Lake Placid plans community garden
By GEORGE EARL, Enterprise Staff WriterArticle Photos
LAKE PLACID - Imagine a field where anyone can grow their own vegetables, a cooperative gathering place buzzing with gardeners, both young and old, planting, cultivating and harvesting affordable local produce - this is the vision for a community garden being planned for this spring in Lake Placid.
Community members from Lake Placid, Saranac and Saranac Lake held their first meeting Monday at the Shipman Youth Center and began to plot out the details for the garden. Two organizations have teamed up to provide the resources to make it possible. The Center for Connecting Youths and Communities has provided $4,500 to fund the effort, and the Uihlein Forest, part of Cornell University's Cooperative Extension, is likely to provide the land. The garden is intended to be open to the public.
Mike Farrell, director of the Uihlein Forest in Lake Placid and project lead for the community garden, said a seven-acre grassy field on Old Military Road owned by Cornell is ready to be divided up into about 20 16-square-foot plots. He also has a greenhouse, topsoil, logs to divide plots and other resources that might be used to get things started. CYC Director Monica Clark said funding will help pay for other materials, like a deer fence to surround the perimeter of the garden.
"We've been fortunate with the funding," Farrell said. "Now it's a matter of putting it all together."
Several community members expressed interest in the project. Martin and Mary Shubert of Lake Placid said their home is located in a shady, wooded area and that a community garden would be a good solution for people who do not have the land or sun to grow their own garden.
Teresa Santana said she would like to cultivate a garden with her daughter to help them to learn to be self-sufficient.
Shipman Youth Director Jon Fermante said there are many possibilities for children to get involved, like composing food for the garden.
The next community garden meeting will be held again at the Shipman Youth Center at 7 p.m on Dec. 9. Anyone interested in getting involved is invited to attend. For more information, contact Mike Farrell at 523-9337.
Contact George Earl at 891-2600 ext. 25 or gearl@adirondackdailyenterprise.com.
