Summer
2009
Special Thanks to
Event Sponsor
Linden Hills Natural Home is a
proud sponsor of this year’s Parade
of Community Gardens. Open
7 days a week from 9 to 7, the
store specializes in locally-made,
Fair Trade, organic and recycled/
recyclable goods for homes, gardens
and people. Community owned!
www.lindenhills.coop/naturalhome,
612-279-2479.
To the Garden...
Community Gardens provide a host
of benefits to our neighborhoods, towns,
and cities.
And they are a lot of work. They
don’t happen magically or “naturally,”
and behind even a modestly successful
community garden are hours of sweat
equity.
There is the cultivating, planting,
watering, and weeding etc. that
goes with any garden. Plus, with
a community garden, there is the
organizing, politicking, and cajoling
necessary for the garden community to
coalesce and survive.
What community gardeners do
far too little is celebrate and enjoy
the products of our hard work. Our
community gardens are not miracles,
but they are amazing gems of
cooperative spirit, human ingenuity,
practical beauty and coordinated labor.
We appreciate our gardens, but
often quietly and individually, relishing
the small joys with subtle smiles. Biting
into a tomato grown by yourself or your
neighbor is its own reward, certainly,
as is seeing your seeds come up in the
spring.
The Parade of Community Gardens
offers a way to go beyond the sometimes
solitary pleasures of a community
garden to celebrate together with fellow
gardeners and neighbors the hard
work and many pleasures of community
garden projects.
On August 22nd, community gardens
across the Twin Cities welcome all
comers to enjoy the amazing gems of the
participating community gardens, each
unique, each beautiful in its own way.
If you are community gardener, come
to your community garden with new eyes
and enjoy what you and your fellow
Promoting and Preserving Community Gardening Across the Twin Cities
PO Box 580496, Minneapolis, MN 55458 www.gardeningmatters.org
gardeners have created. Invite friends,
families, and neighbors—no publicity
is better than personal connections.
You can always pull a few stray weeds
or water a parched plant that day, but
leave time to take pleasure in the unique
blend of community garden life and the
particular joys of gardening with others.
If you are not a community gardener,
please be our guest and enjoy with us
our community gardens. Community
gardeners, most of us anyway, are not
showoffs, and we don’t easily show
pride because we are always just
slightly dissatisfied with how the garden
is coming along. But we are proud of
our work, and we do it in part for our
neighbors and friends to enjoy. Please,
join us.
Above all, let’s make this year’s
Parade of Community Gardens
a celebration. It’s an impressive
story—really—how individuals can
come together to take plots of urban
and suburban land and transform
them into living laboratories of citizen
participation and civic pride, often with
minimal resources.
Let’s have fun, let’s pat each other
on the back, and let’s talk about what
community gardens can do to make our
community life richer, better tasting, and
ever more beautiful.
To the garden…
––Russell Raczkowski
Soo Line Community Garden
For Parade of Community
Garden details go to
www.gardeningmatters.org
 Orpheus and
Eurydice:
A Picnic Operetta Promoting and Preserving
Community Gardening
Across the Twin Cities
An outdoor musical performance
with brave mortals, jealous gods,
tear-jerking lovers and a three- Board Members
headed dog from hell! Come for

Community Gardens:
the operatic delights, stay for the Mark Granlund
locally sourced picnic lunch! (Bring St. Paul Parks and Recreation
your own chairs, blankets and
The Third Place beverages.)
This performance is appropriate
Jim Howitt
Soo Line Community Garden
for children, opera lovers and
opera haters, gardeners, farmers, Ken Meter
“Oldenburg calls one’s “first place” the enthusiastic eaters and their friends. Crossroads Resource Center
home and those that one lives with. The Reservations STRONGLY
“second place” is the workplace — where encouraged. Call 612.619.2112 Mary Morse
people may actually spend most of their for reservations and additional St. Anthony Park
time. Third places, then, are “anchors” of information (including information Community Garden
community life and facilitate and foster about rain-out sites). No one turned
broader, more creative interaction.” away due to lack of funds but Barb Muller
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Third_Place donations gladly accepted. Fredrikson & Bryon, P.A.
For many people, community gardens Mixed Precipitation is a
are the third place in our lives that glue our performance initiative helmed Chuck Repke
communities together, crossing arbitrary by Scotty Reynolds dedicated to District 2 Community Council
barriers of race, age and ability. Providing exploring space, text and new
safe places for shared activity and learning, dramatic forms. Greg Sautter
community gardens anchor our communities in
Eat Street Community Garden
good times and particularly in bad times. Sat. August 22, 1:00 pm
Our Twin Cities region is rich in community & Sun. August 23rd 4:00 pm Claudia Slovacek
gardens and ranks among the top metro areas Eat Street Community Garden 12th & 13th Avenue Block
in terms of number of community gardens. 2416 1st Ave S., Minneapolis Community Garden
Even so, land security is still precarious even
among the most established gardens. In order Sat. August 29, 4:00 pm
for communities to benefit from these Third Birchwood Community Garden Staff
Spaces, gardens must become a permanent Lutheran Church of the Reformation
part of our physical landscape just as they are 2544 Hwy 100 S, St Louis Park Kirsten Saylor
part of our social & cultural landscape.
Executive Director
Despite numerous challenges, community Sun. August 30, 4:00 pm
gardens across the metro explore third space in JD Rivers Children’s Garden Ila Duntemann
innovative and creative ways. Theodore Wirth Park Program Coordinator
There are community meetings held in the Glenwood Ave. &
garden, meals shared, students learning in the Washburn Ave. N., Minneapolis Jesse Eustis
garden, performances staged, in-garden how-to
Intern
workshops, food grown for food banks, and art Sat. September 12, 4:00 pm
projects hosted. Columbus Ave Community Garden
The 5th Avenue Community Garden in South 3300 Columbus Ave S. Contact Us
Minneapolis recently screened a viewing of the Minneapolis
documentary “Fresh”. Watch COMGAR for
Phone
more opportunities to view movies in community Sun. September 27, 4:00 pm 612-492-8964
gardens this summer. Midway Green Spirit
How is your community garden a third space Community Garden Email
in your neighborhood? Pierce Butler & Hamline Ave N. info@gardeningmatters.org
St Paul

Promoting and Preserving Community Gardening Across the Twin Cities

PO Box 580496, Minneapolis, MN 55458 www.gardeningmatters.org
 Homegrown
Minneapolis
Entering Phase 2
The Initiative that started on December 10,
2008 consisted of four subcommittees to develop
recommendations on how the City of Minneapolis
could improve the local food system. Gardening
Matters co-chaired the Community garden,
Schoolyard Garden and Home-based Gardening
subcommittee. Recently completed, a number
of the recommendations have direct or indirect
implications for community gardens.
You can view all recommendations at
http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/dhfs/hgfinal.pdf.
The recommendations of phase one received
strong support from the Minneapolis City
Council on June 26th and now we are officially
in “phase two” of the initiative – implementing
the recommendations. The Implementation
Taskforce will consist of a number of city staff
from departments which play a role in the food
system. The taskforce will also have 7 community
members, including Gardening Matters.
To be successful and innovative, this initiative
will continue to need the voices of local foods
advocates. We look forward to continuing the
conversation and improving local food systems for
healthier residents and more resilient communities.
Contact Kirsten at kirsten@gardeningmatters.org
or call 612-492-8964.
Supporting Community Gardens
Gardening Matters’ Recommendations
for Cities and Counties,
http://www.gardeningmatters.org/Resources/govt.pdf
Promoting and Preserving Community Gardening Across the Twin Cities
PO Box 580496, Minneapolis, MN 55458
Co m m u n i t y Ga r d e n Day
honoring ALL
community gardens!
Minneapolis & St Paul City Councils will be
passing resolutions proclaiming August 22nd
as “Community Garden Day”, honoring EACH
AND EVERY COMMUNITY GARDEN and
the hard work that EVERYONE contributes to
making these green spaces community assets. 
If you can, attend your City Council meeting,
and bring someone with you.  It does not
matter whether your garden is on the Parade
or not, this event and these resolutions are for
the benefit of the entire community gardening
community. 
The entire process is quick and easy, and
takes only 15-30 minutes. Let the City Council
know just how important these green spaces are
to our neighborhoods.  You won’t need to say
anything -- your presence will say it all.
Council meeting tidbits can be found at
the “Nuts and Bolts of Attending a City Council
Meeting” section on page two of http://www.
gardeningmatters.org/Resources/City_Hall.pdf.
Minneapolis City Council Meeting
August 14, 2009, 9:30 am
Council Chambers, Room 317, City Hall
300 5th St., Minneapolis
St Paul City Council Meeting
August 19, 2009, 3:30 pm
Council Chambers, Third Floor, City Hall
15 Kellogg W Blvd., Saint Paul
Have you joined
C O M GA R ?
COMGAR is an email listserv for EVERY community gardener. Share
ideas, ask questions, announce garden events or clean-up days and
more. COMGAR is free to subscribers, and does not have ads or junk
mail. To join email kirsten.gardeningmatters@gmail.com along with
your name, name of your community garden, and city.
www.gardeningmatters.org
 New Gardens
Spring Up this Year
We know that a community garden is a place where seeds
unfold and plants climb, flower and fruit. But it is also a place
where people grow, relationships flower, and the rich and diverse
fruits of the community are harvested and enjoyed. We asked
gardeners at some of the new Twin Cities community gardens to
share their stories of breaking ground in the new garden. Here Coordinator Harriet Oyera at the
are some of the experiences they shared: Redeemer for Life Community Garden.

The wheels of government don’t always
turn slowly, Vicki Robinson and Dan
Collins at the DNR were very supportive
of the idea; by April we were lined up
with the DNR to lease the land to District
5 for a community garden!
While mostly a joy, there have been
challenges in getting started. The DNR is
working on getting water access installed;
we wanted to garden this year, so we
said we would start without the water.
Who knew it would be the driest planting
season since the Dust Bowl?
up for citizen use, but the timing was late
and we didn’t think much could be done
this year. With encouragement, however,
we met with a counselor at the school and
soon we found a space for some plots to
be called “Community Corner”.
We were recruiting gardeners at events
this spring, but summer was approaching
fast and we needed to prep the ground,
a challenge given the existing automated
sprinkling system. In addition, we have
been dealing with expenses, liability
insurance and having gardeners sign

Got Mojo, Just We hope to have the running water agreements. The word is getting out, we
before the Parade of Community Gardens; hope to start planting soon, nurturing

Add Water… please come visit us and see!

Our garden was only an idea late
2008; the desire of four avid gardeners
to be part of a community garden.
There seemed to be many community
gardens in St. Paul, but none near our
neighborhood, Payne-Phalen. It was
only later that we heard the term “food
desert” but it certainly applied to us in
terms of places to grow food and places
to buy fresh food.
We started researching and we had an
information-sharing dinner of vegetable
soup and bread with organizers at
existing gardens; we pinched their
ideas, their rules and their forms. But we
needed some land!
Serendipity and Master Gardener mojo
put 3 of us in a room with Susane Moua
talking about community gardens. She
remembered a place on the Gateway
Trail where the DNR removed a parking
lot and put up a pergola; she had heard
they were looking for a group to run a
garden there.
---Laurie Krivitz
Gateway Trail Community Garden
300 Arlington Ave, St Paul
http://gatewaytrailgarden.wordpress.com
Community Corner
Community Garden
We heard that ISD 286 school
district was considering establishing a
garden for students and later opening it
Recruiting gardeners
in Brookly Center
donations from the leftover plant sale at
our local Cub store.
---Allan Hancock and Diane Sannes
Citizen Volunteers living in Brooklyn Center
Planning Begins in
Apple Valley!
Our meeting in May with the City of
Apple Valley went very well this spring.
Although we had begun our meeting
with the Mayor and City Administrator,
the Mayor stopped us as we began
laying out our ideas and asked more
staff to join us – the City Planner and the
Director of the Planning Commission.
Then Mayor Mary Hamman-Roland
very strongly stated her clear interest in
seeing community gardens started and
functioning all over the city. All the staff
seemed genuinely interested in getting
some community gardens going on
City land and the staff is exploring the

Promoting and Preserving Community Gardening Across the Twin Cities

PO Box 580496, Minneapolis, MN 55458 www.gardeningmatters.org

possibility of utilizing land shared jointly
with the County.
Now they plan to change city codes to
clear the way for community gardens on
both public and private land. They also
intend to meet with us again after they
review some possible sites.
What was fun is how they loved
the photos – particularly the one of
Dowling Community Garden. (That pic
was so lush!) They also loved the idea
of getting local churches and businesses
participating too.
It definitely helped to have the
interested backing of 30+ residents. Our
organizing team hopes to have at least
two community garden sites ready for
planting next spring.
---Pat Schoenecker
Apple Valley Community Garden Team Member
avgarden@charter.net
Old Garden Revived!
Hello all you Community Gardeners!
We here in Whittier are working our
butts off to get going on the new “Prettier
Whittier Community Garden”.
We are really just in the very
beginnings of a great community garden.
We have a little less than a dozen very
active participants with several more
waiting for things to progress.
In just a couple months we’ve located
a spot with a lot of potential, received
approval for a lease, and jumped on
board with Whittier Alliance (which has
been central in getting this whole thing off
the ground) for some liability insurance
backing.
Now we are waiting on a neighboring
landlord to permit us to tap his spigot for
a water source!
There is a lot of excitement about
the garden within the group and the
neighborhood. Just last Friday, as we
painted a sign advertising the new garden
at the site, several passersby stopped
to inquire about the garden and all
expressed interest in joining!
Looking ahead, we are working to
find a secure shed for tools and etc, we’ve
just signed up for the city’s last shipment
of compost, and we are working to prep
the site for the second growing cycle
of this year. It’s a very exciting time for
everyone involved and we are very happy
to accept all newcomers. But even if you
can’t join us in building this new garden,
please wish us luck! Thanks!
---Sam Johnson
Prettier Whittier Community Garden
2807 Pillsbury Ave S, Minneapolis
Transition to a
New Garden Site
Growing pains! After four years
of abundant produce our garden is
growing up and out of its current location.
Celeste’s Dream Community Garden was
established in 2005 in collaboration with
the Sisters of St. Joseph, providing over
1000 pounds of produce for members as
well as another 1000 pounds for area
shelters.
Due to impending construction which
will overtake the present space, garden
members served double duty this spring.
We planted the original plot with early
season crops and, in addition, established
a whole new garden nearby. This meant
many hours removing sod, hauling
compost, tilling and designing the new
space.
Result? We have a beautiful and
very visible plot brimming with tomatoes,
peppers, herbs, and flowers—adorned
with an arch which welcomes the local
community. “It’s a miracle!” an admirer
exclaimed over and over as she watched
the new garden take shape.
The daily miracles in our garden have
masked the growing pains.
---Barb Parisien
Celeste’s Dream Community Garden
1884 Randolph Ave, St Paul
Promoting and Preserving Community Gardening Across the Twin Cities
PO Box 580496, Minneapolis, MN 55458 www.gardeningmatters.org
Flourishing new garden in the
Hawthorne Neighborhood
Building Neighborhood
and Relationships
Late yesterday afternoon, Randy and
I stopped over at the garden and noticed
the demolition guys across the street
working on the tear-down of 2130 6th St.. 
We went over to talk to them about some
potential salvage
items and I noticed
their big, beautiful
barrel filled with What we had
water.
Just for the heck
done in the
neighborhood
of it, I asked one
of the guys if he was just too
would sell it to me. good. It was
He said “Sure”
and gave me a his donation to
price. I pulled out the garden.
my wallet, handed
him the bills and
proceeded to tell him how excited I was to
have this for our community garden since
we had been shopping for one.
He hadn’t seen the garden and asked
me to show it to him. I immediately
dragged him across the street and up the
hill to the garden.
To say he was impressed is an
understatement. He walked around
to every bed to see what people had
planted and thought the raised bed idea
was simply fantastic. He wanted to build
one himself at his home in the burbs.
After he looked around for a while, he
pulled out his wallet, gave me my money
back and said he couldn’t charge me for
that barrel. What we had done in the
neighborhood was just too good. It was
his donation to the garden.
We talked a bit longer and he went back
to work. All in all, it was a very good day
and yes, the beds do look fantastic. Every-
one did a great job of planting them.
---Kevin Kuschel
South Hawthorne Community Garden
2123 6th St N, Minneapolis
Planting Vegetables in Midsummer for Fall Harvest Thank You
CROP DAYS TO MATURITY COLD HARDINESS Gardening Matters
Basil 30-60 killed by frost Supporters
Beets 50-60 survives high 20s Our Funders
McKnight Foundation
Bush beans 45-65 killed by frost
McNeely Foundation
Broccoli   50-70 survives light frost Wedge Co-op Green Patch Program
WedgeShare
Brussels Sprouts 90-100 the hardiest, down to 20° Minneapolis Climate Change
Micro Grant
Cabbage 50-90 the hardiest, down to 20°
Cauliflower 60-80 survives light frost
NEW Friends of
Community Gardens
Collard greens 40-65 the hardiest, down to 20° (as of last newsletter)
Steve Mitrione
Garlic Harvest the following July winters over in ground Diane Dodge
Barb Grossman
Green onion 60-70 survives high 20s Paul Moss
Kale 40-62 the hardiest, down to 20°
Volunteers

University of MN Extension
Leaf lettuce 40-60 survives light frost Kristen and Dan Arnott
Matt Beckman
Peas 70-80 * longer than if spring planted survives high 20s Marianne Carolan
Joaquin Contreras
Radishes 30-60 dig until soil freezes Janet Court
Bob Dahm
Spinach 35-45 survives light frost, may overwinter Mollie Dean
Julia Eagles
Beth Fritcher
Melvin Giles
Rocky Gordon

Freezing Vegetables
Tom Guettler
Soyini Guyton
Stephanie Hankerson
Ben Hastings
Freezing is a quick and convenient Barb Heideman
way to preserve vegetables at home. Soozin Hirschmugl
Fresh produce contains enzymes which Nick Jordan
cause the loss of color, loss of nutrients, Kaisa Kerrigan
flavor and color changes in frozen Beth Kivett
Amanda Koonjibeharry
vegetables. Enzymes in vegetables are Candace LaCrosse
inactivated by blanching, the exposure of containers or freezer bags. Bread bags Allan LaValier
the vegetable to boiling water or steam and sandwich bags are not moisture- MJ Lavin
for a brief period of time followed by vapor resistant to be used for freezing. Sue Mazanyi
rapid cooling in ice water. Most vegetables will maintain high Aimee McAdams
Blanching time varies with vegetable quality for 12 months at 0°F. When Stefan Meyer
and size. Follow recommended done properly, freezing is the food Andrew Montain
Jennifer Nedry
blanching times carefully and begin preservation method that may potentially Anna Newton
counting time as soon as you place the preserve the most nutrients. Patricia Ohmans
vegetable in water. For best quality, For answers to your food preservation Cordelia Pierson
blanch in small quantities; enough for questions contact AnswerLine, which Severin Peterson
only a few containers at a time. provides research-based information Susan Reed
Microwave blanching may not be through University of Minnesota & Nick Schneider
effective, as some of the enzymes may Iowa State University Extension. Call Connie Shannon
not be inactivated and it does not save Robert Skafte
toll-free 1-800-854-1678 or email
Karen Swanberg
time or energy. answer@iastate.edu. Website: Mala Vujnovich
Select good quality freezer www.extension.iastate.edu/answerline/

Promoting and Preserving Community Gardening Across the Twin Cities

PO Box 580496, Minneapolis, MN 55458 www.gardeningmatters.org
 This June,
Gardening
Matters
welcomed
Jesse Eustis
into Gardening
Matters. As
intern, Jesse
will be helping
with the general
administration
Hello Jesse!
duties as well
as assisting
with enhancing
capacity of community gardens
and strengthening a network of
community gardens. Jesse’s brings
new perspective to our work, drawing
on his experience and talents with
communications & political organizing
& biodynamic farming. Jesse is a
tango dancer and trained in the
healing arts.
Jesse is a member of the St.
Stephen’s Whittier Community Garden
and helped to establish the Sisters’
Camelot 5th Avenue Community
Garden. Jesse is a graduate of our
Community Garden Leadership Series
Training offered this past spring. Jesse
is also part of a three-member team
that designed and implemented the
Yards-to-Gardens website, which
connects those with land with those
seeking land for gardening. Keep an
eye on this website, www.y2g.org, as
its services expand to include other
gardening resources.
Welcome, Jesse!
Check it out!
The Twin Cities Urban
Ag Connection (TCUAC)!
This networking tool was assembled
to provide information about urban
agriculture activities in the Twin
Cities, and provide networking
opportunities between organizations
and individuals working in urban
agriculture. www.tcurbanag.com
Promoting and Preserving Community Gardening Across the Twin Cities
PO Box 580496, Minneapolis, MN 55458
August 6-9, 2009
ACGA’s 30th Annual Conference:
C A L ENDAR
Putting Down Roots
Franklin Park Conservatory, Columbus, OH
For details & registration: www.communitygarden.org
Saturday, August 22, 10am – 2pm
Fourth Annual Parade of Community Gardens
40 community gardens from across the Twin Cities & greater
Minnesota open their gardens to the public. Experience the
unique and individual gardening efforts happening around the
state. Details and maps available at www.gardeningmatters.org or
call Gardening Matters at 612-492-8964.
OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 1
Growing food and Justice for All Initiative’s
2nd Annual Gathering
Food and Spirit: Building Cross Cultural
Understanding for Systems Change
(Pre gathering training: October 28 & 29)
Wisconsin State Fair Grounds:
Tommy Thompson Youth Center, Milwaukee, WI
For details, go to www.growingfoodandjustice.org.
Nurturing a Racially Inclusive
Community Garden (or Organization)
In this workshop, participants Alliance (MFJA), and Sarah
will challenge each other to move Claassen, Land Stewardship Project
beyond their comfort zone when and MFJA.
thinking, talking, and acting
about race, and will learn how WHEN: 
to nurture an environment that Saturday September 12,
encourages people to grow with 9 am – 12 noon, Room J
this challenge. Participants will build
relationships that allow them to WHERE:
continue and deepen this dialogue Sabathani Community Center,
and take action together. 310 E 38th St, Minneapolis
To foster relationship-
building within your community COST:
garden or organization, we $15/person with scholarships available
ask that AT A MINIMUM, two
persons from your garden or R E G I S T R AT I O N :
organization attend. Total Go to www.gardeningmatters.org
workshop attendance is capped or call 612-492-8964
at 30 participants. Facilitated by
Sponsored by Gardening Matters and
Melvin Giles and Tom Guettler of
the Minnesota Food and Justice Minnesota Food and Justice Alliance
www.gardeningmatters.org