Consider planting an extra row for the hungry in your garden this spring

If you’re going to plant fruits, vegetables or herbs this spring, why not grow some extra for your local soup kitchen or pantry?

By JESSICA DAMIANO, March 18, 2025

"If you’re gearing up to plant fruits, vegetables or herbs this spring, why not grow some extra to donate to your local #SoupKitchen or #FoodPantry?

"The national #PlantARowForTheHungry campaign, launched in 1995, has been encouraging home and community gardeners to do just that every year to help feed neighbors in need of fresh food.

"The program was spearheaded in 1995 by Anchorage Daily News garden columnist Jeff Lowenfels, who wrote a column encouraging his readers to plant extra crops and donate their harvests.

"After seeing the impact that his column had on local food donations, Lowenfels partnered with GardenComm International, then known as Garden Writers of America, to enlist garden columnists all over the country to promote the cause in their own communities. Since then, more than 20 million pounds of produce, providing more than 80 million meals, have been donated through the campaign by home gardeners.

"'All of this has been achieved without government subsidy or bureaucratic red tape — just people helping people,' according to organizers on the campaign’s website. And there’s no big advertising campaign, either — just garden columnists and their readers spreading the word."

Read more:
https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2025/03/18/gardening-for-the-hungry/
#BuildingCommunity #FoodInsecurity #FoodSecurity #SolarPunkSunday #CommunityGardens