By TIM THORNBERRY
Kentucky Correspondent

FRANKFORT, Ky. — Growing the Governor’s Garden has literally been a labor of love and community spirit, which local FFA members have taken to in big ways.

The garden project began last spring through the efforts of First Lady Jane Beshear, the state’s Finance and Administration Cabinet, Western Hills High School (WHHS) FFA, Kentucky Proud, and Access Food Pantry. It serves to develop and grow a primary source of sustainable local, healthy food bringing attention to the benefits of a local food source, and how important it can be to the environment.

“The average meal in the United States travels 1,200 miles from the farm to the dinner table. By growing crops in backyards across Kentucky or buying locally-grown produce, families can eliminate wasteful burning of fossil fuels and have access to fresher, healthier produce,” said Beshear.

Since the garden’s planting at Berry Hill Mansion near the Capitol building, the students have devoted countless hours to the project, many coming before and after school to do gardening chores under Project Manager Steve Meredith’s watchful eye.

“The garden is a symbolic example of how you can take an underused space and produce locally grown products, it’s nutritious, therapeutic and enjoyable,“ he said. “I think it has been a good thing for the students to have a laboratory experience this close to the school and it’s been a great thing for us because they have been so good to work with.”

Meredith said he would like to think that years down the road teachers will still be bringing students out to help with the garden. In helping to maintain its sustainability, a variety of fruit trees were recently added to accompany the other more traditional garden staples such as broccoli, turnips, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, cantaloupe, corn and watermelons along with squash and cucumbers.

Six different types of fruit trees including plums, cherries, apples, peaches, pear and apricots and a different variety of each of those were planted and expected to produce fruit within three to five years according to Meredith.

“The students can do the pruning, harvesting of the fruit, soil sampling, irrigation testing and we are going to have to put some guards around the base of these trees to keep the rabbits out,” he said.

“It’s just a great agronomic, horticultural experience for the kids as well as that symbolism of what the Governor’s Garden represents.”
Thus far, the garden has produced about 565 pounds of produce, 375 pounds of which has been donated to the Access Soup Kitchen.
The project also features a website containing resources for home gardeners of all skill levels, gardening tips, photos and diagrams from the Governor’s Garden as well as gardening resources from across Kentucky.

“The Governor’s Garden online resources will serve as a one-stop shop for helpful, pragmatic tips for home gardeners, as well as a way to keep track of developments at the Frankfort garden,” said Beshear.

Halina Ruble, a senior at WHHS serves as president of her FFA chapter and Bluegrass Regional treasurer. She has devoted countless hours to the garden and said the project has provided invaluable experience for members of the local organization.

“This is very big to us. We don’t have a farm at our school and this gives us an opportunity to come out and have more of a hands-on experience with what we have learned and to apply it to a real-life situation, which is helping to feed the needy in our community,” she said.

Ruble has a bit of a farming background, but now lives in the city, a fact that hasn’t deterred her from being involved in FFA.
“FFA has given me not just an agricultural-related background, but leadership skills, speaking skills and connections with a lot of people especially people my age that I hope to stay in touch with the rest of my life.”

Incidentally, it was 25 years ago that Meredith who owns a farm in Hardin County, served as the National FFA president, the last for Kentucky, giving him a perspective of how valuable the organization can be to students of varying backgrounds.

“It was everything to me in terms of my education,” said Meredith of his FFA experience. “There is no end to agriculture education. Meredith added a sentiment from his son who also participated in FFA and said, “FFA seems to be in everything you do and everything you say, not because I say, it but because of the way I do things.”