How Gardeners are Giving Back at our Fielding Garden
At The Depot, we believe food is more than fuel. It’s connection, care, and community.
This summer, our Urban Agriculture team launched a small but mighty pilot: Once a month, we are adding one freshly picked item from our Fielding Collective Garden to 100 emergency food baskets delivered to community members homes across NDG, reaching those who can’t make it to The Depot in person due to limited mobility or other barriers.
The Seed of an Idea
The idea for this project sprouted during conversations in the garden. Gardeners were noticing just how much the land was producing — more than some could use themselves — and many wanted to share the extra.
“At the height of the harvest, we can take home up to two whole grocery bags of produce per week. That’s a lot and often more than I need.”
“I often don’t want to take my full share of the harvest. It’s a large quantity and it takes energy to process it all before it spoils. I would prefer to share with others.”
And they were right to notice. In recent years, our Urban Agriculture team has improved how we grow: better soil care, smarter planting, and more efficient use of space. The result? A bigger, healthier harvest.
That abundance sparked something important. Gardeners didn’t just want to enjoy the harvest — they wanted to share it.
So the team created a simple plan:
- Each month, gardeners set aside 100 portions of surplus produce
- We add these to our home delivery baskets, along with a small note
- The result: freshness, care, and a sense of connection in every basket
A New Way to Give and Receive at The Depot
While food support is a big part of what we do, The Depot is about more than just food. It’s also about building community, learning together, and creating space where everyone feels welcome.
Even while receiving, people give by showing up, sharing their time, knowledge, and stories. This balance of giving and receiving is something we see every day, and it comes to life in a special way in our collective gardens.
Our gardens are vibrant community spaces where people build relationships, share knowledge, and experience the well-being that comes from being close to the land and to each other.
“I come to socialize, learn more about gardening… and for the butterflies and bunnies!”
For many gardeners, being in connection with the land and with one another strengthens the generosity they already have and inspires them to give back to the wider community.
At The Depot, we have learned that when we tend to the garden, it gives back. And when we care for our community, it grows stronger too. Giving to each other helps grow the abundance we all share.