MCPS Makes Bad Decision on Food Gardens
As many of you know, we
have, in the face of much confusion, been endeavoring to discover if Montgomery
County Public Schools has an official policy on food gardens. Well, our search
ended this past Friday when MCPS Superintendent Jerry Weast issued an official
memo on the subject to the School Board of Education.
I wish I could say we were
happy to see it.
Regrettably, Dr. Weast
repeats a number of unfounded objections to food gardens in affirming that they
will not be allowed on school property. While we welcome the school
administration's willingness to work with the county Parks Department in
establishing food gardens in park areas next to some schools, this is
ultimately a discriminatory policy which disenfranchises far more schools than
it would help out.
More importantly, Dr.
Weast's memo spreads misinformation about the supposed problems and dangers of food gardens,
and it denies our county's school children the very real (and increasingly
documented) benefits of knowing where their food comes from, and how it grows.
There is something very wrong when food gardening is portrayed as a liability to school children. (And it leads to a far more dangerous ignorance - click here to watch a video of first graders who can't identify basic vegetables.)
This is not the end of the
story, though. School food gardens are operating successfully in literally
thousands of schools across the country, and MVG will be launching a campaign
to educate the public - and MCPS - so we can have them here too.
Look for this new campaign
soon. And if you are a teacher or school administrator in our county who would
like a garden at your school, or you know one who does, please get in touch
with us - the more public support we can build, the better!
And for one of the countless
examples of schools were food gardening is actively encouraged, in fact one where a
school club actually received money to grow vegetables for their classmates, click here to read "Learning to eat their veggies, too"
New Congregational Community
Garden Network Formed
On a much happier note, this
past Tuesday was the initial conference call for a new network of Congregational Community
Gardeners in Montgomery County.
Working together with the
Montgomery County Master Gardeners and the County Office of Community
Partnerships, MVG organized this call as part of our effort to involve more
houses of worship in growing food - food that is often donated to the local
community, or to those in need via local food pantries.
This effort has taken
flight, and on this past Tuesday's call we had 24 enthusiastic participants
representing 15 houses of worship (including Muslim, Jewish and Christian
congregations), as well as one community center. After a successful call spent sharing
our various experiences, the participants agreed to establish ourselves as an
ongoing network, and we're looking at future events such as a Community Garden
Tour Day this coming summer.
Know someone at a local
church, synagogue or mosque that wants to start a community garden - or are you
that person yourself? Give us a call, and get on board with the new MC
Congregational Garden Network!
MVG Makes the Papers!
Stop the presses! Or on
second thought, keep them rolling - Montgomery Victory Gardens has made its
first official appearance in the mainstream print media!
Our media hit came from last
week's Green Matters Symposium, held at Brookside Gardens in Wheaton. It was a
wonderful daylong event discussing local food (Brookside Garden's new three
year focus), and it featured many farming, gardening
and local food luminaries
- from local heroes such as our own MVG Adivsory Board member Woody Woodroof
(of Red Wiggler Farm) and David Vismara, head of horticulture at the MC Dept.
of Parks, to author Anna Lappe (pictured at right), daughter of Francis Moore
Lappe. (Anna's new book, Diet for a Hot Planet, tracks the impact of
industrial agriculture on climate change - it's huge - and chronicles those who
are creating the climate saving alternatives.)
With our thanks to
Brookside's Adult Education Programs Manager, Mark Richardson, MVG was allowed
to set up shop and preach our local food gospel at the event - and low and behold we get the final quotes in
this week's Gazette article!
To read the article,
originally titled "Think Globally, Grow Locally," click here. (And in
case you're wondering, what I actually said is that "Growing our own food
is the start of a revolution of
people taking back their own lives..." not a "renovation."
Otherwise, an excellent piece or reportage. And take note of the section on
Growing SOUL, a new local food initiative in our county that we will be
highlighting in this space soon!)
Tour of MC Schools Central
Kitchen/Food Warehouse Sold Out
We are delighted to announce
that our tour of Montgomery County Public Schools Central Kitchen and Food
Warehouse, co-organized with Bethesda Green and hosted by the new Director of
Food Services, Suzanne Wood, was an almost instant sell-out. (We told you space
was limited!)
For those of you who were
still wanting to join us, we can put you on a waiting list in case anyone cancels.
And we will certainly let you know if we arrange another such tour in the
future.
In the meantime, though, it
is wonderful to know how many people in our county truly care about the food
our kids get in the schools, enough to spend their time next Friday morning
finding out how it's done. Keep your eyes peeled for a report on our field trip
in an upcoming MVG update!
Broccoli, Star of the
Cabbage Family
One of the great spring (and
fall) crops many gardeners grow in this region is broccoli. Did you know that
broccoli, and the entire brassica family of vegetables, including kale,
collards, cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, Romanesco broccoli and Chinese
cabbage, were all developed from just one species of plant, the wild cabbage?
That is just one of the fun
facts (and recipes) you will learn from a recent column by the Washington Post's garden
writer, Adrian Higgins. The column also features Cindy Brown of Green Springs
Garden, a local gardening expert who gave a terrific presentation this past
Sunday at Brookside Gardens. (We told you Brookside was serious about its local
food focus!)
With our spring planting
delayed a bit due to our very wet and snowy winter, there is still time to
plant your broccoli seeds inside for replanting next month. For more on growing
(and cooking) this all-time garden favorite, click here to read "Broccoli, the cabbage clan's star."
Host Your Own Seed Exchange
Party!
Many of you are now joyfully
clutching the new seed packets you ordered this year, along with the leftovers
from last year. And what could be more fun than fondling all those seed packets?
Why sharing them with your friends and neighbors, of course!
To quote Chris McLaughlin of the SF Gardening Examiner, "seed swaps are fabulous
for saving money,
trying plants you have never grown before, and to glean some valuable ideas and
tips from other gardeners. Seed swap parties are by their very nature meant to
be informal, easy-going get-togethers; you don't have to pull out all the
stops."
I went to my first seed
exchange party last year, hosted by MVGers Matt and Elizabeth (of canned
peaches fame!), and it couldn't have been more fun. We exchanged individual
seeds from packets, and also planted some in starter containers while we were
there. The bottom line, though, is that there is no wrong way to do a seed
exchange, and it couldn't be more fun - and educational.
So plan your neighborhood
seed exchange today! And for extra ideas on "How to Have a Seed Exchange Party," click here.
Organic Manifesto
Rodale is one of the most
ardent advocates of organic food in the country, and have been since they
started publishing Organic Gardening magazine in 1942. Now Maria Rodale,
chairman of Rodale, sheds new light on the state of 21st century farming with
her new book, Organic Manifesto.
From Rodale Press: "Ms.
Rodale examines the unholy alliances that have formed between the chemical
companies that produce fertilizer and genetically altered seeds, the
agricultural educational system that is virtually subsidized by those same
companies, and the government agencies in thrall to powerful lobbyists, all of
which perpetuate dangerous farming practices and deliberate misconceptions
about organic farming and foods. Interviews with government officials, doctors,
scientists, and farmers from coast to coast bolster her position that
chemical-free farming may be the single most effective tool we have to protect
our environment and, even more important, our health."
Click here to watch a video of Maria Rodale talking about her new book, and the state of farming today.
(With thanks to Tom Alexander of The Growing Edge.)
