Coosa Valley RC&D Council and Talladega SWCD/NRCS Assists With Local Community Garden

By Alice Love, Agricultural Liaison/Outreach Officer, NRCS, Auburn, AL

The Coosa Valley Resource Conservation and Development (RC&D) Council assisted the Knoxville Community to install a community garden using micro-irrigation/plasticulture. The project was supervised by RC&D Coordinator Eddie May, and Jeff Colvin, Plasticulture Coordinator.

Knoxville is a close knit community located within the city limits of Talladega. The residents, mostly working class families that include a number of limited income families, take pride in their area.

As with many communities, the area unemployment rate is high due to the closing of many businesses, large and small, over the past three years.

Community organizers decided to do something to get the residents motivated. They developed a planning committee to address the community crisis. Based on a survey, they discovered the idea of a community garden was very popular to the community residents who felt that a garden would enhance opportunities for community bonding and provide youth an opportunity to assist their family while becoming involved with a small business. Residents, including the youth and local businesses, offered their assistance to help make the project successful.

The community garden received funding by agreeing to serve as a demonstration site to help educate the public. The education programs include learning about growing nutritious food to encourage good eating habits, strategies for marketing excess produce, and educating youth and adults on the value of the land.

All those involved in this community effort did a great job. 

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