BY ANN GENADER
WEST MILFORD – The Union Valley Road location of the Organic Community Garden, where local families have grown produce to feed their families and others in need of food for the past 12 years, is in trouble.
Dave and Wendy Watson-Hallowell, co-founders of Sustainable West Milford, have put out an urgent plea for support.
The pair said that since 2007, the Organic Community Garden at Apple Acres has empowered more than 250 local families to grow, eat, and share their own organic produce with those in need.
In 2007, one of the founding members took down a family member’s deck, and with others, carried it over to the garden to be used as wood to build a fence to keep the wildlife from getting into the garden and eating the crops.
Posts and wire were purchased at a discount, then eight volunteers spent several days building the fence to keep out critters
That wooden garden fence finally fell apart.
The couple said that unless they can replace the fence, large and small critters will consume all of the produce before it is ready to harvest.
The fence has protected the produce of the local participating families, and the 1,000 pounds of produce that was donated to the local food pantries, during the past 12 years.
While the fence has been repaired several times, it is now falling apart and no longer able to do its job.
“We have raised half of the funds needed to build a new fence in time for this year’s planting season, but we need people’s help to raise the rest,” David and Wendy Watson-Hallowell said in a joint statement.
Their goal is to raise $2,500 by May 1.
Donations can be made at the Sustainable West Milford website.
The historic Apple Acres farm has been owned by the Terhune family for several generations.
It was once a go-to place for the many people in the Tri-State area who took annual fall trips to buy their apples there.
The use of the garden property is donated to the gardeners by the family.