 |
 Sooke Region Food CHI Society"Good, local, affordable food for all" SookeFoodCHI.ca Fruit Gleaning Project |
Gleaning -- "to gather (grain or the
like) after the reapers or regular gatherers"
or which would otherwise go to waste. Contact 2011 -- Don Moloney: don_sturning@hotmail.com The Sooke Region Fruit Tree Project -- Background In the summer of 2009, Sooke Food CHI launched an exciting new fruit tree project that will help to put local fruit from neglected fruit trees to good use. Based on similar projects that have been successful in Victoria, Richmond, and elsewhere, the project will accept requests from any Sooke Region property owners wishing to have their untended fruit trees harvested. "Small groups of volunteers will be sent to the property," says project co-coordinator Jessica Boquist, "and the fruit harvested will be divided among the property owner, the volunteers, and local non-profit agencies focused on distributing food to area residents." An additional benefit of the project will be its potential to reduce bear-human interactions in the region. Traditionally, untended backyard fruit trees have been a prime attractant for bears, which often damage trees while foraging for over-ripened fruit. The frequent result is unhappy property owners and occasionally, bears that must be destroyed. The project is in its infancy, but we are hopeful we can have volunteers visit 15 properties for this first year. Interested volunteers can contact Jessica Boquist at jessicaboquist@gmail.com, while property owners wishing to have their fruit picked can email Jordan Marr at jordan.marr@gmail.com |
