It's hard to pin it down, but Kalamazoo appears to be a leader when it comes to the number of community gardens it is growing.
Fair Food Matters Executive Director Paul A. Stermer says he recently researched what other communities are doing in preparation for Kalamazoo's annual garden tour and found no other communities showing off such a large number of gardens.
Nearly 30 community gardens will be open to the public during the Second Annual Kalamazoo Community Garden Tour, July 24, from 1 to 5 p.m. The free tour will take place rain or shine.
The tour is designed to give people the chance to chat with local gardeners about growing food, find out how community gardens work, and what it takes to start one.
Stermer says the accepted definition of a community garden is broad.
"What community gardens have in common is that they help beautify neighborhoods, produce nutritious food, stimulate economic development, even help reduce crime," Stermer says.
Some gardens on the tour have been producing for many years, but at least half of them are new this year, Stermer says. There were 10 community gardens on last year's tour.
Fair Food Matters Garden Network Coordinator works closely with gardeners at two of the local gardens, Growing Matters Garden: 2119 North Westnedge Ave. and the Oakwood Community Garden: 2529 Springmont Ave. Some of the other gardens use Fair Food Matters as a financial resource.
Visitors can begin or end their
self-guided tour at any one of the gardens. Maps will be available at the Fair Food Matters Office, 323 N. Burdick St, on July 16, and at each garden site on the day of the tour. The map is also available
here.Fair Food Matters was formed to help the community make well-informed decisions about its food.
Eat Local, Kalamazoo is a season-long series of events designed to increase the community's awareness of and appreciation for local food. It is led by a coalition of area businesses and nonprofit organizations, and is sponsored by Bravo Restaurant & Café and the People's Food Co-op.
Pictured: Luna Drumm Walsh learns to work in a Kalamazoo Community Garden.Writer: Kathy Jennings
Source: Paul A. Stermer, Executive Director Fair Food Matters
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