Morgan Bell has been busy developing a community garden in La Ronge. (Derek Cornet/larongeNOW Staff)

By Derek Cornet

food sustainability

New community garden in La Ronge to enhance food security

May 31, 2023 | 5:05 PM

The Town of La Ronge Parks and Recreation Department is launching a community garden as part of a partnership with Northlands College called the Northern Food Security Project.

“I envision having a community garden with town limits,” said community programmer Morgan Bell.

“Right now, the only community gardens I know of are the ones out at the airport, which is restrictive because you need a vehicle to get out there. The food bank has a garden, but the same thing, it is in Potato Lake, so it’s a little bit restrictive for some people.”

Bell is currently working with local resident and volunteer Jason Cook-Studer to get the plot, which is found behind the Alex Robertson Public Library, ready for planting on Sunday. They are removing the top layer of sod and plan to include some strips, along with a section that resembles a medicine wheel and a few above-ground planters.

There are 15 local residents who have expressed an interest in assisting with the community garden and Bell noted they will be planting root vegetables like potatoes, carrots, beets and parsnips. She added those kinds of produce can last into the winter months after the harvest is finished.

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The produce from the community garden will be shared among those who volunteer.

“The [first phase] of the project was to get an accessible community garden going within town limits and the second part of the project is to get indoor gardens in all of the Northlands College campuses,” Bell said, noting the institution already has them ordered.

“Those indoor gardens are going to be used to provide food security for the students all year round that way they will always have fresh fruits and fresh vegetables to supply their student pantry.”

A seed library is also available for public use at the Alex Robertson Public Library. (Derek Cornet/larongeNOW Staff)

The community garden is being built using the hügelkultur method, which involves using compost materials to try and bring nutrients back into the dirt. It’s also built in the shape of a mound, so more space can be utilized to grow produce.

Bell explained the garden will cost about $1,000 to establish. The dirt and peat moss are coming from material excavated from the new long-term care site and the municipal funds will be used for seeds and gardening supplies.

“It’s a lot of work, but at the same time, they can come here and see how it’s done and then they can go home and it is less intimidating for them to make their own garden,” Bell said about the benefits.

“Or maybe people don’t have garden space. Maybe they live at Sunrise or Quarry and they are apartment living and they don’t have space to garden, so this is something those kind of people can utilize.”

Bell hopes in the fall to implement a third phase of the project in the fall, which would include offering cooking classes, teaching about nutrition and using some of the produce from the garden.

The public is also reminded of the seed library at the Alex Robertson Public Library available for use. More information about the seed library can be found online here.

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derek.cornet@pattisonmedia.com

Twitter: @saskjourno