Sharpsburg garden benefits from Sisters of St. Joseph grant

The Sharpsburg Market Garden is among several groups to receive a grant from the Sisters of St. Joseph to help provide fresh produce and stave off hunger in local communities.

Garden director Ruth Ann McGarry said her group will use the money to purchase supplements for the soil and also to buy extra soil for containers that grow potatoes, strawberries and flowers at the site along 13th and Middle streets.

Grants range from $300 to $500 and are meant to target operational needs like tools, fencing, plants and watering systems.

The grants are funded in part from proceeds from the Sisters of St. Joseph annual farm-to-table fund-raising dinner called Faith. Field. Feast. which takes place each fall on their Baden campus.

“By promoting sustainability in our neighborhoods, we are also building relationships among collaborators who share in our values and appreciate the bounty of Earth,” said Sister Lyn Szymkiewicz, a member of the Sisters of St. Joseph Leadership Team.

Since 2019, the fund has doled out $9,700 in grants to 17 community gardens in Allegheny, Beaver and Butler counties.

Other grant recipients this year include the Black Urban Gardeners and Farmers of Pittsburgh Co-op, Fern Hollow Nature Center in Sewickley and North Hills Community Outreach in Allison Park.

McGarry said part of the grant will be used to purchase mushroom manure to nurture bigger and better veggies, which are given away freely to the community.

With no grocery store in the borough, the garden is a critical tool to help alleviate food insecurity, she said.

The Market Garden is an annex to McGarry’s primary effort, the Community Garden behind the library along Main Street where residents can purchase a bed to grow their own fruits and veggies.

The Market Garden was opened last year when a vacant lot became available. Once the crops are ready to be picked, McGarry and others host a Friday market night where people can help themselves.

The small site turned out 190 pounds of produce last summer.

In its second year, McGarry is hoping to add 10 beds, doubling the amount of peppers and tomatoes that are sent home with residents.