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By Lynette Spicer
More than two tons of produce, green beans to zucchini squash and a whole lot of sweet corn, were donated to Bethesda Food Pantry, MICA (Mid-Iowa Community Action), and ACCESS (Assault Care Center Extending Shelter and Support) in Ames this summer.
It was the first year Ames has participated in the grass-roots effort developed and promoted by the Garden Writers Association of America (GWAA). Plant-a Row for the Hungry is a public service campaign of the GWAA to encourage gardeners to donate produce to local food banks, soup kitchens, and service organizations to help feed America’s hungry. The initial effort was in Anchorage, Alaska in 1995 when a garden writer encouraged readers to plant an extra row of vegetables and donate the produce to a local soup kitchen. Since then, the effort has grown to more than 600 communities and at least 31 states and Canada.
In Ames, a group representing Story County Master Gardeners, Ames Garden Club, Story County Extension, Bethesda Food Pantry, ACCESS, Ames Parks and Recreation, MICA, and Reiman Gardens started work in November 2003 to set up a program. All groups worked on promotion. Produce was collected at Reiman Gardens on Monday mornings from June 28 through September 30. The program operated with volunteer labor, coordination by a student intern at Reiman Gardens, and oversight by Linda Naeve, extension coordinator at Reiman.
Thirty-nine gardeners contributed 955 pounds of produce. Seven farmer’s market vendors from the North Grand Saturday market donated 2782 pounds. The ISU Horticulture Farm and Reiman Gardens donated 349 pounds. The final tally was 4086 pounds of produce collected and distributed.
Those working at the food pantries identified one unmet need: simple preparation instructions and recipes for some of the lesser-known vegetables such as egg plant, beets, Swiss chard, and the many varieties of squash. Often those who receive the produce are not native-English speaking or have little time or extensive ingredients to prepare the vegetables. Recipes are being collected now for next year’s program.
Plant a Row for the Hungry will continue next year in Ames with more volunteer labor and very little Reiman Gardens’ staff or intern time. Anyone can help in next year’s effort. Local churches and service organizations can help promote the program. Gardeners, when looking over those seed catalogs in January, can plan to plant an extra row. Anyone can volunteer to help collect the produce, wash and sort it at Reiman Gardens, and help deliver to Bethesda and MICA. And anyone can contribute recipes.
There are more than 70 million gardeners in the United States. Many gardeners typically harvest more than they can consume. If every gardener plants one extra row of vegetables and donates the surplus, a significant impact can be made on reducing hunger without government participation. Those in need get the benefit of fresh vegetables. Food banks and soup kitchens can redirect some of their funds to other needed items.
If you have questions about or want to volunteer for the local Plant a Row for the Hungry effort, ask Lisa Harmison or me.