Six-year-old Aspen Coutre of McDonough absorbed the sights and scents at the Heritage Park Community Garden in McDonough Monday with her grandmother, Frances. When asked what her favorite vegetables are at the facility, Aspen pondered the question intently before giving her answer – okra and asparagus.

  The rising first grader at East Lake Elementary School acknowledged, with a shy smile, that coming to the Community Garden makes it difficult not to find a way to run off with it.

  Approximately 15 gardeners grow crops at Heritage Park, said Frank Hancock, agriculture and natural resource agent for the University of Georgia Extension Office in McDonough. These gardeners, he said, run the gamut from lifelong farmers to retirees to novices in their craft.

  “This garden is farmed by members of the local community,” said Hancock. “They pay a small fee to have a plot here, so for the most part, what they grow is consumed by them.”

  Hancock said local residents have contributed their agricultural talents to make a wide range of crops available at the Community Garden.

  “We can grow most any vegetable crop in this garden,” said Hancock.

  “With a little bit of fertilizer, we can make most anything we want to grow out of these beds. We’ve got squash, we’ve got zucchini, we’ve got tomatoes, we’ve got okra, we’ve got sweet potatoes, peppers, corn – most anything that you would want to have in a garden, we’ve got growing here.”

  Hancock said that due to this year’s “bumper crop,” the Community Garden took 39 pounds of tomatoes last week to the Helping in His Name Food Pantry in Stockbridge.

    “We do that from time to time, but for the most part, the vegetables are consumed by the person that had that particular plot,” he said. “We have some young folks that are just beginning gardening. We’ve got some older folks that are just beginning gardening. And we’ve got classes that we teach at the Extension Office on vegetable gardening and growing tomatoes, fall gardening and all that kind of thing.”

  Hancock said the Extension Office strives to educate gardeners regarding the best time for picking their crops. He also emphasizes the best management practices for growing crops, based on research at UGA.

  “One thing that we’re doing is, we’re getting more and more of them to use weed barrier cloth,” he said. “In the past, by this time of the year, we’d be overrun with weeds. We’re not.”

  Hancock said the Community Garden helps to educate younger visitors regarding agriculture and farmers by providing field trips for children at area schools. He said the facility also gives consumers – young and old alike – a deeper appreciation for food that is free of pesticides.

  “It’s not really organic, because we do use a little bit of fertilizer – synthetic fertilizers – but it’s grown organic,” said Hancock.

  Jenny Morman-Danton of McDonough has been participating in the Heritage Park Community Garden for about four years. While listening to birds chirping overhead at the garden, she said she heard about it from some former participants at the garden and wanted to give it a try.

  “I’ve never been an outdoors person, but after I started growing and enjoying my vegetables, my family and friends would always talk about it. I really like it now, so I’m dedicated to it.”

  Morman-Danton, who is retired from AT&T, said she initially didn’t believe she had what it took to be a successful gardener. However, her trepidation changed to excitement when her first crops began to grow.

  “Before I even knew about tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, zucchini, peppers – I never knew how they grow,” said Morman-Danton. “The first time I saw a squash grow, I never did believe it – that it comes off a yellow plant, a flower. That was amazing, because I never knew that’s where it comes from.”

  She expressed her gratitude to Hancock for teaching classes on gardening at the Extension Office. Morman-Danton said the Community Garden has also introduced her to others who share her interest in gardening.

  “We’ve become really good friends,” she said. “We share each other’s vegetables, we share each other’s ideas on how to grow vegetables. It’s just really fun coming out here. It’s peaceful. We have a lot of visitors who come and bring their kids.”

  John Glover, 89, of McDonough, has grown vegetables at the Heritage Park Community Garden for about 12 years. Although he currently focuses on growing tomatoes at the garden, he previously grew items including squash and peppers as well.

  He said he decided to get involved with the Heritage Park Community Garden when he learned that plots were available there for retirees.

  “I grew up on a farm over in east Georgia, and I got away from it,” said Glover. “I was in sales and marketing throughout my business career, and I took gardening back up after I retired.”

  Glover said he and his late wife, Louise, were regular customers at farmers markets through the years.

  “We were both raised in the country, and we loved fresh produce,” he said. “We ate it all of our lives, and I had an opportunity to grow it in this garden, so I seized the opportunity.”

  Glover said  the Community Garden has enabled him to interact with kids, passing on his knowledge of farming and agriculture. He said he enjoys watching the kids “marvel” at how food grows.

  Glover said he is grateful to Hancock for his continued efforts in the Community Garden over the years.

  “I really just love the beauty of the garden, and the feel of being involved in it,” said Glover. “Frank has done a marvelous job getting this place shaped up and looking good.”

  For more information on the Community Garden at Heritage Park, call 770-288-8421.