Hello! My name is Carla Geglio and I am so excited to be the newest Unity Gardens intern! I am currently a senior at Purdue University studying History and Art History. I am from South Bend originally and I am happy to be back for my last college summer. I first heard about Unity Gardens from my mom, Helen Geglio. She is a volunteer for Unity Gardens and started a garden at Zion Church. I went with my mom to the Unity Gardens Luau last July and I knew immediately that I wanted to get involved with the gardens. The Luau was really fun and I was exposed to all of the different components of Unity Gardens- everything from Peace Bees to the free classes offered to the community. I love that the gardens make healthy food and a healthy lifestyle attainable and accessible for members of the community.  I have been vegan for six years and consume a plant-based diet. Because of my restricted diet, I have had to learn a lot about nutrition and maintaining a healthy diet. I am excited to put my love for food, nutrition, and my hometown into my work at the gardens!

Thank you,

Carla Geglio

April 6th was Communiversity Day. What is Communiversity Day ? Its one day a year where Notre Dame students sign up with different charities to do community service. Its our 3rd year having students come to the LaSalle Square garden, and we love it. Its at the time of year that we are looking at this big old garden that has been dormant all winter, and is in need of some TLC. In one day the students kick start the garden, mulching paths, cleaning up, and painting. This year we had around 50 students. It was amazing !! 

It was a pretty crazy idea to put a 1st time large fundraiser, and our big Growing Summit event all in one 4 day weekend, but we did. Our Chocolate fundraiser with Indulgence Pastry Shop and Cafe on Thursday followed by a 3 day Growing Summit at IUSB and Potawatomi Conservatories. 
We cannot thank those involved with making this weekend happen enough. The team at Indulgence, The Doubletree, CityWide, and Junk Evolution made our Chocolate Fundraiser an awesome evening. I have to admit that a 3 course meal of desserts seemed a little crazy, but everyone who attended loved it . Sean and Dave did a great job of pairing the Chocolate with the Beer and Wine. We hosted about 125 people. click here to see pictures of the event . 
      So after the big event with little sleep it was time to get ready for The Growing Summit. Friday's Keynote by Krista and Joel was Awesome. Next up was Saturday morning at IUSB . We had about 15 vendors and held 20 classes of all sorts of things. All the classes were well attended. Lots of new faces and some from last years event. One person came up to me and said she tried growing potatoes in a container like she learned in my class the year before and it worked great. Always good to here. On Sunday we moved into unknown territory. We tried having hands on classes for kids at the Potawatomi Conservatories. It was awesome 4 classes, Chickens, Plants, Container Gardening, and Bees, The whole place was alive with Kids. So that topped off an awesome weekend of learning, and building community. 

Many of the Unity Gardens’
staff, leaders, volunteers, and Master Gardeners spent the weekend at the KAMII Social Justice Conference in Chicago.What a great way to reflect on our mission and count our blessings through the eyes of others! From planning a garden for a homeless shelter to use to help their neighborhood have access to healthy food,to listening to the many classes on urban farming, the entire conference was one delight after another.It was both
educational and reinforcing.We learned so much from others, but also saw how much we had to offer!
Academic discussions on what it meant to give and to receive, discussions on empowerment, social inequity, and dignity all helped reinforce the Unity Gardens model.By day 2, when I was scheduled to speak about our framework and journey, I was eager to share!Seeing Unity Gardens through the eyes of others helped me appreciate how far our community has come
and what wonderful opportunities for “growth” we still have.
  The Unity Gardens story enthralled those who heard the story.I could visibly see hope grow in the eyes of those listening.
In a full room, the questions started flying:How
do we make sure there is enough food, what about funding, and more.Each
group of questions led to more discussion as people there, just like in our
community struggled with the concepts of free food and social inequity.People who did not believe they could have an urban garden without fences took pause and inquired further.Social
justice leaders from across the country asked if we had grown throughout the
United States, and others asked for our information so they could learn
more.
  One of the most common threads of inquiry, second to the overall framework was about funding.How did Unity Gardens survive fiscally?This line of questioning is why I am
sharing.
  Unity Gardens survives because this community, our community, believes we are sprouting something special.We are growing a new way of living together and caring for one another.
While pursuing a grant, I was asked, “How does Unity Gardens hope to move
beyond grant dependence?”I replied that I could only wish to write so well as to be mostly grant supported!Unity Gardens major source of revenue and in kind donations come from hundreds and
thousands of people giving what they can.
  Every donation to Unity Gardens; $25.00, the purchase of a T-shirt, or the donation of a garden tool,
weeding, even attending a fund raiser, EVERY donation, is what keeps us growing.
I am so grateful for those who come and help us garden, the volunteers who help
teach our classes, the interns who take on projects or even the other
non-profits who share their expertise.Every single person in our community makes the
difference! Through the eyes of Chicago
I was able to see what a truly remarkable project we have grown. Our community
may have more community gardens than any other in the nation.We
do this by growing each other. Please reflect on what you value and take the
time to offer part of yourself to make our world better.
I would be honored if you choose to give back through Unity
Gardens.
 
Donations
may be    mailed to
PO Box 10022
South
Bend, IN    46680
 

This is  week 2 of Unity  Gardens classes its our 3rd year of Free Gardening classes. We started 3 years ago with just 9 classes. This year we will teach all sorts of subjects. We teach what we can, and what we don't know we bring in experts. We start off with a series of classes, and then wrap up the winter series with our growing summit. in March. What can you expect ? Fun classes packed with information, plus lots of discussion with other gardeners. Oh and we put on the coffee so you can enjoy a cup of joe while learning how to garden. Come to one class or come to all "its free"
 You can look up at our full list on this site. We will also do our best to highlight other classes in the area.

So whats coming this week. 
" Garden Planning "    Thursday Jan  17th   6pm at the Potawatomi Conservatories
                                                                 2105 Mishwaka Ave
" Garden Planning "  Saturday Jan 19th 10am at the Unity Gardens Office
                                                                   702 Chapin Street

" Jr Master Gardeners"  Saturday Jan 19th Noon at the Unity Gardens office 
                                                                                         702 Chapin Street
Jr Master Gardeners is a series of classes geared toward kids 3rd to 6th grade , but all ages are welcome. We have some fun activities with some learning thrown in. We talk about Plants, Bees, vegetables, and more.

"Beekeeping " Saturday Jan 19th Noon  at the Unity Gardens office
                                                                                        702 Chapin Street
Are you thinking about keeping Chickens ? The City of South Bend is about to vote on a bill that would allow chickens in the city. This class is a basic class on Urban Chickens. Learn how easy it is to have your own Chickens.

Join us its fun !!

2012 was the first year we teamed up with Peace Bees to help increase the bee population, educate people on Bees. Now you may or may not know about the importance of Bees, but its huge. 30% of our crops are pollinated by bees. So without them think how hard it would be to buy an Apple for example. In some countries they hand pollinate crops which is labor intensive, and produces a poor crop. Honey  Bees are gentle creatures that work together to sustain themselves. And in the process they help our flowers and crops grow. When managed properly they also provide us with a great food source. But there is more to Bees then just honey other by products include. Beeswax which can Bee used for candle making, a lubricant and more. So why are we so interested in urban Bees. Well they thrive in the Urban Enviroment. They produce more honey, and have a better survival rate then their rural counterparts. We are not sure why. It could be the abundance of flowers we plant or the lack of pesticides. Whatever the reason the facts are the facts. So our mission with Peace Bees is to grow Beekeepers and build overall awareness. Ok so now that I have lured you in with my title lets get to my title. So this year was my first foray into Beekeeping, and I remember the first day I meet Steve out at the Garden to check on the Bees. I put on the Bee suit and went in following the rules Steve opened the hive and I was able to hold a frame full of Bees. It was great ...best pets ever !! I soon found out is was not just me. Everyone who came to the garden and put the suit on and visited the Bees. Thats why I decided that the Bee suit holds special powers.  In 2013 we will Bee hosting a complete Beekeeping program see our classes tab for more informat
    

Thanks to a $ 15,000 Grant from the Community Foundation of St Joe Co. we should be able to contuniue with our Greenhouse Project. Of course we need to match those funds before we can use them. So If you are looking to donate nows the time ! If you are a Indiana resident or business and donate over $ 100 you may qualify for Indiana NAP credits.  Call, Text or e-mail  Sara for more information 574-315-4361 or [email protected] . The Greenhouse project is designed to help Unity Gardens grow a more sustainable local food system. The goals are to create a training center for those wanting to learn more about creating a self sustaining food source. It will act as a location to test ideas for growing smarter all year long. Some projects we will be working on include Aquaponics, Vermiculture, growing mushrooms, Indoor composting, solar power,and four season growing. As always it will also be a community meeting place and seed center for growing new ideas. We are just scratching the sur

The planting will begin this Saturday on Unity Gardens Native Planting Area at LaSalle Square. The project was started this spring but was scratched because of the hot dry weather. The plan developed by our intern Myles Robertson is partly research an partly developing a more sustainable garden by encouraging pollinators. The large 300' x 100' plot is divided into 50' x 50' plots. The plots will be planted in 4 different ways to see how the native plants grow in each of the 3 planting styles. The plots can be used by IUSB for research , and will also be used by Unity Gardens for education purposes.
 All the seeds and supplies were donated, and the work will be done by volunteers.Supporters and donors for this project include The City of South Bend, Indiana University South Bend, Cardno/JFNew, and Jay Duley
Come watch us grow !!