The major contributors to the creation of the Fairfield Community Garden pose for a photo during the garden’s grand opening on Sunday, April 14 at O.B. Nelson Park. Pictured are, from left, front row: Barbara Rainbow and Faith Reeves; back row: Ray Griffin, Karen DeAngelis, Dan Kensel, John Loin and Bob Ferguson. (Andy Hallman/The Union)

FAIRFIELD – The Fairfield Community Garden officially opened for the 2024 growing season during a ceremony on Sunday, April 14 where all the major players in the garden’s creation addressed a crowd assembled in O.B. Nelson Park.

The garden was built last fall and finished earlier this spring on a flat patch of grass that previously hosted the city’s outdoor pool. The garden contains 40 raised beds measuring 4 feet wide and 16 feet long, which residents can rent for one year to grow their own crops. Four of those beds will contain perennial plants that all members of the Fairfield Community Garden will have access to.

Fairfield Sustainability Coordinator Faith Reeves said that nearly all of the remaining beds had been reserved as of Sunday, with 32 of the 36 beds spoken for. A few dozen patrons who had signed up for a plot attended Sunday’s grand opening, where they also participated in a “Get Growing” workshop to learn the ins and outs of the garden and even get started on their plants.

The City of Fairfield installed a hydrant for the gardeners to use, which was scheduled to be turned on Monday, April 15. Reeves said that, even though the weather was unseasonably warm for mid-April, with temperatures climbing into the mid-80s, she cautioned gardeners about planting certain vegetables too early. For instance, she said cold-weather vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower don’t do well when planted in hot soil.

The Sustainable Living Coalition was the fiscal sponsor of the project, and its board is providing leadership. The Fairfield Volunteer Center and Habitat for Humanity ReStore have played critical roles as well, contributing labor and materials.

Barbara Rainbow, the garden’s project leader, spoke about how the project got off the ground. Rainbow saw that a community garden in Mt. Pleasant was being under-used, and helped get it on its feet. Shortly after Rainbow joined the Fairfield Volunteer Center, she inquired about starting a community garden in Fairfield, too. Fairfield Mayor Connie Boyer introduced Rainbow to Reeves in 2022, and less than two years later they had put the finishing touches on the city’s new garden.

Rainbow thanked the volunteers who built the shed that stands inside the garden, a project led by local Rotarian John Loin with funding from the Fairfield Rotary Club. Loin said he and other volunteers finished building the shed the day before the grand opening, and that it took three weekends in all. Loin thanked Keosauqua Lumber for giving Rotary a discount on materials. The shed contains tools available to the garden’s members.

Fairfield Interact, Rotary’s youth arm, contributed money and labor toward planting native bushes outside the garden’s fence.

Tiffany April Raines of Wild Spirits Farm set up a booth at O.B. Nelson Park to sell plant starters to the public and members of the new garden. Raines said it feels great to be a part of a project that Rainbow and Reeves started, and that she has taken on a supportive role of prioritizing plants for the community garden this year. She said some of the plants that have been selling well in the early going are broccoli, kale, chard, cabbage and brussels sprouts. Raines said she’ll continue her sales at Everybody’s Whole Foods and at the Fairfield Farmers Market.

Reeves said she’s excited for the growing season to get underway. She mentioned that the garden’s four perennial beds will include plants such as asparagus, strawberries, rhubarb, some greens and possibly herbs. She’s also thinking that the communal beds would be great to grow garlic and onions. Garlic in particular has a long growing season of nine months, so garlic planted now wouldn’t be harvested until next year.

Those who wish to sign up for a plot or learn more about the Fairfield Community Garden can visit the group’s website at fairfield-community-garden.org, or email fairfieldiowacommunitygarden@gmail.com. You can also follow the group’s Facebook page listed under Fairfield Iowa Community Garden.