Sudbury organizers dig in, as province gives community gardens the green light

Now that community gardens in Ontario have been deemed essential, the Sudbury Community Garden Network is getting ready to grow.

When Ontario declared a state of emergency last month, it included community gardens with non-essential recreational amenities.

But after weeks of lobbying from supporters, the province has changed its mind. Over the weekend, community gardens were categorized as "essential sources of fresh food" for residents, particularly those facing food insecurity.

A representative with the Sudbury Community Gardens Network says they have to work through specific public health instructions from local officials — and since these plots are considered 'shared,' the COVID-19 guidelines can be complicated.

"There's a group of people that work on planting and cultivating the garden, and then its open for the community to share the produce," Colleen Zilio said.

"In other models the gardening team works and that produce goes to [for example] a seniors' centre, food bank or whatever. So that's what will make it a little bit complicated, because there are different scenarios for each garden."

Zilio said the network is thrilled the province has changed course and will allow them to operate this summer. She credits the non-profit organization Sustain Ontario with for their advocacy work around community gardens. 

Now that the weather is warming up, the time to plant is getting closer.

"We do need to work through specific instructions with our local medical officer of health that will provide the guidelines under which the gardens will operate," Zilio said.

"So we hope in the next few days we can start those discussion because the season is rolling along."

Within Sudbury's network there are between 30 and 35 community gardens.