Summit Community Gardens, a 1.5-acre garden located in the Snyderville basin, is home to 132 community garden plots, demonstration plots, a beehive, greenhouse, compost center and a kids’ garden.
With spring here and summer just around the corner, the garden is preparing for its grand opening May 21st, 1pm to 4pm and May 22nd , 12pm to 4pm. The community is invited to come for a weekend of activities for kids, classes for adults and a seedling sale.
Sloane Johnson, executive director of the garden, says this year will bring new features including shade structures and tool sheds.
“But our project we're working on this spring is upgrading the children's garden. So we'll be creating a playscape for the kids. So they'll have a place to play a grow area for the kids where they can come and water and plant and play, and then an outdoor classroom. And so that will all be in that corner where the Children's Garden is, and it's, it's kind of barren space. Now I'm going to make it look a lot nicer.”
Johnson said even though all 132 plots are spoken for; it pays to get on the waitlist which currently has 60 people on it.
Along with summer camps and after-school programs, the garden offers classes for adults.
“Yeah, so we have our seed starting class that's on April 9. And with that USU is coming and we're going to do a seed swap. So if you have any extra seeds, or if you're buying seeds, a lot of times you don't use all the seeds in the packet, we'll be swapping seeds and USU will be bringing some seeds as well. So there'll be a lot of opportunities for getting seeds and planning your garden for the summer.”
Johnson says while the days are getting warmer, it still freezes at night. The last frost date is June 21st. Anyone who puts seeds in the ground before that date should use a frost cloth to create a barrier and give seeds a chance to grow.
For more information on the calendar of events and volunteer opportunities visit SummitCommunityGardens.org
