Greetings from the A Rocha Garden. It is now week five of our seasonal Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program at the Field Study Centre in Surrey, BC, and the garden is a cornucopia of beautiful vegetables. This week the harvest boxes include lettuce, beets, arugula, cauliflower, basil, parsley, spinach, purslane, kohlrabi and zucchini. We’ve added new shares this season with 20% of our total harvest going to low-income families either directly or through local food banks. The CSA participants are enthusiastic about their veggies! 

But our CSA is more than just a supply of organic veggies. This summer it has also been a place of training, education and therapy. Within the group of dedicated volunteers and interns who help with the planting, weeding and harvesting are those who will translate what they’ve learned into future gardening endeavors. One volunteer is intent on using the hands-on training he is receiving to start his own CSA project when he returns to his home in Virginia. On the education front, both inner-city kids and those from our local community have traipsed through the garden and learned about food and nutrition first hand. And, finally, we’ve continued our partnership with the Early Psychosis Intervention Program which brings out a group of young adults every week. These young people are in the early stages of recovery from their first psychotic episodes; for them, our garden is a place a therapy where they can find meaning and balance through the meaningful work of gardening. 

For all those who come, the garden offers a place to work in soil, wonder at God’s creativity, connect with a caring community, and regain a sense of peace in a fragmented world. Such “fruit” may seem less tangible then a vine-ripened tomato, but it is very much part of what we hope to cultivate in the A Rocha garden. 

P.S….Gardening tip of the month: 

This is a great time to plant vegetables for fall.  Quick growing, cold-tolerant crops like lettuce, spinach, boc choi or peas can be planted well into August for harvest in September or even October (depending where you are in Canada).  

Paul Neufeld
Farm and Nursery Manager
A Rocha Field Study Centre in Surrey, BC