Longer days are upon us, which means that volunteers at Ruff’ton Roots are planting seeds for a bountiful harvest! This year is bringing new growth and more opportunities to serve and feed the community. We have expanded our footprint by adding additional garden plots and community gathering space, diversifying our nutritional offerings, and providing opportunities for community partnerships.
About the garden
Ruff’ton Roots’ mission is to grow healthy food, healthy people, and healthy communities in Rutherfordton & beyond. 100% of the harvests from the garden are donated to food pantries throughout Rutherford County. This volunteer-led organization employs organic practices in the garden to ensure that the food grown is natural, healthy, and reinforces environmental stewardship. During the first growing season, Ruff’ton Roots donated 825.4 pounds of food or 1,306 household servings of organic food throughout the county.
They strive to ensure and empower our community by providing access to fresh, nutrient-dense food and education by partnering with food pantries and other organizations throughout the county. Non-perishable food items are easier for Food Pantries to store, but shelf-stable food often lacks nutritional diversity. Ruff’ton Roots works directly with food pantries to pre-chill produce to ensure long-term viability, store fresh produce until distribution days, and packages the produce in household serving sizes.
New Growth
With a new potato plot and experiential garden space, Ruff’ton Roots now has a total of three garden plots! Our original plot (plot #1) is dedicated to food production and gardening experience. A wide variety of foods are grown in this area, like leafy greens, root vegetables, and more. Plots #2 and #3 are our new plots- nearly tripling our footprint.
Plot #2 will be a new experimental garden space that allows our community to gather at the garden to experience gardening in a new way. Our goal for this plot is to grow plants that are not typically found in our area and a walking path to guide you through education and meditation. We hope that community partners will take advantage of our educational space that overlooks plot #2!
Plot #3 will be dedicated to staple crop production. Crops like potatoes and sweet potatoes make a large impact on our food pantries due to the versatility and longevity of the vegetable.
How to Volunteer
We are always looking for volunteers to join us at the garden. Whether you’re looking to learn more about food production or just looking for a way to serve your community, you have a place at Ruff’ton Roots! Check us out on Facebook, join our Facebook Group or email list, or follow our events calendar.