Growing Community from the Ground Up

Off to a Splendid Start!

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FCC Farm Manager Kari Keever has kept close tabs on her gardeners and all of the beds are in good shape, generally weed free and bustling with healthy plants. The sunshine of last week came in the nick of time and the dry weather allowed folks time to lay down mulch. The mulch will keep the weeds under control and help retain moisture.

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Marcie Brewster of Wildfire Farms has agreed to donate 20 heirloom tomato plants, including some Russian and Cherokee Purples: look to see them go in sometime midweek. These plants will, according to Kari, go into the single bed that isn't currently under production.

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The Loaves and Fishes plot looks especially productive and the beds are immaculate. Hats off to Loretta Tanner for her diligence and special kudos to Connie O'Toole who is a prodigious weeder.

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The following poem, by anonymous, sums up the tender mercies of this past week:

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Thank you for my garden Lord, and for each tiny seed

That sprouts and blooms so beautifully to feel my soul's true need

Thank you for the pleasure, Lord, I find here on bended knee

For my garden's glory surely is a blessing sent from thee

Community Garden Update

Rain Rain Go Away!

Garden MANAGER Kari Keever has decreed that a large tree branch shading several garden beds must go. Consequently, LABOR will appear as soon as the rain disappears. Anyone interested in the preservation of the tree branch in its current state should contact Kari as soon as possible. We are mindful of Longfellow's command “Woodman, spare that tree!” in his poem, Under the Spreading Chestnut Tree.

With the exception of Dan’s okra and a short row of sunflowers, most of the plants and seeds seem to have survived our weeks of rain. Jennifer’s wild flower and annuals beds are looking great, however, and the Turners have turned out to be surprisingly adept at vegetable farming—their cabbages may be credible candidates for the County Fair.

A long dose of sunshine is necessary and the weather people have predicted some for next week. Let us pray.

Photo by: Sharon Sloan

FCC Inspires First Lady

The White House Garden

When Mrs. Obama planted the White House garden early this spring she inspired thousands of Americans to plant their own gardens--much as Eleanor Roosevelt did during World War II with Victory Gardens.

Interestingly enough, First Christian Church Berryville had their garden in the works several weeks before Mrs. Obama caught the world's attention with the White House Garden. Do you suppose FCC's Community Garden was the source of inspiration for Mrs. Obama?

Read all about the White House garden here:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/09/03/20/Spring-Gardening/

GARDEN BLESSING

Psalm 65, selected verses
What mighty praise, O God, belongs to you…. You take care of the earth and water it, making it rich and fertile. The river of God has plenty of water; it provides a bountiful harvest of grain, for you have ordered it so. You drench the plowed ground with rain, melting the clods and leveling the ridges. You soften the earth with showers and bless its abundant crops. You crown the year with a bountiful harvest; even the hard pathways overflow with abundance. The grasslands of the wilderness become a lush pasture, and the hillsides blossom with joy. The meadows are clothed with flocks of sheep, and the valleys are carpeted with grain. They all shout and sing for joy!

Wonderful Creator,
We praise you for our lives on this amazing planet. We thank you for green and growing things, for the beauty of this world. We thank you for seed and soil, rain, sun – and for the ability to grow good things to eat. Thank you for those in our congregation who have given of their resources, their knowledge, their labor in preparing the soil and planting.
Generous Giver of every good gift, bless this garden that it may bless our lives and the lives of others. May friendship grow as the plants grow; may joy and fellowship accompany the labor. Protect these plants from pests , disease, or drought, and may the harvest be abundant. May the food from this garden nourish and strengthen our bodies for your service. May those who receive this produce through the Loaves and Fishes Food Bank know it is a gift of your love, expressed through us. May the flowers grow and add beauty to this garden and provide income for youth ministry. May this garden give witness to your creative power, your beauty, your love, and bring glory to you. Amen.

Praying For The Garden

Planting Party!

Community Garden Update

The FCC Gardeners are Hard at Work

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At almost any time of day you will see gardeners hard at work at the First Christian Church Community Garden. Almost all of the approximately 12x12 square foot plots have been planted with vegetables, while one plot worked by the Hudspeth family and youth group is entirely given over to annual flowers: it will be a spectacular cutting garden!

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Kari Keever and her mom, Mary, can be seen early and late working their plot. Kari continues to double as both gardener and Community Garden Manager. Kari is presently refining her gardening skills and learning new techniques by interning one day a week at Fiddlehead Farm, an organic operation out on Cisco Road. "It's a lot of work," Kari says. "But I am really having fun."

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So far, corn, sunflowers, okra, several varieties of tomatoes and peppers, and lots of broccoli and cauliflower is in the ground. Visitors are encouraged to both come and see the garden...and to walk on the treads...not the beds!

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Photo by: Sharon Sloan

I am the vine, you are the branches.

Ready to Plant!

Thanks to Bill Hudspeth, mulch was delivered to the First Christian Church Community Garden this week. Kari Keever supervised a crew of willing labor and the mulch was laid quickly between planting rows. The garden is approximately 40 feet by 60 feet and 9 individual plots are ready for planting.

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Please Donate Plants

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A planting party is in the planning stages and may happen as early as Wednesday, April 15th. If you are able to donate bedding plants they will be gratefully accepted. You can drop them off at the back of the church, or at Sow's Ear on the Square.

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A major objective of the garden's planners has been to assure that the garden is visually interesting and beautiful. That's why the garden will have about a 50-50 ratio of flowers and vegetables. This summer, we hope to build or buy a few garden benches, a potting table and produce washing stand, and maybe some garden statuary.

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Equipment and supplies needed include garden hoses, 4x4 or 6x6 treated lumber, hog wire for tomato cages, produce baskets, and volunteers to teach canning, help plan for entering the Farmers' Market, or for setting up a Church Market to make produce available to members after Sunday Services.

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More Dirt Work at FCC Community Garden

Sodbusters!!!

Bill Hudspeth and Brian Scheller break ground in preparation for the First Christian Church Community Garden.

Kari Keever Kicks Things Off!

FCC's Good Earth

FCC Farm Manager Kari kicked off the First Christian Church's Community Garden on Monday, March 15th with the able help of Brian Scheller and Bill Hudspeth, who bobcat'ed and tilled a large patch of garden plot directly behind the old white church.

Kari reports that her next steps are to assign garden space to families within the larger garden, and then to cover the soil with black plastic to kill off any weeds that might lurk beneath the newly plowed earth.

Then the exciting part begins! Planting, tending, and harvesting!

FCC Gardeners to Tour Fiddlehead Farm

Learning from the Experts

First Christian Church Berryville Community Gardeners will tour Fiddlehead Farm at 3:30 PM this coming Saturday (March 14) to learn from one of Carroll County's most expert Market Gardeners, Dr. Fred Mayer. Community Gardeners will see how beds are prepared using the no till method, learn basic organic gardening practices, and be helped to identify what plants need to thrive in newly prepared gardens. Mayer, one of the area's most diversified small farmers, also produces free range eggs for area restaurants.

Members wanting to take the tour should be at the church at 3:10 on Saturday. The visit was arranged by Kari Keever.

Growing Community from the Ground Up

FCC Starts Community Garden

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First Christian Church of Berryville is starting a community garden. First Christian Church Natural Garden "Growing Community From the Ground Up" will be made up of 12 foot by 12 foot plots in the churchyard. There will be a plot for the church, for the youth group, and one for Loaves and Fishes Food Bank. There will also be plots run by individual families and groups of friends. The produce will be used by the church, Loaves and Fishes, the youth group, and the gardeners of the plots. Any extras will be sold at the Farmer's Market and to local businesses. Anyone from the congregation can help with the garden and have their own plots if they wish to do so. We are praying that this will be a great success.

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The Community Garden will be managed by Kari Keever. Call Kari for more information.