Grow And Share

Grow and Share has a supply of large plastic barrels we are recycling... These are a great size for rain barrels, just a little smaller than 55 gallon drums. If you don't need a rain barrel, they can be cut into halves and used as large planters. Or made into compost tumblers.

We are asking for a donation to help cover barrel/accessories/paint costs and to raise funds for next year's Grow And Share projects. All money raised will go directly to Grow And Share. Whatever amount you donate, we will give you a donation receipt.

If you would like to pick up a few rain barrels to help you save rainwater for your gardens next year, on www.growandshare.org we have direct contact information. Barrels will be available for pickup during November and December--while they last.

These barrels can also be taken "raw", unpainted with no attachments, and you can make your own rain barrels, compost tumblers, or whatever else might help you green your gardens! Barrels are BLACK.

We'll be posting photos at www.growandshare.org within the next few days.

At this time of the year, we know you are likely thinking about charitable donations as well as holiday shopping. We at Grow And Share would like to help you on both fronts. We'd like you to give us your tax deductible donation, and in return we'll provide you with a "thank you" -- a garden Starter Pack or Deluxe Pack which you can use for yourself or give as a holiday gift.

Help us reach our goals with our end-of-year fund drive. Like all non-profits, monetary donations are necessary for our work to continue uninterrupted. Your donation now helps us wage 2010's fight against hunger,

Details are available in a PDF (email to request) and we hope you will take a few minutes to see what the garden Packs are all about.

We will make the most of your contribution. We've worked hard to run efficiently this year and done a lot with manual labor, recycled/donated supplies, and the funds raised from our music festival.

Starter Pack (gift to donors of $50 or more)

* Not pictured, but also includes 3/4 yard of organic garden soil if picked up or delivered within 50 mile radius of Zebulon NC.

Deluxe Pack (gift to donors of $100 or more)

* Not pictured, but also includes 1-1/2 yards of organic garden soil if picked up or delivered within 50 mile radius of Zebulon NC.

November 9, 2009 – Zebulon, NC USA

Elementary school teachers are going green in Franklin County, NC with installation of school gardens. Teachers are adding gardening to their lesson plans for science, nutrition, and other subjects. Produce grown in these gardens will feed the students, the teachers, and other local residents.

Working with Franklin County school teachers and Dale Byrns, Creative Education Office, several gardens are being installed. In Spring 2010, over 100 elementary school students will be growing food for themselves, learning about nutrition, working in the garden, and sharing their produce in the local community.

The first gardens — five raised beds — were installed November 4th at Long Mill Elementary. These raised bed gardens are overseen by several first grade teachers, first graders, volunteers, and representatives from Grow And Share. Over three tons of organic garden soil was used to build the gardens, with all the soil donated by Old Castle Lawn and Garden of Louisburg. Woodlief Supply Co. of Youngsville provided greens seed for some experimental Fall planting.

“It was great to see businesses in the community dive in and help these schools. Their contributions kept the total garden costs under $50 for all the school gardens,” said Frank Whatley of Grow And Share. Grow And Share, a local non-profit, delivered the supplies and donated landscape timbers for the beds. Additionally, Grow And Share will provide the students with free garden plants in April.

At Long Mill Elementary, the teachers are using this gardening experience to teach the students hands-on about the parts of a plant and how plants grow (a science objective). Growing the plants lines up with the teachers’ objectives of teaching science lessons on what a plant needs to grow. “The students will also be learning about health and nutrition as part of our health initiatives… good choices, food pyramid, etc.,” says First Grade Teacher Laurie Baker.

“We’re working with schools, girl scouts, brownies, and other children,” said Kay Whatley, Creative Director at Grow And Share, “helping the next generation hear the message: you can grow your own food. As adults, each will decide if gardening is something they want to do. We’re glad for the opportunity to work on youth-oriented projects like the school gardens.”

From Kimberly Ferrell, Long Mill Elementary School Principal: “It was an awesome opportunity for our First Grade students to see and understand the process of starting a garden. At Long Mill Elementary School our goal is to educate our students about healthy living and choices. This project is part of our Wellness program that leads to greater rewards in living fit.”

An additional school garden is planned for Franklinton Elementary, with groundbreaking expected in the first quarter of 2010. Students 1-5 in the AIG program at Franklinton Elementary will grow produce in the garden, and then share it with a local senior center.

Michelle McGhee, AIG Specialist at Franklinton Elementary, is in charge of that school’s garden. She says, “I am excited about getting in the dirt and providing my students hands-on gardening instruction. We will be learning about plants in our science study and will integrate the study throughout math and reading in my AIG classes for grades 1-5. My students will engage in planting seeds, pulling weeds, and harvesting the produce. We will distribute the vegetables at our local senior center where we can also provide community outreach. We just can’t wait to experience our own gardening.”

“Franklin County Schools recognizes that proper nutrition and healthy living habits are very important for a child’s education,” Franklin County Superintendent Dr. Eddie Ingram said. “We are thankful for the efforts Grow And Share is putting forth to help the children and staff of Franklin County schools make healthy decisions.”

Both schools’ gardens will be in full swing by April, designed to allow students to harvest food before school ends for Summer Vacation. All students participating in the program will be able to give back to the community while learning to feed themselves.

About Franklin County Schools
Franklin County is one of the fastest growing counties in North Carolina. For additional information on Franklin County Schools, contact Dale Byrns at (919) 496-7349 or visit www.fcschools.net.

About Grow And Share
Grow And Share is an organization fighting hunger from the ground up(TM) by growing interest in gardening and local foods. Activities include plant giveaways, gardens promoting, and gathering food for local organizations to distribute free. Grow And Share provides plants and assistance to North Carolina residents willing to plant “Sharing Gardens(TM)” on their own land. These gardens allow each person to provide food for their family with some to share with their community. New and existing gardeners pick up free garden plants each April and sign a pledge to share their harvest in their communities. By providing the plants at no charge, Grow And Share is ensuring even those who do not have the funds to spare can start gardening and grow food.

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Kay Whatley
Creative Director
Grow And Share
70 Harrison Street
Zebulon NC 27597
919.269.5414
info@growandshare.org

Grow And Share is working with several Franklin County schools, providing supplies and assistance to install school gardens. The students and teachers will then tend the gardens in the Spring, eat their harvest, and share a portion of their harvest too.

We're looking forward to working with teachers and parents this coming Wednesday to install the first gardens... a series of 4 raised gardens for an elementary school.

Hopefully, following Wednesday's day-of-work we will have some photos to share!

Yesterday was a good, busy day preparing to put in the new greenhouse.  We got some help clearing out some trees.  More information and photos are online at http://www.growandshare.org/?p=626.

We're looking forward to expanding our greenhouse space.  In April, we'll be giving away approximately 10,000 plants.  Garden plants are free to US residents who sign a pledge to share their harvest.  Giveaways will take place in Wake and Franklin counties, but you don't have to live in this area to come and get the free plants.

School gardens are possible without government grants or use of US tax dollars.  A little elbow grease and some local support can get your school garden growing with little or no expense.[Read More]

We are working with two elementary schools putting in gardens. The gardens are expected to be installed during October, barring no delays. One is needed at the start of October to fit with the teacher's lesson plans. We have materials, tillers, labor and seeds/plants we need.

We are seeking donations of garden soil -- preferrably organic garden soil -- for approximately 130 square feet (two areas at each of the two elementary schools). If your company or organization can donate this soil, please contact Kay at 919.269.5414 (Grow And Share).

Zebulon, NC, September 18, 2009 - Grow And Share, a non-profit fighting hunger at the local level, recently received a grant from Annie's Homegrown of Napa, California. This "Grants for Gardens" award provides some funding for Grow And Share's gardening programs in Spring 2010.

The grant will be used to purchase garden seed and growing supplies. During the Spring, a planting event will be held during which children will learn about growing their own food and assist with seed planting. The resulting plants will later be distributed to local gardeners who pledge to share their harvests in the community.

"This grant from Annie's is going to help fund our children's gardening activities, allowing us to teach young people about growing their own food," Kay Whatley of Grow And Share said. "Across their lifetimes, it can impact how they think about healthy foods."

The grant is one of several awarded to gardens across the United States. "At Annie's, we believe that gardens are important places to connect kids with real food," said Aimee Sands, Marketing Director at Annie's Homegrown. "There's something magical about watching a child sample the lettuce they've grown, or dig up new potatoes for the first time. We're proud our Grants for Gardens encourage and support this type of education at community gardens across the country."

From the Annie's website, www.annies.com: Annie's Homegrown is driven by a team of folks who are passionate about three things: food, people, and the planet we all share. The Napa-based company's philosophy is "Eat Responsibly. Act Responsibly."

Grow And Share is a NC-based organization fighting hunger at the local level by growing interest in gardening and local foods. Activities engage residents in gardening as a way of improviding their community food supply. Grow And Share conducts plant giveaways, gives supplies to new gardeners, and organizes food giveaways with local organizations to distribute produce to those in need. Their goal is to provide help residents provide food for themselves and extra to share with their community.

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Kay Whatley

Creative Director

Grow And Share

70 Harrison Street

Zebulon NC 27597

919.269.5414

info@growandshare.org

While finalizing details for our upcoming fundraiser/music festival, we were invited to visit one of the farms serving as a "farm education station" during the event: Vollmer Farm in Bunn NC.  Vollmer is coming to the festival to educate attendees on several local crops and on milk production.

Now, we have been to the farm many times.  We’ve picked strawberries with the kids and with the grandkids too.  We had seen Vollmer’s signs mentioning their hayride.  We didn’t give too much thought to it, though, because we could see the whole farm — we thought — and figured that the hayride was just a turn around the area we could see.

We were soooo wrong!

Melissa met us at the farm’s market.  She drove us beyond where we thought the farm ended, and into their “Back Forty”.  There were buildings all over and more fields!

Melissa showed us the wagons used for hayrides, the big corn maze, concession stands, greenhouses, kids' pumpkin field, and more!  This “hidden” area included the biggest trampoline I’ve seen — an in-the-ground, pumpkin-colored marvel!  I’ll bet a dozen adults could jump on it at the same time, as it had to have been at least 50 feet long and is likely much longer!  There was even a 40ft underground slide, which they are soon expanding to 100ft.

Amazing, truly amazing, that we had lived so close to such a treasure — and had kids at home we wanted to do things with — and hadn’t found out about their farm fun until now! Needless to say, when Vollmer Farm opens up the Back Forty in September, we will be taking the children, and may even stay for one of the Saturday afternoon bonfires Melissa mentioned!

Just announced by Whole Foods:

"This Thursday, August 27^th, Whole Foods Market in Raleigh, NC will be collecting surplus produce from area gardeners to donate to Grow and Share (www.growandshare.org). This is a great opportunity to donate those prolific veggies and fruits you’ve run out of recipes for! The donation basket will be located in our produce department."

This year, we gave away close to 2,000 garden plants and had many pledge-signed gardeners growing food to share. They were spread across Franklin, Wake, Vance, and Durham counties... possibly a few from Nash and Johnson Counties too.

Next year, our reach will grow! We are planning two giveaways of close to 10,000 garden plants. The giveaways will be in April, allowing folks to pick them up in time to plant their Spring/Summer gardens.

So far, we have one spot for a giveaway in Franklin County near Zebulon and Bunn NC. We're looking for the right spot in Raleigh where we can hold the second giveaway. Once we have both dates and locations set, they will be announced on our site: http://www.growandshare.org .

Whether you are already a gardener or just think you might try it, we hope you'll keep the giveaways in mind. It is a way to get your garden growing without major investment, making it easier for more people to try.

The "catch" is that to get the free plants, you sign a pledge to share your harvest. You can share with family, friends, neighbors, strangers, or food banks; that is your choice. We do provide some distribution sites to help if you don't know where to give your harvest away.

The economy is picking up, which is great. There are still families struggling to put enough food on the table. Help us reach many communities, make lots of fresh garden food available, and spread it around. With your help, we can chase hunger away, and bring positive change to the streets of NC and eventually communities throughout the United States of America.

Here is another of Frank's sky photos.

Photos from the garden food giveaway

We were able to gather a lot of produce this week for the Saturday food giveaway. We even had enough food to give some to the Louisburg soup kitchen. Even though it is late in the growing season (August) the gardens are still kicking out peas, beans, tomatoes, and peppers like crazy.

Thanks to Serve.Gov, Bill G. found us and came out Thursday and helped us pick throughout the morning at three big gardens. Nadia also came and helped Frank and I pick.

We were sorry to see at one of the donated gardens where we pick that the cucumbers had overripened and been lost. Still, we had a full car full of food — and more gardeners dropped off boxes of more: cantaloupes, cucumbers, zucchinis, and more!

During the giveaway, many families and providers stopped by and picked up several bags each of produce. We were able to give away hundreds of tomatoes (everyone around here seems to still be getting tons of tomatoes).

We’ve been getting emails and phone calls from our gardeners lately, letting us know that the plants from the plant giveaway are growing well. It makes us happy to know that those little plants we started in the greenhouse have traveled far and grown well. Thank you all for letting us know that you are sharing food from the plants we shared with you!

When we did the Garden Plant Giveaway in April, we were able to give each gardener who signed our pledge (to share) about 5 pots of plants. Each pot had an average of 3 plants, so we were able to give away about 15 plants per person.

For next year, we are gathering pots and are planning to give approximately 2 dozen plants per person. Depending on what pots are donated, and what funding we have to buy more, each gardener in 2010 will either get 2 dozen small plots with one plant each, or a variety of mixed size pots with 1 to 5 plants each. We’ll know more as we get into the Fall.

We are ALSO gathering seeds, not just pots! Whether you have a seed packet with seeds left in it, or seeds you took from veggies you grew (or bought at the store), we would love to have them. Get the seeds to us any way that you can and we will put them away and start planning for the March sowing in 2010.

FINALLY, not only will we will need to grow more plants to give away more to each gardener, we are expanding our 2010 giveaways so that we will hold one in Franklin County and a separate one in Wake Counties (gardeners can be from ANY NC county to get free plants). Our greenhouse, which Frank made from recycled windows, will need to have an addition put on it. If you have a greenhouse that you can give to us, or even a good supply of windows that you can donate, please call. We want to get these things in place before Fall this year.

Take care, and thank you to those who are sharing their garden goodies with neighbors, friends, and strangers!!