Aileen Driscoll wiped the sweat off her brow and squinted at the array of potted plants at her feet. Kneeling down, she began organizing the budding produce in preparation to planting the beginnings of a garden.
“Do you think these labels need to be more specific?” Driscoll, a graduate student and Bloomington Community Orchard at IU vice president, asked Teresa Dunn, president of the BCO-IU. “I just don’t know if we can tell any of these herbs from one another.”
On an overcast day, small crowds of volunteers used shovels and picks to scoop the damp dirt out of the earth behind La Casa Latino Cultural Center. They recently finished installing wooden posts in the ground to build a solid foundation for the raised garden beds.
Dunn was in charge of starting a partnership with La Casa. Through the project, the groups will work together to plant and maintain a garden.
“We’re planting so many herbs, potatoes, peppers, broccoli, garlic and lots of fresh fruit around La Casa,” Dunn said. “This idea started a year ago, where we talked about just planting some produce for them to use, but the idea kind of grew into a garden.”
The group’s house, which sits on the edge of campus, is now home to two apple trees, as well as a peach tree in the front yard.
La Casa, which has a kitchen in the house, will be able to use these fruits and vegetables in future group meals and events. The project is environmentally friendly, uses resources wisely and teaches participants about the Earth, Dunn said.
“It’s a matter of environmental justice,” Dunn said. “These organizations are able to get in touch with their roots and provide good, fresh food for their students and participants.”
Dunn said other cultural centers are excited to install their own gardens.
La Casa is the first place with which BCO-IU has worked to make the community sustainable and healthy, but other organizations have projects in the works, Dunn said.
“This is a long-term project for these groups,” Dunn said. “This is a big group effort, and lots of people are involved. Bloomington Community Orchard’s goal is to start these activities to educate and provide for the community.”
