49

Year of Growing

Make Your Plot Like A Garden

In recent years, community gardens have been sprouting up across the nation, with their popularity growing year by year. Community gardens provide essential services for local communities, and have even been used to promote resilience during the pandemic. It is a form of urban gardening, these gardens are recognized as healthy additions to communities, and provide a wealth of benefits for gardeners and the broader community as a whole. They provide opportunities for both recreational gardening and food production, in underutilized spaces.

A Short History of the Sharon Community Gardens

In 1974, Sharon Community Gardens was created as a community project. It was made possible in 1975 with the help of Dr. Peter Kinney, Ms. Jeanne Kinney, and Mr. Francis Sullivan, who secured the use of the Sacred Heart School and Deborah Sampson Park for the gardens. The first year, the Board of Selectmen provided funding for 55 families to participate in the garden, which was located where the tennis courts now stand. The town provided resources such as manure, compost, and water to support the project. The garden was moved to its current location due to a revised design of the Deborah Sampson recreational facility, and a permanent water supply was added. Since then, an average of 80 families have participated in the garden each year, and the Town of Sharon continues to support the project by providing compost and water.