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The Garden Project in downtown Abbotsford

Abbotsford Community Services blossoming in urban neighbourhood

Deep in the heart of Abbotsford’s urban centre is a place where plants are coming alive.

The Garden Project is now in its third growing season and the project – sponsored by Abbotsford Community Services (ACS) and Day 1 Urban Farm – continues to produce, teach and connect locals with the magic of gardening.

“We have taken a bare gravel lot and converted it into Abbotsford’s first urban farm,” said garden manager Marina Gibson. “We grow a variety of crops here that are sold at farm gate sales and farmers’ markets and the goods are also used for ACS programs.”

Keeping the garden environmentally friendly is also a goal for the project, and water conservation is high on the list. The project uses an irrigation system to water its crops and also uses ollas – terracotta pots – to keep the soil moist.

“One of the primary goals of the site is to be a teaching garden and we’ve installed agricultural-grade irrigation lines that are designed to reduce use and maximize watering efficiency,” Gibson said. “Everything in the bed is watered at the roots level and there is no overhead watering.”

There are three irrigation lines in each four-foot bed on the site and each line waters approximately six inches on each side.

The garden also uses ollas to water the crops and keep a consistent amount of water coming to the garden.

“It’s an ancient watering technique,” Gibson said. “Ollas are an unglazed terracotta vessel and we fill it from the top and bury it into the ground. It’s unglazed so the water will seep through the walls into the soil. They provide water directly to the soil zone and work really well for plants above ground.”

Gibson said maintaining and caring for the soil makes a huge difference for gardeners and also helps with water efficiency.

“The best thing you can do is maintain the quality of your soil,” she said. “We make our own soil and amend our beds with it about two or three times a year. We noticed a big difference from the beginning season to the second season when we did that.”

She said being water-efficient is a priority because of the limited and diminishing water resources on the planet.

“We’re sponsored by the ACS Green Team, who has a mandate to improve the environment and we like the idea of being water-efficient,” Gibson said.

The garden, which is located at 2408 Montvue Ave., is open for visitors on weekdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Information on how to volunteer at the garden can be obtained by contacting ACS. For more on the garden, visit facebook.com/Day1urbanfarm.

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Ben Lypka

About the Author: Ben Lypka

I joined the Abbotsford News in 2015.
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