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This is SPROUT''s newsletter; we send out bimonthly updates on what is going on with our community programs, classes, and at the garden.
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At the ReFresh Garden, we have harvested all of our spring and early summer crops, and planted out the beds with cover crops. The term "cover crop" refers to any crop that is grown with the intent of preserving and enriching the quality of the soil, rather than to be consumed by humans. These crops are grown throughout the summer, and eventually turned back into the soil. At SPROUT, we like to promote cover cropping during the summer season. Because the summers can be so harsh in Louisiana, it's a difficult time to grow most crops. This makes it a perfect time to prioritize soil health. Cover crops' benefits include shading out weeds, eliminating pests, improving moisture retention, reducing soil erosion, and adding nutrients to the soil. By doing all of these things naturally, we can reduce or eliminate the use of fertilizer, pesticides, and herbicides. It also makes for less time spent weeding in the hot sun!
Last year, we planted iron and clay peas and Sunn hemp in the garden. We found that the Sunn Hemp took a long time to break down in the soil, so we have decided to replace it with buckwheat this year. Buckwheat is a short-season cover crop, meaning it can be grown and turned back into the soil in a shorter amount of time. It also attracts pollinators to the garden, which helps plants produce more vegetables!
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Planting this month:
Cover crops (buckwheat, field peas). Click here for a seasonal New Orleans growing guide
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The Truck-Farm Table has been selling lots of local foods at the Crescent City Drive-In Market on Sundays! We have been aggregating food from Peeps Farms, Momma D's, Faubourg Farms, Compostella, Johndale's Farms, River Queen Greens, Point Coupee Farmers' Cooperative, and more. This aggregation allows smaller producers to have their goods sold at market without spending the day tending to their stand. We are proud to run a program that allows for smaller businesses to get their footing and begin selling at market without giving up a full day of labor. During the pandemic, this service has become even more fruitful as the market is now entirely prepaid, meaning that producers are paid for every product that they bring to market. We have been averaging over $2,000 per market!
You can place an order at this market here.
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SPROUT NOLA recently released a statement written with staff, community gardeners, board members, and stakeholders, on our belief in the importance of Black Liberation. You can read it here. SPROUT also joined farmers from all around New Orleans to support protestors marching on June 6th. We are grateful to be part of so many farmer networks that come together to march against injustice.
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In the wake of COVID, SPROUT began offering free seedlings and seeds to home gardeners in the Greater New Orleans Area. We began by exclusively offering delivery, and later switched to a model where gardeners could choose between delivery and pickup. The program ran from March through the end of June, and we provided seedlings to over 600 households during this time. It was incredibly inspiring to see New Orleans communities come together in the face of a pandemic to grow food for one another. Countless volunteers helped start seedlings for SPROUT, made deliveries, and provided virtual gardening assistance to new growers. A huge thanks to everyone who made this possible, and who is growing food and creating resilient local foods systems.
As we suspend the program for the summer, we are working on new ways to bring seedlings to New Orleans communities. In the meantime, we will have our seed library hours every Wednesday from 4-6 PM. These will be held at the ReFresh Garden at the corner of Bienville and Dorgenois.
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