Edible Avalon

     

Edible Avalon is a unique community garden program for residents of Avalon Housing and their neighbors - in 2011 over 3,200 pounds of fresh, organic produce was harvested for Avalon tenants. Edible Avalon builds permanent raised bed community organic gardens onsite at Avalon properties, provides seeds and tools, installs rain barrels for irrigation, and helps residents plan and plant their garden plots.  What makes the program unique is that this beginning is followed by ongoing weekly visits from dedicated volunteers throughout the season who share organic gardening expertise, monitor the gardens health, distribute and collect recipes and information at the garden information kiosk, and organize weekly classes on methods of preparing, using, and preserving the harvest. Classes have included canning, making jam, uses of herbs, and lacto-fermentation. Fieldtrips to the Farmers Market and local CSAs have been highlights of the last couple of years, and in 2011 a Youth Leadership program was developed for the summer.

In addition, there is a youth and childrens general program which includes weekly activities such as building a sunflower fort, tasting herbs, identifying seedlings and vegetables, growing a pizza garden, and creating their own dishes from what is ready in the garden. This summer, for the second year, the youth program will have a booth at the West Side Farmers Market where they will be able to sell products from their vegetable and cut flower gardens. 

 

Edible Avalon provides opportunities for participants to develop new skills, increase their time outdoors and social interaction, and take on roles as mentors to new gardeners and leaders in the program. Several participants will themselves be leading classes next year in nutrition and cooking.  

 

Edible Avalon is about much more than gardening. Gardens are deliberately designed to be attractive and long-lasting (most are built of stone), and are placed adjacent to public spaces to maximize the participation of and interaction between neighbors and Avalon tenants, providing them opportunities to come together in a common purpose.  Neighborhood organizations, for example child daycare centers, are specifically invited to have plots in the gardens. The gardens and their programs have built a positive impression of Avalon’s properties in their communities and garnered numerous compliments from neighboring residents. 

 

In 2009, thirteen new gardens were built, and an additional twelve gardens (at five new sites) were added in 2010.  In 2011 the gardens expanded again, and we now have dozens of beds at 14 different Avalon properties around town.

 

We are actively looking for 2012 Site Volunteers! Click here: Edible Avalon Site Volunteers for more information, or please call us at (734) 663 5858 or email us at Edible Avalon!

 

We also have other volunteer opportunities, and they are updated constantly. Time requirements range from a half day, to 3 days a week.