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Jun 20, 2012 | EDOT Staff

St. Christopher's "Feeds the Need" with Community Garden

 

 

The Plant a Seed ~ Feed the Need community garden at St. Christopher's, League City, is a donation garden providing fresh organic produce to the food pantry at Interfaith Caring Ministries in League City. ICM currently provides grocery assistance to households within the Clear Creek Independent School District with individuals currently living at or below the poverty level. ICM provided a one-time grocery assistance provision to over 3,000 unduplicated households in 2010 to date.

 

The garden adopts the attitude of inclusion and invitation to the individuals it serves, creating a "hand up" opportunity rather than a "hand out" situation.


Construction began on the garden in the summer of 2008 and is a work in progress. The overall design encompasses 1 acre. There are currently 12 raised beds each holding 150 square feet of growing space. In the fall of 2010 we planted a fruit tree orchard, which includes 30 different varieties of fruit including fig, citrus, apple, pomegranate and blueberry. 

 

"It is an eco- friendly project in that we are encouraging organic gardening practices and reducing the amount of organic material (lawn clippings, coffee grounds, kitchen vegetable scraps) that ends up in landfills by maintaining a compost pile that will be used to fertilize the plants," said Ally Hardick, lay ministry coordinator. "We currently employ a low volume drip irrigation system to conserve water."

 

This spring the church added a rainwater harvesting system to capture and store precipitation to be used for irrigating the garden, reducing the need to turn on city water.


The garden is funded through individual donations and corporate in kind donations as well as community development grants. Memorial gifting opportunities are also available including park benches, bed sponsorship, and tree plantings. The garden is open to all individuals and groups wishing to volunteer in this community outreach project.

 

To date the garden has hosted area church youth groups, Girl and Boy Scout groups, environmental groups and individuals seeking community service hours. This is truly a community outreach project that has surpassed its original scope. In addition to providing fresh produce to those in need, the garden has become an opportunity for education, and an example for stewardship of limited resources. 

 

Please contact Ally Hardick at or the church office 281.332.5553 to learn about volunteer and memorial gifting opportunities.  Fall workdays are Tuesday evenings 6-7 p.m. weather permitting. The address is 2508 St. Christopher Ave., League City, Texas.