The Gtigewin Community Garden promotes sustainability, healthy eating, and Anishinaabemowin

By Kelly Anne Smith

 NIPISSING FIRST NATION— Citizens of Nipissing First Nation (NFN) are growing a fondness for fresh vegetables with the Gtigewin Community Garden.

The garden produces a large amount of vegetables, including squash, carrots, onions, potatoes, zucchini, beans, pumpkins and sweet peas, which are dispersed from August to September. There are two veggie-stand days, each at the Garden Village Senior’s Complex, Yellek Playground, and Nbisiing Secondary School in Duchesnay. Some 30 people attend each one. The garden also provides produce for NFN programming such as Good Food Box and Diner’s Club.

Dave McLeod is in charge of garden maintenance.

“We have been very successful over the last four years. It’s growing big and a lot of people are coming to participate and collect the vegetables. And keeping the place clean.”

McLeod informs that the garden located in Garden Village is respected and open to the community.

“They can come in anytime and pick only what they need. A lot of the people are participating in that and keeping the garden nice and clean.”

A lot of work goes into the garden says McLeod.

“The beds are 4 ft. wide and 90 ft. long and we have ten of them. The garden is watered and maintained every day. We have invasive weeds that come up on the far end of the garden. They suck up all the water. You have to constantly pull them up.”

He says the garden helps teach useful skills.

“We are at the garden helping anybody who wants to learn how to harvest. In the first and second year, people didn’t know and they were pulling the plant right out. Now, a lot of people are aware of it and more educated in the garden. They will come when we are there. They respect the garden because it belongs to them too.”

McLeod talked of Leisure Farms being supportive of the Gtigewin Community Garden since the beginning.

“We’ve been given advice by Leisure Farms. They provide a tractor and till across the beds, put the plastic down and puncture the holes. They are very nice people and we are very thankful that we can work with them.”

The nutritionist at the Lawrence Commanda Health Centre, Erika Weidl, says the garden has had help from members as well.

“We have had support from some community volunteers to help plant, donations of manure, and donations of a few new plants.”

Weidl is very happy with the outcome of the garden.

“Overall, use of the garden has increased over the years as more community members have become aware of the garden. In 2018, there was an increase from 2017 in visitors to the garden stands by 33%, along with an increase of visits to pick their own produce from the garden, from 101 visits to 198,” says Weidl. “Last year we had 100 kg of yellow and green beans, over 100 corn, over 1,500 cucumbers, almost 1,000 carrots, and 223 zucchinis.”

Weidl says that in the past, the community was known for its gardens.

“Our main goal has been to bring NFN back to that time while strengthening the community’s connection to the land. We see the garden as providing opportunities for increased physical activity, mental health, food security and nutrition, while contributing to NFN’s strategic goal of developing a holistic strategy to enhance community health and wellness. We distributed end of the year surveys in 2018 and 2017 and it was found that 64-65% of responders felt they ate more vegetables because of the garden.”

A sign at the Gtigewin Community Garden names the vegetables grown in Anishinaabemowin. Weidl hopes the sign promotes the traditional language when citizens use the garden.

“We have also brought the sign to other events this year to encourage the use of language and promote the garden – it was used as a game at NFN’s Summer Solstice National Indigenous Day celebration and was used as a station at a youth diabetes prevention program.”

Weidl notes the gardens name is Anishinaabemowin.

“In our first year, we had a community contest to name the garden and from that, it was named the Gtigewin Community Garden which means ‘growing in good life and balance’.”

McLeod says his family is eating healthier.

“Well I work closely with Erika, a dietician. And we do eat a lot of vegetables from the garden, picking what we need for our suppers.”