Having a good source of water is essential for any garden. Ask any gardener and they can tell you about the dangers of under- or over-watering plants, or even giving plants water from an unhealthy source. To make it more complicated, add the unpredictability of Ontario weather to the mix.
This is why Dig In! and volunteers installed a rain barrel system at our Campus Co-op raised beds with the help of architect, Lowell Lo.
Volunteers gathered at 5:30 sharp to begin prepping the area for two 55 gallon rain
Lowell Lo and volunteers strategize their first steps
barrels. The first step was to clear away some of the weeds and to level out the ground so that the barrels could balance evenly. Cement slabs helped to balance the two linseed oil-stained stands that the barrels would sit on.
The trickiest part of the installation was attaching the rain barrels to the gutter. While using the water from campus buildings might work for some gardens, this method isn’t always the most sustainable or accessible. Thankfully, the area behind Campus Co-op provides the unique opportunity to experiment with more sustainable ways of taking care of an edible garden. Storing and using rainwater is a great solution to beating the summertime heat.
Attaching the rain barrels to the gutter
While Lowell and one group of volunteers worked on the rain barrel system, we had
Dig In! Co-Coordinator, Sami Fassnacht, with her bouquet of mizuna and mustard greens
another group of volunteers harvest the first leafy greens of the season. Everyone was able to take home garlic scapes, mustard greens, and fresh mizuna, by the end of the build.
Although this summer has been quite rainy, we know that future summers might be the complete opposite! We’re happy to now have a method of watering our veggies that is not only efficient and easy to use, but also good for the Earth.
A special thanks again to Lowell Lo for his help. Visit his website here: http://www.lowelllodesign.com/
Thank you also to Taking It Global and World Wildlife Fund Canada for their generous support, and also to Campus Co-op for their continued support.
Finally, thank you to all the volunteers who came out to this build!
Thanks everyone!
– Samantha Lucchetta, Dig In! Co-Coordinator