For the past five years, I've been
creating gardens at my home site in part to serve as a demonstration area for M
R Gardens customers—a place for you to get ideas, learn new techniques and work
with an experienced grower. My hope is that as you participate in the
establishment of the Gardens, you'll feel like a piece of this place is yours.
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| Photo of M R Gardens, by Vickie Burick |
Often times, the best way to learn
about gardening is by doing. The memories of our actions are embedded in our
bodies so that undertaking these tasks later on becomes easy. With my
"Work for Produce, Plants or Education" program, you can gain new
skills, try out something new that you're curious about, or just enjoy the
physical activity in the outdoors.
As we work together, tidbits of
information seep into conversation that you otherwise might not think to ask
me. You can gain from my unique approach to gardening that I've developed
throughout my interesting educational path.
Permaculture heavily influenced me at an early stage in my training, and the
philosophy stuck with me as I researched and experimented with various scales
of sustainable agriculture, learned from diversified farmers, gained a
foundation in horticulture and landscaping from the local community college,
and perfected my own style of no-till gardening
that combines the methods of several of my teachers throughout the country.
This year at M R Gardens, you can
participate in installing and maintaining:
- All types of vegetables, culinary and medicinal herbs, and beneficial flowers;
- Perennial edibles such as asparagus;
- Native/woody edibles such as paw paw and persimmons;
- Groundcovers;
- Native herbaceous perennials;
- Dwarf fruit trees;
- Rain gardens;
- Bamboo fencing for critter control;
- Patio gardens;
- and, with luck, a passive solar greenhouse.
If you tell me what you're most
interested in learning, I'll include you in activities that are best suited for
you. I try to adjust my tasks on the day my clients help out depending if they
like active, physical work like mulching or slower, meditative tasks like
seeding.
In return for your work, you can choose
between seedlings, produce, or a tutorial on something in particular you want
to learn about. If you have specific skills that I'm in need of (such as
repairs, construction, plumbing and mechanics) then I'll increase my end of the
barter. These work exchanges often lead to paid opportunities.
Contact me at megan@mrgardens.net or
828.333.4151 and we'll discuss work times that are good for both of us.
UPDATE OCTOBER 2020: Our farm has expanded quite a bit since this article was posted. Hands-on educational activities are generally reserved for students of our programs. However, if we're not currently offering a group program, we may have opportunities for you. We ask potential volunteers to take our farm tour, which includes a get-to-know-you interview. This opportunity is best suited for those who have gardened for at least five years, or have worked full-time at a small farm for one year, or have spent a lot of time outdoors such as taking extended backpacking trips. Volunteers should be invested in seeing our small farm thrive, understanding our resources are often limited. Thanks!
