Horns O'Plenty: Get Active Orlando Opens Three Community Gardens

Online, November 22, 2010 (Newswire.com) - Volunteers from Get Active Orlando, the organization that acts as the City of Orlando's link to health and fitness initiatives, announce the debut of three new community gardens in the Orlando area. Utilizing grant monies from the Blue Foundation, this year GAO funded five school- and youth-based gardens designed to teach children the importance of healthy eating.

"It's a special feeling to have these gardens up and running at a time of the year associated with bountiful feasts and giving thanks," notes GAO Chair Leah Nash. She says two other gardens - the Fern Creek School and Community Garden and Orlando Day Nursery Garden - are also scheduled to open by the end of the year.

While the labor involved in building the gardens is primarily volunteer driven, GAO donates funds for supplies such as lumber, soil, peat moss, mulch, hay, fertilizer, plants and seeds, hoses and nozzles, signage, watering cans, trowels, and other garden tools. Trina Hofreiter, GAO community garden coordinator, says GAO is also funding the purchase of garden kits so children can create their own gardens at home. "These gardens help keep children active both physically and mentally, and provide them and the rest of the community with fresh fruits and vegetables," she notes.

"Get Active Orlando has been supporting community gardens in the Orlando area for more than three years," adds Nash. "This is the first time we are seeing multiple gardens come to fruition at the same time." GAO's first garden opened in Parramore in 2007.

The three new gardens are:

A community garden at the New Image Youth Center, an after-school program and summer camp outreach for at-risk youth in the Parramore community of Downtown Orlando, was built with the help of 50 children, according to Shanta Barton, director of the center. They have planted tomatoes, spinach, collard greens, and other vegetables.

Reeves Terrace, a HUD-funded housing complex and its after-school program located near State Road 408 in Downtown Orlando, is now home to the Reeves Terrace Recreation Complex Community Garden, consisting of seven plots planted by 20 children. This is a project supported by the Orlando Housing Authority, Commissioner Patty Sheehan, and Orlando Families Parks and Recreation.

Sunrise Elementary School in East Orlando expanded its outdoor classroom by adding two vegetable garden beds to an area that already contains wildlife habitat plants. The gardening is also being used as an afterschool activity for the Sunrise Environmental Club where students work from 2-3 p.m. on Wednesdays.

According to Nash, all gardens are developed with sustainability in mind. Adult sponsors are taught how to maintain the garden, locate resources such as seeds, compost, and mulch and where to pursue additional funding. Training is provided on the appropriate types of vegetables to plant throughout the year, as well as basic gardening skills.

Garden photos are available upon request!

For more information or to become involved with GAO, please visit www.getactiveorlando.com.

Get Active Orlando is a community partnership helping to make positive changes that encourage healthy and active living. Entering its eighth year of operation, Get Active Orlando, which operates as an active-living advisory board to the City of Orlando, is made possible by funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Blue Cross Blue Shield Foundation, and National Institute of Health.