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Wednesday, July 20, 2005 - Page updated at 12:00 AM Hungry bank on help from home gardeners Seattle Times staff reporter
Cristina Mone often starts old seeds and, knowing the vagaries of weather and bugs, hedges her bets by planting extra seedlings. "But plants are pretty resilient and sometimes they all grow," said the Beacon Hill gardener, who plants in her back yard as well as a P-Patch lot. She and her husband can't eat that much lettuce, kale and squash, so she donates extras to nearby El Centro de la Raza, which operates both a daily meal program and weekly food bank. Many P-Patches set up "giving gardens" or encourage growing an extra row to donate. With most local food banks welcoming fresh produce, backyard gardeners can also share that bounty of peas, tomatoes and, yes, zucchini. How to help Lettuce Link: This program of the Fremont Public Association helps link gardeners with Seattle-area food banks. For more information and a list of Seattle food banks, donation hours and types of produce they welcome, visit www.fremontpublic.org/client/food# Hopelink: Gardeners can bring fresh produce or fruit to food banks in Bothell, Kirkland, Redmond, Bellevue or Carnation from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. For more information, call 425-869-6000 or visit www.hope-link.org. P-Patches: Many P-Patches set aside "giving gardens" and welcome volunteer help. The Interbay P-Patch, for example, dedicates 3,000 square feet for a food-bank garden tended by volunteers, according to coordinator Deb Rock. It hosts work parties from 5:30 p.m. to dusk Tuesdays. For others, call Lettuce Link at 206-694-6754. Other residents can call local cities to find community gardens in their area. Community Fruit Tree Harvest: Volunteers are needed to pick unsprayed apple, pear and plum trees in the Wallingford neighborhood on Wednesday evenings and Saturday mornings from Aug. 17 to Nov. 9. (Volunteers can come from anywhere, but picking is limited to Wallingford.) The fruit will go to food banks and meal programs. Organizers Lettuce Link and Seattle Tilth hope the new effort will spread to other neighborhoods. Call Lettuce Link at 206-694-6754 for more information. "Food banks are really lacking quality fresh produce," said Lee Harper, program manager of Lettuce Link, a Fremont Public Association program that handles donations. "What they do get is usually the bottom of the barrel from grocery stores or distributors. They rarely get fresh, beautiful, organic food." Last year, Seattle P-Patch and backyard gardeners donated 10 tons of fresh produce to emergency food programs, according to Lettuce Link. "It's a nice change from having to rely on canned fruits and vegetables," said Joe Gruber, executive director of the University District Food Bank, which last year accepted some 2,000 pounds of produce from P-Patch and home gardeners. "People get so excited to see fresh produce on the tables to take home to their families," said Rita Anderson, executive director of North Helpline, which runs the Lake City Food Bank. "It goes immediately." "In order to live a healthy lifestyle, it's important we offer the low-income and homeless people who visit our food banks fresh fruits and vegetables as well as nonperishable food," said Katie Amodei, public relations specialist for Hopelink, which operates five Eastside food banks. The University District Food Bank, which serves about 2,000 people a week, works with P-Patches so they grow cabbage and root vegetables that appeal to the bank's Eastern European clients. Other banks especially welcome greens used in Asian cooking, such as bok choy. Tips for garden donations Call ahead. Find out when the bank accepts donations (often not the same hours it's open to clients; many don't take donations on Saturdays, and none does on Sundays). Some are only open certain days, so it's important to bring perishable items at the right time for quick distribution. Package food. Most food banks are staffed by volunteers and serve hundreds to thousands of people a week. Make it easy by giving food that's ready to go. Bag food in family-size portions (or ask staff for the best method). Tie herb sprigs in small bunches. "If someone brings in a shrub of rosemary, food banks don't know what to do with it," said Lettuce Link Program Manager Lee Harper. Think beyond food banks. Some church programs, shelters and free-meal programs accept donations of fresh produce. Identify less-common varieties and explain how to cook them. Not everyone can tell mustard greens from kale, or know how to prepare garlic curls. "Assume people don't know much about vegetables, if it's not carrots or beets or something completely obvious," Harper said. Keep your homemade jams and canned items. Programs cannot accept them because of food-safety concerns. It won't take much time. The University District Food Bank, for example, has a drive-up donation window so people don't even have to get out of the car. Since the bank weighs all its donations, some donors compete against themselves season to season. Make it a family service project. Growing extra food in a home garden is "a nice way for kids to be able to give back to the community," noted donor Cristina Mone. Keep growing. July is a great time to plant for fall and winter harvest, Mone said. "That's when fresh food is especially needed." — Stephanie Dunnewind But, Gruber said, "we can always find a home for any donation." Gardeners who bring less familiar offerings should make sure staff knows what it is, Harper said. Food banks will pair the produce with recipes, or provide cooking tips. When Mone recently donated lacinato kale (aka dinosaur kale), she explained that it can be used like cabbage — sautéed, stewed or put into soups. Deb Rock, coordinator of the Interbay Food Bank Gardening Program, called a bank last week to make sure it wanted fava beans (it did). Small backyard gardeners shouldn't worry if they can only donate a few items. Mone carried over a handful of cilantro to El Centro's meal program and watched the chef turn it into cilantro vinaigrette for salad. "The amount itself is not important," Gruber said. "We've had people drop off half a pound of kale because they just had too much and didn't want it to go to waste. It's amazing how much a little bit makes a difference to what we do." Stephanie Dunnewind: sdunnewind@seattletimes.com Copyright © 2005 The Seattle Times Company
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