Harvest Community Gardens grow in Sioux City
by Casey French
Lauren Weiss has more than a green thumb. It’s black, in fact, with dirt.
Weiss has been in Sioux City for only a year, but in that time quickly saw a need for her gardening skills. Thus, she started Harvest Inc., a non-profit aimed at helping create and promote community garden plots.
The plots, open for rent for people to start their first garden or to expand their current back yard garden, are slowly gaining momentum. Under Weiss’s tutelage as executive director, already two gardens have been started. The goal, Weiss said as I walked through her garden recently, is to make the garden spaces available for less fortunate families of Sioux City. There is financial assistance available to people who cannot afford to rent a plot of land, Weiss said.
Harvest also is willing to advise new gardeners or seasoned gardeners on what it takes to create and maintain the space. Soon, she said, Harvest hopes to provide New Gardener Orientations for future community gardens as well.
Weiss says Sioux City has been very supportive of the community gardens, and she hopes that there will be a couple dozen gardens in Sioux City in the near future. Already, many landowners have approached her about making plots of land available for rent to Harvest Inc.
A community garden is based solely around the concept of volunteers, and on any given day there could be a couple people at the garden or a dozen – all volunteers working on their plots and others. Weiss, and the others on the Harvest Committee, go out a couple days each week to work on managing the ground and gardens. When I caught up with her, she had her young daughter in tow. Another generation of green thumbs, to be sure.
Weiss and Dave Winslow both has extensive experience in urban gardens, while Cody Farrens is still in the learning process. Weiss hand picked Winslow and Farrens to help deal with the business aspects of the community garden and because they all are able to provide great insight in gardening.
The first garden, Fitch Community Garden and Orchard on West 31st Street, has 12 plots each 100 square feet. Fitch has several plots still open for rent at $50. The second garden, Mary Treglia Community Garden at 900 Jennings St., has 17 plots each 100 square feet. They rent for $50.
To reserve a plot or find more information on the project, check out Harvest Inc website.
Casey French is a Briar Cliff University graduate.
