For 5 years PWA has been tilling the Toronto soil through the cities Community Garden Program.
“The Community Gardens Program is cultivating a dynamic community gardening movement across the City.” City of Toronto
This year, PWA had 15 plots in 3 locations bringing bountiful harvests throughout the summer and early fall supplying our Essentials Market food bank with an abundance of locally grown organic produce.
PWA launched a Community Garden Program in 2012 with the goal of supplimenting our food banks fresh produce while engaging clients with meaningful volunteer opportunities.
PWA’s Community Garden Team Leads Carlos and Rafael oversaw all aspects of the planting, harvesting and everything in-between, including regular watering and maintenance. It was a hot and dry summer but that didn’t stop them from producing bountiful baskets of kale, bok choy, swiss char, green beans, cucumbers, radishes, a variety of lettuces, and more!
PWA’s Community Garden activity has become an integral part of PWA’s food programming, commitment to providing nutritious food for clients, and Engagement opportunities. Every month over 900 people rely on the Essentials Market for grocery. Fruits and vegetables that are high in fibre, vitamins and minerals are critical to a healthy immune system. Through the Community Garden Program, we are able to increase the amount of fresh produce available to clients while engaging volunteers and the community in the process.
This year, we expanded our program by partnering up with two new garden communities.
- PWA was provided with a garden plot at Allen Gardens as part of the pilot program Edible Allen Gardens.
- The second partnership was with the Bowery Project located in the vacant lot directly across the street from the PWA office. This project is the third of its kind in the Toronto area providing temporary and mobile urban agriculture on vacant lots across the city.
It was a long hot and fruitful season and we had our final cultivation in mid-October. In addition to the amazing harvests this year, we are particularly proud of the new relationships with Edible Allen Gardens and the Bowery Project. And finally, we thank Corporate Specialty Services for their continued investment in the work we do and provided funding towards this years gardening program.
Want to get involved in PWA’s Community Garden Program? Do you have a garden plot in the downtown area that we could use? Contact Kevin Borden, Food Programs Coordinator for more information.
