Community gardens aren’t just about a space to grow nutritious, local food, they also grow healthy children, foster friendships and build resilience in our community.
They allow seniors to share knowledge with younger families and for new Canadians to quite literally grow roots in Castlegar. They are ample grounds for connection and development.
Castlegardens BC, your community garden in the heart of Castlegar, is hosting a Community Box Build on Saturday, Sept. 16 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and is looking for local businesses, organizations and community members to form teams and help build new and repair older garden boxes.
Leah Jackson, Board of Directors, says “the event will expand and bring awareness to the garden as place to connect people with healthy food, available growing space, and each other. A lot of people don’t know we exist so hopefully this event will change that,” Mayor Lawrence Chernoff plans to attend the Community Box Build.
The Castlegardens was founded in 2009 as a project of the Kootenay Food Strategy Society (KFSS). It’s a gathering place for gardeners and community members alike, with both individual beds and communal garden spaces.
In the past year they’ve developed an extra 120 feet of growing space, a pollinator garden for bees and butterflies, built a new garden shed, seen a 25 per cent increase in memberships and engaged nine different elementary school classes. They are also in the midst of developing a Children’s Garden and Exploration Space in order to make the area even more inviting for children, schools and families.
“We are a bit of a work in progress — the last two years have seen significant growth in the garden and we’re excited to show off where we’ve come and where we’re going” says Nicole Hergert, Board Chair.
If you’d like to become a member, to lend a hand at the Community Box Build or contribute to the Children’s Garden and Exploration Space, send the Board an e-mail at castlegardensbc@gmail.com to connect. Castlegardens BC is located near the Millennium Walkway Entrance on 5th Avenue, closest to the dog park.