Growing healthier: Halifax County community garden aims to address county's health needs

Vegetables will be grown, give to Halifax County food banks

HALIFAX COUNTY, Va. – In a couple of months, the 30-by-100-foot pile of leaves at Edmunds Park, in Halifax County, will be transformed into the Healthy Harvest Community Garden.

Faith O'Neil is the secretary of the garden's steering committee.

She came up with the idea last year after hearing a community health needs assessment presentation at Sentara Halifax Regional Hospital, where she works.

"We sort of thought about, 'What if we did a community garden' and helped alleviate those problems from a dietary standpoint?" O'Neil said.

The two biggest problems outlined in the presentation were heart disease and diabetes.

Carol Nelson is the chairwoman of the steering committee.

She said the plan is to initially plant tomatoes, cucumbers and beans.

"We're going to be getting splats of seeds started very soon so that they're ready for planting soon after the frost danger has passed," Nelson explained.

She added that squash and potatoes may also be planted in the future.

In the fall, the plan is to plant spinach, greens and chard.

Nelson is hopeful that around 2,000 pounds of vegetables can be harvested from the garden in the first year.

She says that's what a similar garden in Clarksville, in neighboring Mecklenburg County, produced in its first year.

The vegetables will be given to food banks in the county to offer to customers, but could expand beyond the food banks.

"Clarksville has a very successful backpack program, where things are sent home with schoolchildren and delivered to the elderly directly," Nelson said. 

Steering committee member Deborah Knight says the garden is generating a lot of interest.

"We've had our farmers market propose new programming to go along with it. We've got collaboration with our cooperative extension folks who want to give nutrition classes," Knight said.

Donations are also coming in.

Sentara Halifax Regional Hospital provided the initial funding for the garden.

Fertilizer has also been donated, and leaves collected by the town of South Boston's public works department have been dumped on the garden plot to help insulate the ground ahead of planting.

The leaves will eventually be mixed into the soil as fertilizer.

"This could become a real hub of community food and healthy eating, healthy lifestyle activities, and we're hoping that happens," Knight said.

Volunteers are needed to help plant and harvest and to maintain the garden.

An informational meeting will be held at 6 p.m. on March 20 at the Washington Coleman Community Center.