This month at St. Vincent Mission we have started some of home garden visits. Canning season is just around the corner, we were able to have each of our garden participants to participate in canning classes taught at the Floyd County Extension office. They were able to choose if they wanted to do a hot water bath canning class or a pressure canning class. As each participant finish their canning class, they were able to receive two cases of canning jars. Everyone was so excited to learn how to make homemade salsa and pressure can green beans. Our local green house in town donated all of their left-over plants to the mission.  It was so fun to watch all of our participant receive free plants such as cantaloupe, tomatoes, watermelon, peppers, squash, and gourds.

This month has been little harder for everyone dealing with the heat and getting their gardens started with the local wildlife. One of our participants, Erica has been a local for 6 years and spent just as much time gardening. When asked about what interested her in gardening, she expressed that having plenty of organic food to can, freeze, and store is a great boon! Erica also has high praises for the program itself, stating that it helps tremendously with costs to help feed 3 families.

Our oldest participant, Clarence, has been a local for 50 years and has spent 2 decades of his time gardening. Clarence affirmed that this interest in gardening stems from the desire to eat healthy. The produce that isn’t eaten is, instead, canned. When asked about the program, Clarence declared he absolutely loves it!

The farmers are hoping the weather cools down just a little and we don’t have harsh storms as we have before in the past.