Food Justice Garden tops 4,000 pound mark

The Food Justice Garden’s year-to-date harvest exceeded the 4,000-pound mark this month – a 65 percent increase over last year’s total yield.

As of today, volunteers have harvested 4,174 pounds of food to donate to local food pantries. Last year’s total for the year was 2,524 pounds.

Among the most prolific vegetables grown in the garden is spinach. Malabar spinach, a variety specially selected by volunteers for its high yield and heat tolerance, is a vining, edible ornamental that has yielded 252 pounds so far this year.

Last month, TYM youth helped to harvest 12 pounds of spinach that were then donated to the Preiss-Steele, an apartment complex for Durham’s low-income elderly citizens.

Bobi Gallagher, a food justice garden coordinator, said the residents were delighted with the volume and freshness of the spinach. The spinach was set out in the main hall for residents to help themselves and was quickly gone.

“Our pantry partners report doubling and tripling of the number of families they serve,” Bobi said. “Our parishioners have been very generous bringing their produce from their gardens to the Lettuce Pray program.”

Indeed, parishioners have donated 835 pounds of produce this year through the Lettuce Pray program, which accepts produce from parishioners' home gardens. To donate, drop off produce on Tuesday mornings at the garden before 10 a.m.

Garden workdays are on Tuesday and Saturday mornings starting at around 8 a.m. Families with children are welcome to volunteer together. There’s something for everyone to do. Currently, volunteers are harvesting the remaining summer produce and preparing and planting beds with fall crops.

For more information on getting involved, email Food Justice Garden coordinator  Joanie Novak.

Here are the garden's top producers for the month of October: