In the hustle and bustle of evergrowing Northwest Arkansas, it is easy to forget the aspects of small-town life. The town of Lincoln has brought one staple of rural living, the family garden, back to the city.
Lincoln Mayor Rob Hulse found inspiration for creating Lincoln's Community Garden out of personal loss. When his grandmother died, Hulse brought the remaining food from her kitchen to Grace Place, a thrift store and food pantry in Lincoln, to donate to their local food pantry. Finding the cupboards at Grace Place to be bare, Hulse started thinking there had to be a way to help people in his community.
Mayor Hulse soon realized that the city owned vacant property next to the Lincoln Middle School.
"It'd be great to raise fresh vegetables to be able to give to Grace Place's food distribution program, to help those that just need a little help," he said.
A retired physical education instructor and coach at Lincoln, Jim Sposato, known as "Coach Spo," was recruited to a lead role in the effort. As a master gardener, Sposato was happy to take on the role of chairman of the board and lead the garden.
Sposato learned the basics of gardening at a young age. His grandfather was the head gardener for President Theodore Roosevelt's estate on Long Island, N.Y.
By all accounts, the garden has been a great success in its first year.
The Lincoln Future Farmers of America, led by Kevin Barrenberg, donated the tomato plants that bore more than 1,850 tomatoes, which were then donated to area families.
Lincoln Middle School's after-school program, the Lincoln Youth Adventure Club, was instrumental in digging up rocks, cutting out roots, and picking up other debris to properly prepare the site. Ivan Huffmaster, club sponsor, said the kids spent about five days after school in the spring getting the ground ready.
This week, Huffmaster took his seventh-grade science class out to the garden where they learned about soil composition and what role each element played in the growth of the plants in the garden, as well as how nutrients are used and how to replenish them. The class picked black-eyed peas and tomatoes on Tuesday.
As of Oct. 13, the 80' x 100' garden had yielded 216 yellow squash, 205 zucchini, 30 jalapeno peppers, 14 bell peppers, more than 1,850 tomatoes, more than 40 gallons of okra, 1,116 cucumbers, 26.5 gallons of green beans, and the 40 gallons of black-eyed peas that were collected this week. The corn crop was lost in the spring floods unfortunately.
All of the vegetables picked from the garden have been donated to area families at no cost. The city does not sell the harvest, unlike some non-profit gardens.
"It's all about helping people," Hulse said.
The board would like to double the size of the garden in 2016 but will need help doing so. Those who wish to donate time, materials, or money to the Lincoln Community Garden can contact Jim Sposato at [email protected]. Those wanting to donate to Grace Place can contact Kim Igo at (479) 824-5496.
NAN Dining Guide Kitchen Talk on 10/23/2015