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With help from Dan Bravin of Portland Organoponico Project and City Garden Farms, residents at Milepost 5 have transformed the community's front yard into a vital, organic garden.

Over the course of three weeks last fall, we removed rocks, tilled, and planted over-wintering greens. Both beds flourished, and we're still reaping mesculun greens, red lettuce, kale, bok choi, and mustard greens.

Our Worm Wigwam composter arrived last week, so we'll start composting kitchen waste soon. Seedlings are being started for summer, and our spring planting will happen as soon as the rains let up. Before April is over, we also hope to have one of four raised beds built.

Our system is both volunteer and scubscription based, and any extra produce goes to Dan to subsidize his other subscription-farming services.

Although the primary draw at MP5 is a mutual interest in the arts, the garden has become another avenue for building community. Community dinners featuring our own produce are in the works for summer, and we socialize with one another as we care for the crops.

Thanks for the program!

BT Shaw

503-244-4142

posted 3 years, 1 month ago
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