The coronavirus pandemic and resulting lockdown is causing an economic crisis the likes of which most of us have not seen in our lifetimes. Vermonters impacted by this crisis will need more food, for many months to come. Can you join us in a new project, Vermont Victory Gardens, to help our communities grow food for those who need it?

Vermont Victory Gardens (VVG) is a project of the UVM Extension Master Gardeners to help our state’s communities grow more of their own food. Matching volunteers with new community gardening efforts in their area, our goal is to provide the experienced guidance and season-long training needed to make sure these efforts succeed, and that first time gardeners become lifelong gardeners.

To maximize the impact, we are looking to help create the following two types of food-producing gardens:

* Neighborhood Network Gardens – This is when four (or more) families in a neighborhood agree to establish gardens on their property that will be planted and maintained cooperatively, with harvests being shared among the participating families.

* Community Food Shed Gardens – These are larger gardens planted on the land of local public or non-profit institutions (houses of worship, libraries, fire stations, etc.), to be maintained by community members with guidance from a Master Gardener, with harvests to be distributed among community members and local food banks.

If you are interested, email Gordon Clark and Andy Simon at vermontvictorygardens@gmail.com. We ask that you please respond as soon as possible to let us know if you’d like to be part of this effort – the rhythms of the seasons in Vermont dictate that we start our new gardens soon!