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Showing posts from August, 2026

Produce Giveaway 8/8/26

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 Bearden UMC Community Garden - Produce Giveaway 8/8/26. We had 73 pounds of garden produce that we gave away at our BUMC Produce Giveaway.  Tomateos, okra, and cumcumbers: Green beans and onions: Potatoes: Carrots, turnips, tromboncino and yellow squash:  I also made roasted tromboncino squash and onions that I gave away as samples to help folks understand how it tastes and how to cook. I also gave away the recipe.  We also had greens.  I was very fortunate to have volunteers help with harvesting Thursday and Saturday. They also help weight and record all the produce.  God has been watering an inch mid-day Saturday morning.  This week, our gleaning basket has been filled up almost every day and folks have been collecting it all by the next day. I hope soon to have same more professional and waterproof signs.  I am very thankful for God growing great fresh food that we get to distribute to those in need.  Blessings, Leigh

Gleaning Basket 8/4/26

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 Bearden UMC Community Garden - Gleaning Basket 8/4/26.  Yesterday at the Knox County Master Gardener's meeting, I heard a presentation by Pastor Chris Battle about starting the Battlefield Farms (https://battlefieldfarm.org/), which was to help solve the food desert problem in East Knoxville. He also talked about the start of the Knox County Community Gardens and Grower's Alliance (https://knoxgardenalliance.org/), which our community garden is a member of. When he started the farm, they added gleaning baskets to the fences surround the farm to distribute food, which was based on Leviticus 19:9-10. I loved this idea and today added a basket to our fence with a sign about the gleaning basket and placed our harvest in the basket and fence.  The sign says:  GLEANING BASKET at the edge of our field for YOU from the BUMC Community Garden. YOU MATTER! Leviticus 19:9-10 NIV “When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather ...

Harvest week of 8/1/26

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 Bearden UMC Community Garden - Harvest week of 8/1/26.  This week, we have been harvesting about 10 lbs of produce every other day. We have plenty of cucumbers, green beans, okra, tomatoes, peppers, and tromboncino squash. This week, God has only water a quarter of an inches this week until today. We build a cement block wall by the first bed to divert the flooding to the path.  This week, Lee provided us with the lovely pile of mulched leaves that we will use between layers of food scraps in the compost bins.  The tromboncino squash plant is growing like crazy and producing a good amount squashes. These squashes are in the zucchini family and taste like zucchini when they are young. When they get really big and old, they are like butternut squashes.  Harvest of Cucucmbers, Tromboncino, and Okra.  Harvest of tomatoes, pepper, and green beans.  This week we gave away one of our harvest to a family listed in the careportal. We gave a harvest t...