people's garden

Did you know that less than one in ten thousand bees sting? Most of the stings that you and I have experienced are at the hands of wasps and hornets and their relatives; they are hunters that sting several times a day. Bees, however, only sting when they feel threatened and die shortly thereafter. It’s easy to tell whether you’ve been stung by a bee: bees leave their stinger behind. If there’s no stinger left and just a welt, you were stung by a wasp or hornet.

Written by Kayla Harless, People’s Garden Intern

The People’s Garden workshops have yet to be anything less than an informative and fun time! Today, Don Weber, a research entomologist with USDA Agricultural Research Service’s Invasive Insect Biocontrol and Behavior Laboratory in Beltsville, Maryland, taught us about pests and their natural enemies.

Our instructor pointed out that most bugs are not harmful. In fact, even some viruses and fungi can be beneficial. Whether or not something is a pest is simply a matter of whether you want that item where it is.

Where can you have free chili from the famous  Ben’s Chili Bowl, chile pepper plants, chile pepper t-shirts, chile pepper games, live mariachi music, and tons of spicy fun? At The People’s Garden New Mexico Chile Pepper Fiesta!

Written collaboratively by: The People’s Garden Team

Today, Sam Droege with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) led a workshop on The Native Bees in Your Garden at The People’s Garden at USDA Headquarters. Did you know there are about 4,000 species of bees in North America and that one eighth of them have not even been named yet?

A new People’s Garden was planted in west/central Kentucky this past Memorial Day weekend.  The garden is located on the greenhouse business property of Meredith Agriculture in Elizabethtown, Kentucky.  This new People’s Garden is a project of Meredith Agriculture and Central Hardin High School FFA.  The garden is managed by a CHHS graduate member, Alex Meredith, and his father Steve.  Several FFA members, parents, and siblings of FFA members gathered to plant a 4,500 square foot garden of tomatoes, sweet corn, potatoes, squash, lima beans, and watermelons.  The produce will be donated to several local agencies that help the needy.

Today, the People’s Garden hosted a workshop about composting. Pat Millner, who has done a lot of research on composting and utilizing compost at the USDA-Agricultural Research Service’s Beltsville Agricultural Research Center in Maryland, taught it. It was fantastically fun and informative, and Pat brought in several examples of composters for us to see.

Brad Fisher, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service

By Amanda Cundiff, Forest Service Region 5 Partnership Coordinator and Lara Polansky, Forest Service Presidential Management FellowIn Vallejo, California, on a decommissioned Naval Shipyard called Mare Island, something good has emerged from hard times: a new community coalition to build and sustain a city garden. Home to over 110,000 individuals, Vallejo is known for being diverse, depressed, crime-ridden, and bankrupt. Since the Naval Shipyard closed and the recession hit, Vallejo has struggled with poverty, stretched city services, and troubled schools.

Submitted by Kathy Beisner, Delaware USDA Rural Development Public Information Coordinator

By Audrey Rowe, FNS Deputy Administrator for Special Nutrition Programs

 I’ve had a chance to see a great deal of impressive schools during my tour of the country to speak about Child Nutrition Reauthorization.  My recent visit to Waterford Village Elementary was no exception.  Witnessing their approach to providing their students good nutrition and physical fitness activities hammers home the importance of the commitments they and those in their communities have made.