Thriving food forest inspirational to club

BY Dawn Rankins

Six members of the Canyon Lake Community Gardeners took a field trip to Riverside’s Tequesquite Community Garden and left inspired by what they experienced there. The group was given a guided tour of the grounds by tour guide Jane Burkheimer who gave them more insight into gardening and the key components to having a successful community garden.

The Canyon Lake Community Gardeners where shown how each of the gardeners in the Tequesquite Community Garden use their own creative expressions for their little section of the garden.

The garden opened in 2013, is over one acre in size and has over 100 allotments.

“We were impressed with how the city and club members worked together to create such a thriving food forest,” Canyon Lake club member Chris Papavero said. “The photos we took speak volumes as to what can be accomplished with the help of the local government. The city helped the Riverside Community Garden with fencing, water, importing good dirt, adding mulch and helpling with bare-rooted fruit trees. The rest was done with the local gardeners to grow a paradise for many to enjoy.”

The six club members spent over two hours touring the grounds where they sampled goji berries, jujubes, elderberries and other fruits.

Club member Kelly Lopez said this is the second field trip she has taken to this type of garden. Signs were posted throughout the garden encouraging everyone to enjoy the fruit.

Kelly said the club hopes to incorporate as much, if not more, variety into a community garden in Canyon Lake.

“One thing we loved seeing was the perimeter of the fenced garden lined with fruit trees and being able to walk outside of the garden,” she said. “The community garden had so many fruit trees as well as shade trees, along with native plants and a children’s garden.”

Members of the Canyon Lake Community Gardeners continue to learn more from each other as well as from other local gardens about how to make a community garden in Canyon Lake successful, Kelly said.