden's Facebook page.