Program advisor Stephanie Hackett and her son, Trey Hackett, the program director, have worked hard with volunteers to keep the Growing a Future Farm operational.
The 2.5-acre school garden located next to Elmira Elementary School has a lot to offer.
Trey Hackett shared with Falcon News that there is much at the farm, including “apples, pears, cherries, apricots and plums from our 57 fruit trees we planted.”
However, the food doesn’t stop there.
“We also have a large strawberry patch, blueberries, a large patch of raspberries and table grapes,” he said.
“With our annual vegetables, we grow a very wide variety of crops. We grow tomatoes, bok choy, potatoes, pumpkins, lettuce, kale, broccoli, onions, eggplant, cucumbers, squash, tomatillos, hot peppers, carrots and a few other varieties.”
The Hacketts love to give produce to the students who help with the gardens. They also give some to the teachers and staff of the Fern Ridge School District schools.
The farm sells the produce to the community as well.
“From the beginning of June to the beginning of October, they [the volunteers of the farm] sell produce to the community members through CSA [Community Supported Agriculture] boxes,” Trey Hackett said. “We sell weeks worth of produce in a box each month.”
The group also sells excess produce when the Veneta Farmers Market is open on Saturdays during the summer and fall.
Growing a Future gets money to keep the farm running from multiple grants each year.
Throughout the month of November, student volunteers prepared the farm for winter.
Now, the farm is at that step where it is shutting down for the cold season.
Further information can be found on the Growing a Future website, and questions can be directed towards growingafuture@gmail.com.
