A share table loaded with vegetables from backyard growers in Lincoln County. (Photo courtesy Michaela Stone)
We are starting to gear up for spring and summer here at Healthy Lincoln County. We are updating our volunteer training forms, reaching out to farms, networking our summer meals program for children 18 and under, and thinking about all the ways we can support food security in our community.
A great way for folks in Lincoln County to contribute food to our community is through our Grow-A-Row program. Gardeners of all levels are invited to contribute to this program. Grow-A-Row is pretty straightforward, grow an extra row or plant in your garden and donate the fruits or vegetables from that row or plant to our food programs.
Healthy Lincoln County partners with many others in the county to supply fresh produce for free share tables, local food pantries, child cares, the YMCA, and various other spots. The share tables are located across the county at libraries, the hospital, doctors offices, fire stations, churches, and more. We have pop up tables in the summer and send out produce on our summer meals program mobile route for families to take.
The summer of 2023, Grow-A-Row received 405.5 pounds of donated produce. This is quite a bit for a small volunteer-based program that began just a few years ago, and our largest total yet. When you add this to the 17,111 pounds of produce gleaned from local farms in 2023, it really shows what a community can do to assist with food security.
Looking at our Grow-A-Row tracker, there was a wide variety of fruits and vegetables that were donated: rhubarb, tomatoes, cucumbers, radishes, spinach, broccoli, peas, carrots, and many more. There were also lots of herbs from dill and tarragon to basil and mint – even lavender!
Whether you are a first-time gardener or very experienced, anyone can be part of this program. You can give a one-time donation when you have a plethora of veggies, fruits or herbs, you can contribute weekly or a handful of times. Any contribution is helpful. We will have designated days for dropping off at the hub or if you have a lot, we can come pick it up.
Having an extensive variety of different vegetables and herbs to offer people is a goal for the upcoming growing season. Another is to surpass last year’s total of 405.5 pounds. We are fortunate to have a lead volunteer for this program, Debbie, who can be reached at growarow2023@gmail.com or 380-0526 to get you started.
We do have some seeds available, and we are searching for more. If you have seeds you would like to donate to the Grow-A-Row program, please contact Debbie or myself at mstone@healthylincolncounty.org.
