The Community Organic Garden of Sequim (COGS); The Cascadian

From garlic to flowers to good times, Community Organic Gardens of Sequim, aka COGS, continues to grow plenty of opportunities for local green thumbs.

The Fir Street Garden, behind St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, and the June Robinson Memorial Park garden, at the corner of Spruce Street and Sunnyside Avenue, are opening their gates for locals to try their hands at growing their own goods.

Last year, 41 individuals, couples and/or families cultivated gardens in ground plots and raised beds, which are reserved for those with difficulty getting up and down.

Pioneered five years ago, COGS began with the Sequim High School ecology club’s ambitions to save farmland, says Bob Caldwell.

While involved in Friends of the Fields, he received a phone call from a girl with those large ambitions but due to cost, they set their sights on creating a community garden.

Caldwell said they felt a good fit would be at a church. St. Luke’s, the first church they asked, accepted, and fundraising and construction work began on the Fir Street Garden.

The church hosts potlucks, classes on Saturdays, encourages people to visit the garden and the Rev. Bob Rhoads and other leaders bless the garden each June.

“It’s just a pleasant place to be,” Harper said. “It’s also amazing that we started with zero (dollars) and because of the community we exist now.”

The outpouring of support keeps coming for the gardens with several annual monetary and compost donations along with past gifts of fencing, tools, a shed, gazebo, paving stones and more. The Clallam County Sheriff’s chain gang even helps place border rocks and compact new gravel.

The City of Sequim has partnered with COGS, too, by making the city-run June Robinson Memorial Park garden a sister garden in the program. Gardeners start its third season this spring.

Harper said they’ve never seen vandalism or theft except a misunderstanding when gardeners thought their flags were stolen but the wind blew them away.

Some plots are devoted to specific things such as the food bank and others for herbs, squash and flowers, which are shared among gardeners.

“It’s a real sense of community,” Harper said. “That’s what we want. Younger and older people all gardening together.”

“We take in exactly what we need and don’t make any money at all,” Harper said.

Gardeners must commit to working a certain amount of hours in their plot, but it’s on an honor system. Some tasks are assigned to every gardener, too, like weeding paths and watering community areas on a rotating weekly basis.

One perk of signing up for a plot includes free classes from longtime organic gardener Pam Larsen. She leads eight classes and two field trips for gardeners starting March 5. Additional fees apply for non-COGS members. Larsen’s classes range from learning how to start seeds indoors to what crops grow locally to garden space management.

“What’s most import is the soil and what’s in it like microbes,” Larsen said.

Each year the gardens’ soil gets better and better because of its use, she said.

Caldwell said COGS offers good garden training, camaraderie with other gardeners and you can grow a lot of food.

Community Organic Garden Plots Available

The City of Sequim and Friends of the Field are reserving garden plots for the Community Organic Gardens of Sequim 2012 year. The plots are available in raised beds and ground beds. The fee per bed is $45.00 per calendar year. The gardening season runs from March through October. Plots are available at two different gardens; one is located on Fir St. behind St. Luke Episcopal Church and one is located at the June Robinson Memorial Park on the corner of Spruce Street and Sunnyside Avenue. In addition to working their own plots, all participants are asked to put in 4 hours of community gardening. There will be sign up at orientation, which will be held on February 25, 2012 at the Fir Street garden.

Contact Liz Harper at 683-7698 to reserve space at the Fir St. garden plots or Ann Holgerson at 683-4139 for the June Robinson Memorial Park garden plots.

Classes on organic gardening will also be offered. The classes will begin in early March and will be held on Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon. There will be a total of eight classes and two field trips. If this is your first year gardening, you are encouraged you to attend to learn more about organic gardening.

If you are interested in the gardening classes, but do not have a plot at either garden, the fee is $30. To sign up for classes call Pam at 582-1106.