We all grow vegetables for the bountiful harvests. But who would think that growing vegetables is actually the key behind developing responsibility, leadership and teamwork? Well, that certainly is the case for a group of kids outside of Boston. Not only are they learning how to grow vegetables, but the food they grow becomes food for people who need it the most.
This garden is growing more than just vegetables. It's growing confidence and character in the kids who dig here. These motivated young gardeners come from both the city and the suburbs. They're the core of the Food Project, a group which feeds hungry people while building young leaders. Five days a week, about 60 teenagers dig, plant, weed and water to feed homeless people and to stock the shelves at food pantries.
Every beet, zucchini, and patty-pan squash is another tribute to the careful guidance of seasoned growers like Don Zasada. He's the agriculture manager who makes sure the kids learn how to get their hands dirty and keep the garden going strong. They learn about hoeing and weeding, how to run through the wash station, how to harvest vegetables and how to properly care for their tools.
And, the kids learn good growing techniques, like better ways to stake tomatoes. You put a stake in, and then there are two tomato plants, and then you put another stake in, in a straight line. And you continue down the row that way. And then you weave in and out of the stakes, and it pulls the tomato plants into themselves. So you use half as many stakes. You get it done in about a third the amount of time that it would take if you staked every individual one.
Also, the sandy soil in one garden becomes a lesson in water conservation, in how to conserve moisture. With corn, cauliflower, cabbage, broccoli--anything that's planted in a row, the kids hill the soil around the plant not only to give it support but also to preserve the moisture right in the plant row.
It's hard work, but don't mistake this for a garden boot camp. These kids have a lot of fun. The kids know that with every part of what they do, every weed they pull, they're pulling their weight, and working toward a common goal--to bring organic produce to their neighbors. Two days a week, the kids run a farmer's market. And when they're not growing or selling their fresh produce, the kids are cooking it up at local homeless shelters. It's more direct to know that it's going to help someone specifically. You know that someone's going to eat this food tonight, and it's going to help them out.
As the kids' experience grows, so does their self-esteem. Whether they're learning about themselves or learning about growing good food, these teens are harvesting the benefits of a lifetime.
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