Progress

Tomatoes, basil, marigolds, sunflowers, okra, watermelon, squash, cucumbers, and a few others are all thriving in the CCG. The tomatoes are just beginning to climb the trellis made of bamboo, while the cucumbers are just beginning to stretch out across the bed.

Tomatoes and basil are known to be great companion plants and are often planted together. Coincidentally, these two also taste great together! As you can see in the picture, the basil has taken off already. Stop by the garden any time and pinch off a few leaves! Some of the tomato plants have begun to flower-hopefully some fruit will follow soon.

The cucumbers have begun stretching out across the beds. They have also begun to flower. If we can get the squirrels to stop digging so close to the plants, we'll have cucumbers in no time.

Not to be outdone by the speedy basil plants, the watermelons are growing at an amazing rate! These plants double in size every couple of days. All that growing does use up a lot of nutrients from the soil, so volunteers will be spreading compost for these guys on a weekly basis from now on.

A mixture of compost, greensand, and chicken manure was been added to the soil. All three will help improve the soil structure by working in plenty of organic matter and loosening the clay. The greensand is high in potassium, one of the nutrients our soil test revealed we needed.

There has not been any problem with weeds at all. A few little guys have sprung up here and there, but the soil sterilization took care of the majority of weeds in the area. To help the soil retain moisture and to protect against pesky squirrels and chipmunks, straw and bamboo mulch covers the beds.

Thanks to the work of Lindsey Mullen, the CCG was awarded a Parish Based Outreach Grant from the Diocese of Alabama. How to spend the funds awarded will be the topic of the upcoming meeting on Tuesday, June 15th. Those wishing to contribute should meet in the student center at 6pm.

Homegrown Alabama and Deacon's Deli

Through the efforts of Homegrown Alabama and Canterbury parishioners, visitors of Deacon's Deli are now able to receive locally grown produce. Money raised by parking cars on the lawn during football games has been put towards funding a voucher program for the Farmers Market. Each visitor of Deacon's Deli receives $12-$20 worth of vouchers. The vouchers are only redeemable at the Homegrown Alabama Farmers Market held on the lawn every Thursday.

Vendors of the Farmers Market have also started donating unsold produce at the end of the market. Snow's Bend Farm and B&S Farms have made major produce donations while Evergreen Farms has donated pepper and tomato seedlings also to be distributed at Deacon's Deli.

Volunteers have been on hand to collect the donations on Thursday afternoons, distribute the donated produce and young plants on Tuesday mornings to visitors of the Deacon's Deli, and to help preserve any leftover produce (pictured above). The preserved produce will be used during the Fall Harvest Party. Students, parishioners, farmers, and all other community members are invited to celebrate the efforts of Canterbury Episcopal, Homegrown Alabama, and the CCG in answering the call for increased access to fresh produce, particularly in food ministries. Date and time TBA.

There is growing interest in expanding this program to neighboring churches and food pantries. Discussions pertaining to fundraising and volunteer schedules will be scheduled in the coming weeks. If you're interested in volunteering time and/or resources to this effort, send an email to canterburychapel@gmail.com or get in touch with Erica Smith (contact information to the right).