The garden’s acres were once part of the Multnomah County Poor Farm, most of which is now McMenamin’s Edgefield. On the county-owned C.R.O.P.S. farm, volunteers cultivate and harvest vegetables for donation to Oregon Food Bank. Many volunteers come from schools and businesses or through a Department of Community Justice program. But anyone can volunteer – it’s a great way to build your gardening chops.
“Gardening changes your outlook,” Hunter says. “You can take pride in what you’re doing today. It’s nothing but good out here.”
Hunter is not a professional farmer or trained horticulturist. Like most folks growing in a yard or on a windowsill, he has learned by doing. His advice for a new vegetable gardener:
- Get to know your soil. Inexpensive test kits are not reliable, but you can send a sample to a professional lab. Or bring a sample to a free pH test day hosted by Clackamas County Master Gardeners. The next one is in October. You want a neutral pH between 6.2 and 7.2, the range where most plants best absorb nutrients. In lieu of a soil test, apply 5 to 10 pounds of agricultural lime per 100 square feet to raise the soil pH. If the soil is clayey, add amendments like compost, sand or pumice. Visit OSU Extension for more remedies to raise or lower your soil’s pH.
- Keep weeds down without herbicides by covering pathways between rows. Hunter uses free burlap coffee bags from Boyd Coffee, but newspaper or cardboard also work well. Weigh pieces down with wood chips.
- Start with easy-to-grow crops like kale or Swiss chard. Cabbage is great for its quick results. “You can grow a cabbage in 55 days,” Hunter says. What do you do with that bowling-ball sized chunk of produce? He says, “Steam it, eat it raw in fish tacos, or sauté with onion in a little butter. Wash the cabbage, leave the water on the leaves, then toss them in the pan. Add a little garlic or seasonings.”
- June’s not too late to begin. For sweet peppers, Hunter says, “Just start with starts” — transplants in four or six-inch pots. You’ll be harvesting up until October rains.
- Don’t leave behind good food. Hunter says not many people know broccoli leaves are tasty. Just sauté or steam them as you would with any leafy green.
Hunter calls growing vegetables “crop fitness” or “ag-therapy.” And part of that therapy is the fun of gardening. He grows a plot for every local sports team. Here are ideas for veggie gardens that wave your team flag high, whether in a pot or a plot:
Trail Blazers black, red, white and silver
For black, grow eggplants, blackcap raspberries, blackberries or black varieties of sweet peppers or heirloom corn. For red, grow sweet peppers, tomatoes, strawberries or hot peppers. For white, cauliflower or white pumpkins. For silver, garden art is a good option or you could spray-paint a tomato trellis.
Timbers ponderosa and moss green
The team’s crest uses two greens: deep green and the yellow-green of wolf moss (actually a lichen). For the deep green, grow spinach, kale, arugula, collard greens or parsley. For the yellow-green, try butter lettuce, cabbage, cucumbers, chayote squash or Chinese cabbage.
Oregon Ducks green, yellow, black and white
Use the same dark green options as for the Timbers. For yellow, grow corn, yellow varieties of sweet peppers or cherry tomatoes, or summer squashes like pattypan and crookneck. Use the same black and white vegetables and berries as for the Blazers.
Oregon State Beavers orange and black
Grow pumpkins or other winter squashes such as Cinderella or Ambercup, or orange sweet peppers. Grow the same black vegetables and fruits as for the Blazers.
Learn more about growing vegetables