What's Growing On At The Garden - June 2026
- hughesjoseph94
- Jul 1
- 3 min read
Garden Production and Donations
The garden has experienced a wonderfully hot and wet beginning to summer! The plants are absolutely loving the warm days and abundance of moisture with fantastic potato, cucumber, and eggplant harvests. By the beginning of June, we harvested double the amount of potatoes from last year. A total of 182 pounds of Red LaSoda, Yukon gold, and Kennebec potatoes were dug out of the muddy soil and dried before heading off to our food pantry partners. We had so many potatoes, we decided to store some as seed potatoes for next year’s potato growing season.
As we approach July, the garden is completely planted up for the remainder of summer. Our 4 varieties of cucumbers have been putting out close to 60 pounds of dark green fruits weekly. The beautiful Barbarella eggplants are producing numerous 1 lb globes. Our pepper row has plants toppling over from the weight of yellow, green, and red fruits just waiting to be ripened enough for harvest. Our native corns are loaded with massive 12-inch ears and are drying on the stalk. The okra, peas, and cantaloupe all have flowers showing with tiny fruits just now emerging.
As of June 30, the garden has produced and donated 1239 pounds of fresh and nutrient-dense fruits and veggies for our neighbors. We have had our best spring and early summer to date, and are looking at a resilient and productive rest of the summer.
Education and Events
Made Greene and our culinary friend, Tiel Jenkins, helped put on a two-day food preservation class for school garden educators from around North Texas. Educators joined the garden and learned how to harvest summer vegetables and herbs before dehydrating, pickling, and freezing for future delicious tasting. We turned garden herbs like basil, oregano, and thyme, as well as produce such as potatoes, garlic, and tomatoes into a shelf-stable dried powder that then can be used as seasoning or soup bases! Everyone had a chance to taste their creations and take back knowledge to use with their students at school. Be on the lookout for upcoming cooking and food preservation classes at Ridglea Giving Garden!
In early June, we also had students from Fort Worth ISD's American Indian Education Program come out to the garden. Together we checked in on the three sisters that they planted in late March. Our heirloom corn was looking wonderful. Already taller than most people with cornsilk turning brown. The students learned about harvesting, water conservation, and the significance that corn plays in Native American culture.
Everyone say hello to Nate! Nate is the church’s summer intern and has been helping, learning, and teaching in the garden. Nate led garden activities for Vacation Bible School in June, teaching our kids the importance of being outside, being good stewards, and being curious about garden living. Nate will continue to support the garden and lead volunteers through the rest of the summer.
The garden continues to host two work days for the community each week. These volunteer groups are the lifeblood of the garden. Among these groups, we had Arborlawn United Methodist and Stonegate Center come out to help harvest and donate to the community.
Funding
The garden received $1000 from Explore Act Tell for educational programming. Thank you Tiel Jenkins for helping us find this opportunity.
The garden received $300 from Westside Garden Club.
If you would like to support our mission please click on the links below.
Volunteering Sign Up
Donations Click Here
Fun Garden Videos from June
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