Providence Farms Community Garden
COME GROW WITH US!
No experience necessary!
sign up today!
start planting tomorrow!
Community Garden Registration Form 2010
send completed form and plot fee to:
Rev. Mark Renn
Providence Presbyterian Church
2320 Schillinger Rd. S.
Mobile, AL 36695
QUESTIONS? Call 251-633-9701
compost...
“Nature operates according to a system of nutrients and metabolisms in which there is no such thing as waste…The Earth’s major nutrients –carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen- are cycled and recycled. Waste equals food.” –William McDonough in Cradle to Cradle
Contrary to the logic and design of natural processes, modern society has adopted a mindset that imagines that our trash disappears as soon as it is carted away by the garbage truck. Unfortunately, this approach has contributed to the overwhelming impact that our household waste has on the local and global environment. By some estimations, organic waste (in the form of kitchen waste, yard clippings, paper and cardboard, etc) make up almost one-third of garbage going into landfills. Once there, it is forced to decompose anaerobically, releasing methane, a major contributor to global warming.
Rather than conceiving of organic waste as something to get rid of, gardeners and organic farmers have been cherishing this material as a widely available means for improving the soil and the health of their produce. As part of our new community garden, we will have several working compost piles. Composting makes a statement that we are good and responsible stewards of all of the things God has given to us. These bins are designed to process all of the organic waste associated with the garden as well as organic kitchen and yard waste generated at the church. Properly maintained, these bins produce only a lovely faint earthy aroma. This finished compost will then be re-added to the garden plots, improving the health and vitality of the growing medium.
As the weather cools and the leaves begin to fall from the trees, the home gardener receives a mixed blessing. On the one hand, raking leaves is a chore, but on the other hand, fallen leaves produce great compost that will be fully processed by the time to plant in the spring. Now that our community garden is complete, we need to begin collecting organic materials to make compost. Two of the best and most widely available fall compost materials are leaves and pumpkins.
Most people decorate their front porches with pumpkins for Halloween and Thanksgiving, and then just throw them away when they start to rot. This year, we invite you to bring your old pumpkin to the church and throw it in the compost pile. Put it in one of the bins, and then cover it with partially composted material from the other bin. You can also bring in bags of raked leaves, grass clippings, twigs and any other yard waste to add to the piles.
So here’s what you can do!
1.) Collect your kitchen waste in a container (a bucket with small holes drilled in the lid works well) and bring it to add to the compost pile. Fruit and vegetable peels/rinds, tea bags, coffee grounds, eggshells, shredded paper, cardboard and similar materials are great stuff to compost. Avoid composting meat scraps, fatty food wastes, milk products, and bones -- these materials are very attractive to pests. Simply add to the working pile by digging a small hole in the surface and covering whatever you add!
2.) Stop by local Starbuck’s Coffee stores and ask for the FREE “Grounds for Your Garden”. They will give you a bag of used coffee grounds that make a great addition to compost. Consider talking to other restaurants and companies that throw away large amounts of organic materials (such as supermarkets, sandwich shops, etc)
3.) If you don’t have a place to compost yard trimmings such as grass, leaves and clippings at your house, consider bringing them to the compost pile at the church.
Together, we can reduce our impact locally and globally while creating a resource that can be converted into delicious fruits and vegetables. If you have questions concerning what to add or how to maintain a compost pile, please talk to Pastor Mark. Composting is one of the best and most efficient ways to recycle!
Email pastor@providence-pc.org
