“Six years you may sow your field. But in the seventh year the land shall have a blessing of complete rest, a Sabbath of the Lord.”
Leviticus 25: 2-5
Climate Change and the Gardening Community
The predicted effects of climate change are well known. In plans for amelioration of its impact, most emphasis has been placed on renewable energy and attempts to reduce the carbon footprint. What has hardly been recognized is that responsible gardening is one of the biggest contributions ordinary people can make to adaptation and mitigation of climate change. Gardens have a crucial role to play both in reducing the effects of climate change and in helping us to understand the changes that are already taking place. Producing their own food enables people to reduce their carbon footprint as well providing local community networks and a leisure activity for all the family. Gardens provide important corridors/refuges for species of wild life and plants at risk from climate change. Gardening involving caring for and covering the soil, can help to reduce the problems of flooding and pollution and thereby reduce the cause, as well as the impact, of climate change.
(An excerpt from Climate change and the gardening community, Scottish Allotments and Gardens Society, www.sags.org.uk, Reprinted with permission)
Photos of the Growth of Our Garden
ARTICLES
Bee Alert: Sunflower Pollen Has Protective Effects for Bees
Carl Sigel Global declines in honey and wild bees have been linked to pathogens, climate change, habitat fragmentation, and pesticide use.1 With bee populations in decline, a recent study showed that by feeding sunflower pollen to bumble and European honey bees, they were protected from infection by certain …
Climate and Food Security: Growing a Sustenance Garden
Carl Sigel The latest report from the U. N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Climate and Land released on August 8, 2019 “warns that climate change is exacerbating pressures on the global food supply, threatening millions more with hunger, and potentially raising food prices for …
Benefits of Community Gardens
By: Lucy Bradley and Keith Baldwin, NC State University and NC A &T State University, Cooperative Extension In addition to providing fresh fruits and vegetables, a garden can also be a tool for promoting physical and emotional health, connecting with nature, teaching life skills, and …
Nativity’s Community Garden
by Emilie Sigel At Church of the Nativity we believe that our faith in Jesus, our reverence for the earth, and our service to others are deeply woven together in our life of faith. We seek a connection to God through our connections with one …