Ellen Sullivan
The Robson Ranch Garden Club enjoyed the beautiful weather as they carpooled to Shiloh Field Community Garden in Denton on Oct. 20.
Shiloh Field is the largest community garden in the United States, covering 14 acres. They have provided over 340,000 pounds of fresh produce in the last 13 years. This year alone they have provided 60,000 pounds of produce to area food pantries and shelter kitchens. Shiloh Field is completely volunteer run.
Gene Gumfory was the visionary who started Shiloh Field in 2011. His belief was that “No one should have to go hungry or have to eat food that causes long-term problems.” In the past 13 years, the garden has grown to include more than 100 chickens and several beehives. The eggs and honey produced, along with all the vegetables grown, are distributed to area food banks and soup kitchens.
One of the regular volunteers at the garden, Christina, took the group on a tour of part of the property. The vegetables growing now include squash, as well as other fall crops. The group also learned that all the crops are from seed produced by the garden. Shiloh Field has a large hothouse for starting plants through the winter months.
In another area, one of the beekeepers demonstrated dealing with the bees at their hive as he removed a honeycomb. This local honey is also provided to area food banks and soup kitchens. Shiloh Field also has several fruit trees, a mulberry patch, and a composting area.
Shiloh produce is delivered by volunteers to food banks and kitchens in the local Denton area. For further information or to learn about volunteering possibilities, go to their website at www.shilohfield.com.
The Robson Ranch Garden Club plans to ask for donations of egg cartons and berry/produce baskets to be collected for Shiloh to further defray their expenses. Bring these items to the meeting each month for collection.
About 40 members of the Robson Ranch Garden Club then carpooled to GreenHouse Restaurant in Denton.
Please plan to attend the next meeting on Nov. 17 at 10:30 a.m. in the clubhouse. Our meetings are on the third Monday of each month. Dues are $10 per household, and these dues come back to the members in the form of activities and defrayed expenses throughout the year.