History of Woodstock Community Garden

The Woodstock Community Garden was formed twenty years ago when the Town of Woodstock adopted a resolution allowing a group of Woodstockers to break ground in the far corner of Andy Lee Field on Rock City Road. Without a fence those first few growing seasons were fraught with the difficulty of attempting to stay one step ahead of the deer, and required hauling water in by hand, but the idea had nonetheless taken root: to form a community garden grounded in organic principles and organized by a membership. The Town of Woodstock provided the 120’ x 75’ site, which has blossomed into its current form and is divided into 31 plots measuring 15’x15’.

 

 

 

In January of 1995, with the enthusiastic support of the Woodstock Recreation Committee, the Town Board adopted a resolution which designated a group of gardening enthusiasts called Gardeners Resources of Woodstock, or GROW, as the managers of the community garden, and which recognized “the need and value in operating the Community Garden as a permanent resource for the residents of Woodstock.”

 

 

 

The intent of this original membership was twofold; to rehabilitate the site and maintain a garden that would be a beautiful and valuable asset to the town, and to provide services to the community in the form of education and donations of produce.

 

 

 

In 1996 the Woodstock Community Garden and the Town of Woodstock were awarded a matching grant from the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation from the Environmental Protection Fund. With volunteer labor, generous community donations of materials, and designated funds from the Town of Woodstock, the members put in the hard work needed to erect a fence, install a water line and build the shed.

 

 

 

In keeping with the second stage of the vision, the Community Garden has for the last six years set aside a plot, tended by members, for the benefit of Family of Woodstock. For the past several years, tomatoes grown in this plot were started and planted by a third grade class of the Woodstock Elementary School as part of a children’s’ program run by one of our members, teaching them both gardening and service to others.

 

 

 

As more and more people become aware of  green living and the value and fulfillment in growing ones own food, the Woodstock Community Garden is part of a movement toward eating healthy, locally grown, organic produce, and creating organic community gardens to fill that need. According to the American Association of Community Gardens, of which we are a member, interest in community gardening is way up in recent years with approximately 5000 community gardens in the US alone. The Association recognizes that community gardening improves people’s quality of life by providing a catalyst for neighborhood and community development, encouraging self-reliance, beautifying neighborhoods, producing nutritious food, reducing family food budgets, conserving resources and creating opportunities for recreation, exercise, and education.

 

 

 

Over the years there have been hundreds of people who have worked on, enjoyed and benefited from the Woodstock Community Garden. Members can be found sharing knowledge and plants, hard at work, or resting in the shade of the overflowing mulberry tree. It is every bit the vibrant and successful community resource that our founders envisioned and we are dedicated to continuing to improve on this beautiful place and worthwhile endeavor.