By Khalida Sarwari
Gardening enthusiasts are banding together at West Valley College to transform a half-acre lot adjacent to the baseball field into a blooming community garden. But first they need the funds to make their vision come to life.
Spearheading the effort is Rebecca Jepsen, a Realtor at Alain Pinel and county master gardener who resides in Saratoga. She also serves on the advisory board for the West Valley community garden, along with a handful of others that include local business owners, Santa Clara County master gardeners and officials from the college, who have been working hard for the past year and a half to get the garden up and running.
As of now, the space does not offer much aside from patches of dirt, weeds and a shed that belongs to the college baseball department. “It was sallow land that hadn’t been used for a long time,” Jepsen said.
Someday, Jepsen envisions a garden teeming with life.
“Our vision is really for a wonderful community space that’s going to nurture being in the outdoors, being active,” said Jepsen. “We want to make it a beautiful space for the students and the community all to come together to grow food and learn.”
The plan, she said, is to build 100 raised beds, with some used for trialing new plants, vegetables and herbs. The garden would also have edible flowers, a habitat garden for native birds and bees, a grove of fruit trees and a bird bath.
The proposed garden will have a designated picnic area, archways and an area to host various workshops, talks and demonstrations on topics such as harvesting and teaching circles. It could potentially be integrated into the curriculum “whenever and wherever possible,” Jepsen said, “maybe horticulture or environmental classes. “I think there’s all kind of possibilities.”
Ultimately, the garden Jepsen and her team are planning to create will go “beyond the normal community garden,” and could someday feature an oven for visitors to make pizza using produce that they pick fresh.
Jepsen and her team are beginning the process of raising money to plant the very first seeds for this garden. Their goal is to raise at least $350,000, initially through donor contributions that could potentially catalyze the fundraising process.
To donate toward the garden project or to help with fundraising efforts, contact Jepsen atrjepsen@apr.com.
