Garden Season

Garden season has started. If you're a veteran gardener, you probably already have a plan and seeds. Maybe you've started seeds indoors or already planted your carrots, peas, and spinach.

The Horticulture Club at Western Technical College will have a plant sale on April 22 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. including vegetables, herbs, flowers, and bare root trees. Coulee Montessori's Plant Sale will be held at North Side Elementary May 8 through 10.

And GROW La Crosse will hold a plant sale at the  Western Tech greenhouse on May 7, 8, and 9.

If you don't have your own garden, volunteer at a community garden.

The Kane Street Community Garden is always looking for volunteers. This important resource annually produces thousands of pounds of food for our community thanks to hundreds of volunteers. This year, they are offering a compost program. Bring a five gallon bucket of acceptable kitchen scraps and get a bucket of compost for your home garden. Check their website for volunteer times and harvest rules.

The Community Victory Gardens at Aptiv on South Avenue and City Hall also welcome volunteers. Started by the City of La Crosse Planning Department in 2020 in response to COVID, these smaller gardens offer the chance to garden with others or on your own with a "pick what you need" policy for anyone who stops by. Group gardening times are Friday mornings from 8 to 9 at Aptiv (3000 South Ave.) starting April 24, and Tuesday evenings from 5 to 6 at City Hall starting April 28. But, if those times don't work for you, go when you can. If you'd like a little guidance, contact MinisterOfBeans at Gmail or call or text 608-315 -2693 to arrange a time.

In addition, GROW La Crosse maintains gardens at every La Crosse School District elementary school. Interns and volunteers are important to help maintain the gardens over the summer. Often, volunteers can pick from the gardens, too. Sign up at https://growlacrosse.org/get-involved/

If you just want food without gardening, check out the Community Food Forest at the YMCA, corner of Main Street and West Ave. Fruit trees and shrubs bear LOADS of fruit throughout the season. If you want to volunteer, get more info at https://www.laxymca.org/food-forest

Food prices are expected to rise and food availability decrease as WW T rages on and global warming accelerates. Supporting and strengthening local food systems, from neighborhood gardens to regional food producers, makes for a more resilient community. Learning to garden by volunteering, is a valuable free education opportunity with benefits.