This garden has been operating in La Manzanilla del Mar, Jalisco, Mexico since 2012. La Manzanilla is a small fishing village on the Pacific Coast about 200 kilometres south of Puerto Vallarta. It was started by the NGO Tierra Allegre and is now run by a group called "Seeds of the Future" with more local volunteers and some part time paid workers. Our mandate is to encourage young people to plant and care for organic food. The garden Β has been improved over the years with the addition of new fencing, improved irrigation systems, a large shade house, and a composting area which is used by community members.
The garden impacts both students and community members through the production of food that is sold at the weekly Friday market. We also work with the local fishing cooperative by using fish waste as natural organic fertilizer.
The garden is slowly raising the community awareness about the the importance of fresh locally produced organic food.
Gardening helps people appreciate the joy and feeling of accomplishment that comes from planting, weeding, watering, and watching food grow to maturity so they may be harvested and enjoyed by many.
We are very grateful for the annual donation of seeds from West Coast Seeds which enables the production of lettuce, argula, kale, carrots, and herbs. The garden also grows tropical food such as jamaica (hibiscus), passion fruit, comote sera (sweet potato). We are also grateful for the continuing support of the many local people who help the garden financially by donation and purchase of the freshly harvested food at the weekly Friday markets.
We hope to have a website in the future. However, now the contact information is Peter Earley at learley@hotmail.com