RAFT Garden Enters Its Fourth Year

After two years at NW Youth Corps, the RAFT Garden is now in the second year at the Whiteaker Community Garden at the end of N. Polk St. The plot is on the east side and marked with a RAFT sign. The RAFT garden includes Hooker’s corn, Oregon Giant Pole bean, Oregon Delicious melon, Lower Salmon River squash, and Marshall Strawberry. This year, potatoes will be added — Haida, Tlingit and possibly Anna Cheeka (Ozette).

Last October, Andrew Still and Sarah Kleeger of Adaptive Seeds led a seed saving demo at the garden. It was well attended and the local RAFT community took seed, literally and figuratively. Most of the Oregon Giant beans were donated to Adaptive Seeds and they report that all have been sold for the coming season.

Kathy Heerema will join Nicki Maxwell this year in planning, planting and caring for the garden. Let Nicki know if you are interested. You can reach her at nicolamaxwell47@gmail.com.

The RAFT (Renewing America’s Food Traditions) Alliance is a collaboration of food, farming and environmental advocates (including Slow Food USA). It was founded in 2004 to identify, restore and celebrate America’s biologically and culturally diverse food traditions through conservation, education, market recovery and regional networking. RAFT developed the first-ever comprehensive list of food species and varieties unique to each eco-region of North America and found that well over 1,000 food varieties are threatened, endangered or functionally extinct from the marketplace.