The Dry Creek Community Garden was established in 2013 with the goal of creating and maintaining a growing area adjacent to Dry Creek Park in a central area of Port Alberni on Vancouver Island. The space includes rental plots, communal growing allotments, social spaces, and perennial & annual plantings.
The Alberni Valley Food Security Society acquired the lease from the City of Port Alberni in 2022 and began to manage the property with the aim of administering this amazing asset to the citizens of the Alberni Valley.
There are two bountiful high-producing raspberry beds and they were in dire need of adequate trellising. The garden hosted a public learning work party in which people came to get some hands-on experience pruning raspberries and participated in the building of a sturdy, durable raspberry trellis that utilized cattle panels. The work party occurred on Sunday, April 14th, and saw eleven enthusiastic people in attendance. Some of the people that have garden plots were able to be in attendance and other members of the public were able to participate. People are feeling supported and excited about the upcoming growing season!
The communal beds in the garden were cleaned up and the pathways were cleared of weeds. Candyse the new garden manager was in fine form as she delegated tasks and showed some of the children the benefits of worm composting.
Hosting this workshop and having the members of the garden plus the broader community come out ensures that a high degree of ownership and pride evolves. It allowed for social connections to be made as those who share the space don’t necessarily get the opportunity to interact depending on their schedules.
The community garden is a place for people to connect to food, earth, and community. The space is being used for educational opportunities, currently offering growing workshops to the community on the first Sunday of every month, participating in the annual Family Farm Day, and looking forward to the larger expansion project of the site.
