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TheFortKent
Community
Garden
PROJECT
At the Root of the Project
Carrol
Theriault, Farmer from Fort Kent has donated 6 acres of his land for the Fort
Kent Community Garden Project located at 20 Blaine School
Road in Fort Kent. The St. John Valley Soil and Water Conservation District is
supporting the project through community outreach and grant funding to get the
project underway. Thus far, the District has received a grant from Maine
Initiatives "Harvest Fund." The grant was used to purchase the irrigation system
for watering the garden.
 A
Blossoming Idea
The project is an
initiative to build a community vegetable garden in Fort Kent. The garden will
serve as a source for sustainable, nutritious food for Fort Kent residents and
as a public space for the community to cultivate food and relationships. The
project will encourage self-sufficiency and environmental stewardship and will
achieve this through increasing access to fresh fruits and vegetables produced
without chemicals. The
garden consists of twenty, 12’ x 17’ plots, with room to accommodate
future expansion.
Although community gardens are
often associated with urban areas, they exist in many rural areas as well.
Situated in a beautiful rural setting the Fort Kent Community Garden will
promote:
- Traditional
neighborhood-type garden with individual and family plots;
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Sustainable and
environmentally responsible growing practices;
- Demonstrations and
education to gardeners;
- Communal gardening,
tended collectively with the surplus produce going to local food pantries;
- School education
opportunities that incorporate gardening and nutrition education;
- A place for connecting
with nature and strengthening community bonds.
For more
information about the project contact Casey Cote, District Coordinator at:
casey.cote@me.nacdnet.net
Community Garden Resources
American
Community Gardening Association
Organizing
Your Community Garden
Harvest
Fund
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St.
John Valley Soil & Water Conservation District
