June 10, 2010

Story by Caitlin Burke and Sonia Schmanski

When Fiskars Co. was searching for a city that was receptive to the idea of community gardening and had a strong community garden network, they found that Portland “really fit the bill.” Fiskars partnered withPortland Parks & Recreation, Home Depot, Friends of Portland Community Gardens, and local volunteers to build – in one day! – the North Brentwood Community Garden.

This community garden will become a space for Brentwood-Darlington neighbors to come together and support Parks’ effort to meet the growing demand for healthy, locally grown food in our community. Volunteers wheelbarrowed dirt and soil amenities, raised a barn-like shed, and built frames for raised garden beds, creating twenty-three new plots for Portland residents.

The new North Brentwood Community Garden will also be an important part of the city’s Climate Action Plan, which sets the goal of 1,000 new plots in Portland by 2010 – this new garden brings us that much closer to our goal!

If you'd like to be a part of the community garden movement in Portland, check out Parks' recently-released Community Gardens Toolkit, a resource guide offering everything from how to sign up for a plot in a community garden to tips for growing produce at home to ways to donate food to those in need in our community.

Volunteers are always welcome at Portland Parks & Recreation's Community Garden work parties! Click here for more.

Thanks to David Ashton of The Bee for this great photo of the new garden's construction!