Crossroads Garden needs community to get behind it
Three years ago a community garden food forest was started by volunteers at Crossroads Church.
Soil has been built on what was once sand, fruit trees are finding their roots into the wood and compost under the large “hugelkultur” beds, and surviving with very little water. A fence was erected around the almost half acre garden. Volunteers continued to build beds and plant. This last year garden manager Kelly Ware Whipple of Polson, has a son with severe respiratory issues this year and could not leave him to work in the garden. Pastor Scott Moore has kept it watered this year to help the fruit trees through this dry spring and summer. The Whipples are moving to Panama in 3 weeks for their son to be in tropical air where he has no problems with breathing.
“This garden is one of the most beautiful and delightful I have worked in; the mountains, birds, crickets and plants call out God’s name all around me in the glory of creation. It’s easy to feel God’s marvels and healing here. I wish there were more folks enjoying this awesome place to grow food and fellowship,” Ware said. The garden needs a new manager and folks to take responsibility for the continuation and development of it. “This was built with permaculture techniques and strategies of a food forest. Unfortunately it was built without a social structure, with the hope of “build it and they will come”. Most people never new it was there because it is hidden from the highway in its own microclimate,” Kelly said. “The only thing it needs is a watering system as the sandy soil dries out too much for the annuals, although the perennials survive once established. This could really be a special place for healing and youth programs in gardening.
The food bank, when it has a new facility for produce, could really benefit from this garden at Crossroads. If no one comes forth to care for the garden, I will ask the congregation this fall to dig up the young dormant trees in October and take them home for more care and let the garden go back to nature, although the Hugelbeds and swales are built for the trees to survive without added water,” Ware said.
Crossroads staff would love to see the garden continue and initially supported its creation for the ability for people to gather, to care for unused land, to feel invited to Crossroads, and to grow food for their families and those in need. There will be a work party Saturday morning 9am-noon of Labor Day weekend to teach anyone how to manage a soil-building-mulch based garden, about food forestry, and concepts in Permaculture design, along with tree and plant identification. Please come out and support the Crossroads Permaculture Food forest and let it support your peace and wellbeing.
Call Kelly Ware Whipple for any questions 406-314-3808.