Northbrook_community_garden

Jeff Green | Apr 05, 2007

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Interest in Northbrook community garden is growing!

by Cheryl Hartwick

Are you interested in gardening? Do you have a green thumb?

A local steering committee is looking for people, novice or pro, who may be interested in a community garden. The group is hoping to promote and increase production of locally-produced food, through several local strategies, beginning with the development of a community garden in Northbrook at the Pine Meadow Nursing Home site.

The plan is to have the garden up and “growing” (pun intended) this summer with horticulture and environmental leadership programs for children and families, a communal gardening site and individual raised garden plots for interested community members. Other plans currently being investigated include supporting and increasing home gardening in the Land o’ Lakes region, the possibility of developing a food cooperative (and perhaps a producers’ cooperative) and, over the next couple of years, starting a community greenhouse using the principles of aquaponics.

Aquaponics is a sustainable way of growing food that combines aquaculture and hydroponics. The unique advantages of aquaponic systems are 1) conservation through constant water reuse and recycling; 2) organic fertilization of plants with natural fish emulsion; 3) the elimination of solid waste disposal from intensive aquaculture; 4) the reduction of needed cropland to produce like crops; 5) the overall reduction of environmental footprint for crop production (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aquaponics).

If you are interested in getting involved, sharing your gardening knowledge, or learning more about the ideas, there is a community meeting on Tuesday, April 10 at the Lion’s Hall in Northbrook. Come out and help make our community greener and more beautiful.

For more information, contact Tom Arniel at Pathways for Children and Youth in Northbrook at 613-336-8934.