Kane County Community Garden Needs Donations

ST. CHARLES, IL — As soon as the season has its final frost, a volunteer garden will start to sprout at the Kane County Government Center campus.

Kurt Lebo, spatial solutions officer for the county, volunteers with a Warrenville community group focused on growing vegetables and donating their harvest to local food pantries.

“The garden is low maintenance and gives back to the community,” Lebo said. “When you drop off the vegetables there are lots of people waiting. They are quick to scoop them up and happy to have access to fresh vegetables.”

He says he thought a similar set up in Kane County would help provide a fresh, locally grown produce that could be donated to area food pantries and also bring county employees together.

“You see a lot of people walking through the parking lot but you don’t have the opportunity to meet people, typically,” Lebo said. “I thought this would at least give those people who like to
fiddle around outside an opportunity to get to know each other and build some camaraderie between county departments.”

He approached Kane County Board Chairwoman Corinne Pierog about dedicating a piece of land for the garden and got Clair Ryan, the County’s Recycling Coordinator and County Planner Matt Tansley, on board. The team searched for a site that had a good water source, topography and a workable shade profile, according to a news release.

A 24-by-24 foot plot was chosen near the county clerk’s office on the government center campus in Geneva.

Tomato and pepper seedlings for the garden have already starting sprouting. They have been growing in containers in the sun-filled cupola of the historic Cole Pope house, which is located just west of the main government building.

The team is now working to collect donated tools including shovels, a hose, fencing, topsoil and a timber wall to make the garden look nice.

They are also looking for interested county staff members who work at the Geneva campus to volunteer. They need people to prep the site, plant, weed, collect the harvest and deliver it to the local food pantries.

This would an all-volunteer effort with no cost to the county, just the use of the land. “We would be working on the garden on weekends and before and after work,” Lebo said.

The team expects to be able to donate to local food pantries once or twice a week with several dozen pounds of fresh produce to offer.

A list of items they are hoping will be donated can be found here.