Winter 2021 - 18

REACHING OUT
The garden beds provide fresh produce that the club can offer for low to no cost to
families living in food deserts. Photos: Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Mississippi
Burchell's sentiment echoed throughout all of the
organizations that were asked to get onboard, especially the
Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Mississippi.
" We were elated, " said Penney Ainsworth, president and
CEO of the Central Mississippi clubs, about being chosen for
the Dole Sunshine for All program. " With our gardens, the
kids would cook their own vegetables that they had grown
themselves. Now that we have an orchard, there's a year-round
reason for the kids to get to the garden. "
Naomi Jackson, the clubs' vice president of operations,
was equally excited to hear their clubs were even considered,
let alone chosen for the orchard. " We know that there's an
extreme need in our community for it, " she said. Mississippi's
largest industry is agriculture, and there's often - and
unfortunately - the misconception that fresh produce is
always readily available and accessible.
For the initial planting, the fruit orchard requires about
one acre of land and is designed to be expanded over
time up to 20 acres. It contains peach, plum, apple and
persimmon, with the potential for other types of trees to
be added, such as Asian pears and pecans. The trees have
been specifically selected by Burchell and Up in Farms, a
Mississippi-based food hub and growers' service system, to
fit the needs of the club and climate and soil of the area.
18 WINTER 2021
Netafim will provide
about 100 feet of main
line and about 350 feet
of lateral line, with two
drip emitters per tree.
" In the first year
or two, the camp can
maintain the trees
and get the kids excited and learning and create a positive
impact, " said William Evans, director of horticulture at Up
in Farms, who also designed the orchard. " Then we can
consider expanding to multiple acres, hire a manager and
create an income. "
The orchard is designed to be a beginner's orchard, or, as
Evans said, easy as pie.
Twenty-five to 40 trees will be in the ground by early
March to get them established before the summer heat. Trees
will be planted in 120-foot rows spaced 20 feet apart, with
the trees spaced 15 feet apart in order to allow for space for
teaching and other camp experiences.
" There are two goals, " said Evans. " An enrichment activity
for urban, city kids that exposes them to ag in a safe and
compact area, and in the long term to use the orchard as a
funding mechanism center for the camp. "
Winter 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Winter 2021
