Note: This site is for reviewing legacy plan of work data from 2007-2011. If you are looking for the current plan of work interface, visit pow.nmsu.edu.

Impact Report

For plan Plant Management Systems: Urban Horticulture (Sandoval County)
Date October 7, 2010, 9:38 pm
For Objective Medium-term Show medium-term objectives
Impact Report 10/07/2010 Seed2Need Project Studies conducted by “Feeding America” based on data by the USDA found New Mexico to be one of the “hungriest states” in the nation with 1 in 4 children under the age of 5 at risk of going hungry every day. In 2005, 238,000 people received emergency food from New Mexico food pantries, shelters and soup kitchens. With the downturn in the economy and the increase in unemployment, more families are seeking help from local food pantries. In 2009 St. Felix Pantry was providing food to 700 families per week. 2010 shows an even greater number of families needing assistance. The Corrales Food Pantry Project, adopted as a project by Sandoval county Master Gardeners involves planting one or more vegetable gardens in the Village of Corrales. We are partnering with several property owners who have offered free use of land, water and electricity. Master Gardener’s Roles are to provide seed/transplants and volunteers to clear land, plant, weed and harvest produce. In addition, they also coordinate with food pantries and deliver fresh produce to them. In 2009 one garden produced 1,600 pounds of tomatoes. That was enough to provide St. Felix pantry a daily supply for two months. Because of the publicity and encouragement it was decided to increase garden numbers and varieties of vegetables. In 2010, some of the vegetables grown included tomatoes, green beans, cucumbers, squash, eggplant, bell peppers, carrots, Chile, onions, melons, swiss chard and bok choy. This year as of September 24th, the gardens have produced over 35,000 pounds of produce. The food pantries served were St. Felix, Rio Rancho, Storehouse West, Rio Rancho, Rio Grande Food Project in Albuquerque and St. Anthony’s Kitchen in Bernalillo, NM. NOTE: The total value of produce is estimated at $45,000. This endeavor was made possible by property owners Victor and Nora Scherzinger and Dr. Robert Lynn and Janet Braaziel. Financial and fiscal sponsors included Sandoval County Master Gardeners, NMSU, Public Service Co., of NM, Rio Grande Food Project, ARCA/La Paloma Greenhouses, Jiffy Lube, Justice Systems, Dura-Bilt, Dr. Stephen Christensen (DDS) and Seidman Family Foundation. The gardens were harvested by NMSU Sandoval County Extension staff, Master Gardeners, 4-H club members and local school children. In addition, the garden served as a demonstration on vegetable gardening and several insect and diseases were identified and taken care of. Following are some comments made by individuals about the Seed2Need project. “This program is amazing. Not only does it provide fresh produce, one of the hardest items for a Food Bank to acquire and distribute, but it raises awareness of the need that we have within our own communities. It also exposes people to the act of gardening, which has become a ‘lost art’ to many people. The produce that we are able to provide through the food bank isn’t comparable to that which can be picked fresh and distributed the next day. I would love to see projects like Seed2Need implemented in more New Mexico communities. It really could encourage a system of neighbors helping neighbors.” Teresa Johansen, Seed2Need volunteer and purchasing mgr., Roadrunner Food Bank. “Seed2Need has been a God-send to St. Felix Pantry in Rio Rancho. The fresh produce brought to us has literally saved many needy families from serious hunger crisis this summer.” Sister Claire Kehl, St. Felix Pantry “The garden is magical. Not only does it provide food for many people, it also nurtures the many people who work in it. It grew so much that is spread its wealthy spirit beyond the Master Gardeners to many others, ranging from boy scouts to grandchildren.” Lydia Allen, Sandoval County CES Master Gardener Volunteer