Wasatch Community Gardens Blog

What a great year so far for WCG Youth Programs! The growing season is only half over, and just look how much we’ve accomplished so far! For starters, Youth Educators have currently served well over 800 youth participants this year! This number does not include our current summer City Roots classes or City Sprouts summer camps yet-to-be-hosted, we’ll be well into three-digit territory by the end of August. Congratulations to Youth Educators Shannon Kennelly, Katie Adamski, and Emma Kroon Van Diest for their hard work, passion, and dedication to their work! Accomplishments: WCG Youth Programs have worked closely with volunteers, businesses, and community groups to maintain and make significant upgrades to our teaching facilities at the Grateful Tomato Garden and Fair Parks Community Garden. A few highlights from 2014 include: Installing a white, weatherproof metal roof over our main teaching patio to repel rain during shoulder seasons and reflect sun during...

  Photo by Kim Raff   Written by Mike Lynch, WCG Community Education Program Director A few weeks ago, I participated in my first Farm Mob with Slow Food Utah and Real Food Rising at Sandhill Farms. I was imagining an Orwellian kind of affair with Marxist animals. Instead, the mob consisted of about a dozen high-school-aged kids from Real Food Rising, and about fifteen more people of all ages who were connected to WCG, Slow Food, or Sandhill Farms. Aside: Real Food Rising runs Farm Mobs most every weekend with a group of high-school age kids who will boost your faith in the future of America. These kids are driven, focused, and put me to shame with their work ethic. It’s a real inspiration to work with the Real Food Rising crew. Sandhill Farms is tucked into the mountains of northern Utah. Here, Pete Rasmussen cultivates a wide variety of...

The culture of service and volunteerism in Utah is part of what makes our state so unique. Individuals throughout the state feel a deep desire to reach out to their neighbors and communities in both religious and non - religious capacities. (Source: Utah Commission on Volunteerism) Research in 2012 by the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) through the Volunteering in America 2012 report ranks Utah as the #1 volunteering state in the nation with 40.9 % of adults volunteering. This volunteering rate is significantly above the national average of 26.8%. (Source: Utah Commission on Volunteerism)     On average, Utah’s volunteers dedicate 144 million hours of service per year, which is equivalent to 69,000 full - time employees with an estimated economic contribution of $3.7 billion annually. (Source: Utah Commission on Volunteerism) Wasatch Community Gardens is happy to contribute to these numbers. In 2013, we had over 700 volunteers...

I feel safe in saying that most urban gardeners love their backyards and are proud of how they have utilized a small space to get so much fresh, healthy food and enjoyment! Most gardeners’ backyards also paint a beautiful picture - happy chickens, vegetable, flower, and herb gardens, a clothesline, worm and traditional composting and very little lawn. Their backyards provide beauty, food, calm, entertainment, and stress relief.       But what sets the gardens on the WCG Urban Garden & Farm Tour aside from most other gardens are the inspirational, hidden gems, and innovative talents our hosts possess, and the Urban Garden and Farm Tour allows you those rare voyeur opportunities to snoop in your neighbors backyard. Our 2014 tour certainly out-did itself this year. For example, one host on the tour grows the usual suspects- chickens, bugs, dogs, cats, kids, vegetables, berries, flowers, herbs, trees, friendships and much...

Our Hoop House; An oasis of warm, the smell of grateful soil, friends to share tender young greens.  A number of interested folks have come together to grow this winter. You are welcome to join us, or maybe you are ready to try your own hoop house?!   This week, on a threatening but mostly dry day, a group of 6 of us got together to re-plastic the hoop houses built last year. Here are the basic steps we took to get it up and some general info to help you figure out how you might go about it, too.  First, cost wise, our hoop houses were first constructed last year by our now legendarily-beloved intern, Aaron. His cost for the two - 10x30 foot houses was about $400 for all materials and no labor.  The base is constructed out of 8inch-wide wooden boards screwed into 4x4 wooden posts spaced every...

  The Rest of the Requested Staff Recipes; Lentil Stew and Bacon Cheddar Soup.... Plus Bill's Cheesy Olivey Rosemary-y Bread    Vegetarian Crockpot Lentil Stew Recipe from Lindsey Oswald (Serves 6) 2 C lentils 4 C water 4 C vegetable broth 1 Onion, diced 3 Celery Stalks, sliced 2 Carrots, chopped 2 Garlic Cloves, minced 1 tsp Salt 1/4 tsp Ground black pepper 1/2 tsp Oregano 14 Oz Canned diced tomato Preparation; Pre-soak lentils in the water for at least 2 hours or over night. Drain, put in crock pot and add remainder of ingredients. Cook on medium heat in the crockpot for 8-10 hours. Enjoy!     Beer and Cheddar Soup from Carly Gillespie (Serves 6) 1/2 lb Bacon slab, 1/3 inch dice 1 Celery rib, chopped 1 Small onion, chopped 1 Large Jalapeno, seeded and chopped 2 Large garlic cloves, minced 1 Tbl Thyme 12 Oz Lager or...

Staff of Wasatch Community Gardens had such a nice time making soups for our volunteers! Several folks have emailed and phoned to ask for recipes. Here are the first few... more to follow. Enjoy, and know you nourish us everyday with your support and friendship! Giles' Peanut Soup Fun, fast and kicky. This is not your average Tuesday night dinner! Serves 6 Ingredients; 2 Tbls olive oil 1 med onion 3 cloves garlic 1 Tbls fresh ginger 4 Cups vegetable stock 1 Cup milk, or milk substitute 1-2 Cup unsweetened peanut butter 2 large sweet bell peppers 3 large carrots 2 large tomatoes 8 oz tofu 2 Tbls curry Powder salt, pepper and cayenne to taste green onions or chives to garnish Heat oil in a large pan over medium heat. Sauté chopped onion and minced garlic and ginger until tender, about 5 mins.  Add the curry powder, cayenne, salt and...

Above, Wasatch Community Gardens staff  thank our volunteers; Jonathan Krausert receives a lifetime Achievement Award, 10/23/2013. So, I am the new guy here at Wasatch Community Gardens. Someone has to be for every organization, but as the Volunteer and Outreach Coordinator, there is an odd, out of step pace about being new; thanking and celebrating individuals for all they do, without really knowing exactly who has done exactly what. While planning the Annual Volunteer Banquet I heard lots of references to people I’ve never met and I made assumptions about the un-witnessed level of generosity and estimated commitments of time. And then, they came. The names got faces and the year's workload completed was real, and heavy. The staff’s respect for the quiet heroes became as tangible as the bowls of soup we ladled out with our very sincere “thanks!” And this group of co-workers each lent different skills to...

Above, Wasatch Community Gardens staff  thank our volunteers; Jonathan Krausert receives a lifetime Achievement Award, 10/23/2013. So, I am the new guy here at Wasatch Community Gardens. Someone has to be for every organization, but as the Volunteer and Outreach Coordinator, there is an odd, out of step pace about being new; thanking and celebrating individuals for all they do, without really knowing exactly who has done exactly what. While planning the Annual Volunteer Banquet I heard lots of references to people I’ve never met and I made assumptions about the un-witnessed level of generosity and estimated commitments of time. And then, they came. The names got faces and the year's workload completed was real, and heavy. The staff’s respect for the quiet heroes became as tangible as the bowls of soup we ladled out with our very sincere “thanks!” And this group of co-workers each lent different skills to...

I don't know about you all, but I've been hearing - and reading - about Mad City Chickens for years now.  Finally, Wasatch Community Gardens' 2011 Chicken Week is hosting the state debut of this epic chicken film. That's right.  Epic. Chicken. Film.  If those three words don't send chicken-pimples down your arm I don't know what would. Want to find out why people are chicken-crazy?  Wonder what exactly a chicken has to offer besides thighs and omelets?  Have you recently been pondering how to go about getting your city's ordinances to welcome the feathery beasts? Mad City Chickens is for you. Do you love your chicks?  Can you hardly remember what life was like before the zany creatures graced your backyard? Want to share an evening with fellow bird-brain enthusiasts? Mad City Chickens is for you. And just in case you need an extra nudge.... here's a teaser.  But only...