KidzKare, Inc.

08/09/2018

We did it!!! With the 150lbs harvested last evening, we hit a total of 1 ton of beautiful, fresh, organically grown, extremely locally grown produce harvested in the Raising Rochester gardens this season. More than 75% has been donated to the Rochester Food Pantry so far. We will be harvesting and replanting Friday, August 10th from 9-11am at the Faith Church garden and the weather looks good so come join us.

We have received donations of not one but two compost bins (and boy do we need them) and a storage shed for the Faith garden. Now we just need to pick them up and transport them. We have a truck but if anyone can help with the lifting and moving, please email [email protected].

08/02/2018

Nice average summer weather means another good harvest for us last night. We are now over 1,500lbs for the season from the Faith Church garden and 1,800lbs overall with almost 80% going to the food pantry. Looks like great weather for the farmer's market this week so come on out, say hello, chat for a minute, and check out our offerings:

Basil
Beans (green and purple)
Beets (baby red)
Broccoli
Carrots (baby)
Chard
Cucumbers (7 gazillion)
Eggplant (fingerling)
Kale
Peppers (green and colored bell, sweet banana)
Romaine
Yellow summer squash
Tomatoes (a few yummy yellows)
Zucchini

Next week we will welcome back arugula, cilantro, dill, rosemary, peppermint, and spearmint. And, who knows, maybe even a surprise or two!

Our market produce sales are now over $2,000 for the season which makes a dramatic difference in the life of our little non-profit. So does volunteering! So if you might be interested, go to https://www.signupgenius.com/go/8050a45aeab29a46-grow or email [email protected].

***PLEASE READ ALL THE INFORMATION BELOW*** Welcome to our first garden season!  We appreciate your help in this important endeavor that will provide fresh, local produce to local families in need. We need many volunteers to help with watering, weeding, thinning and harvesting throughout the summer...

07/21/2018

A wet and wild day at the Rochester Farmer's Market today. No thunderstorms trying to blow our booth to Oz but plenty of on and off rain. However, our fabulous array of produce hawked by eager volunteers was too much for the public to ignore and gave us a new market sales record day - by $1.

Our new compost bin arrived yesterday and we were notified today that a long time Raising Rochester volunteer of years past will be donating a second compost bin, both for the Faith Church garden.

Please come out for our harvest evening at the Faith Church garden on Sunday, July 22nd from 6-8pm. The weather is supposed to good (actually the high tomorrow is only 70!!!) and the company will be great, too.

07/20/2018

We had a beautiful morning harvesting today before the rain hit. The "weighty" crops like squash and cucumbers are starting to ripen so it was easy to set a new harvest record of 233lbs in only two hours (that puts us at 1,283lbs for the season). Many of the recently planted seeds have popped through and are reaching for the sun. The more "average" summer weather has made it easier to keep up both with watering and the other maintenance work of gardening.

We will have the following at the farmer's market tomorrow so stop and see us first:

Basil
Beets (Red and Golden)
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Chard
Cucumbers
Eggplant
Kale
Kohlrabi
Lettuce
Romaine
Summer Squash (yellow crookneck and patty pan)
Turnips (sweet salad)
Zucchini

If the rain lets up long enough for me to get back out there, we will also have arugula, baby carrots, cilantro, dill, and mint for tomorrow. Peppers, beans, tomatoes will still be 2 weeks or more. And lots of winter squash, cabbage, Brussels sprouts are to come when fall approaches.

06/30/2018

Yes, you guessed it, despite oppressive heat and humidity, we had another record day at the Rochester Farmer's Market today with more than $350 in sales. Not much left for the food pantry so we will get to work on that when we harvest on Sunday from 6-8pm at Faith Church. We will also be planting our next round of staple crops and transplanting our newest crop, a lettuce called Salanova (see photo). Hearty and hardy, full bodied and flavorful with a longer shelf-life, Salanova is sweeping the country's urban gardens and fine restaurants. We started it in our indoor garden under grow lights at First Congregational Church, home of the Food Pantry, for the first 5-6 weeks so it is ready to feel real sunshine.

DID YOU KNOW: 100% of all sales proceeds go back to KidzKare/Raising Rochester for the maintenance of our gardens, construction of new gardens, and those silly costs of running a business - like insurance.

06/30/2018

Ho-hum, yet another record harvest this morning of 173lbs with not that much in heavy root crops. That puts us over 650lbs for the season even before the end of June. And the garden looks gorgeous. I just keep shaking my head in awe, not just at what nature can do but what we humans have been able to pull off.

Come see us at the Rochester Farmer's Market tomorrow where our offerings will include:

Arugula
Basil
Bekana
Chard
Cilantro
Kale
Lettuce
Oregano
Peppermint
Purslane
Radishes (Round Red and Daikon)
Romaine
Spearmint
Spinach
Sweet Salad Turnips..and lots of smiles, information, and friendly conversation!

Looks like we will get our first zucchini and broccoli next week to add to our list. If you are interested in volunteering or you would like to donate or want more information, please email me at [email protected].

J

06/25/2018

My "Harvest Harem plus Tom" set another single day harvest record last evening with 133lbs harvested from the Grow to Give Garden at Faith church. Our greens, herbs, and root crops abound!!! We delivered it all to the Food Pantry and even had a nice little tour of the pantry and our work and storage areas. Next harvest is Tuesday, June 26th from 9-11am.

06/25/2018

06/24/2018

I'm still on a high after the past couple record setting days. We had our largest harvest ever on Friday with 127lbs in one day...and most of that was greens!!! Then, on Saturday at the Rochester Farmer's Market despite the rainy weather, we had our best sales day ever with almost $300 in produce sales. Thank you Nichole, Sydney, Kerry, and Heidi. Not only do all of the sales proceeds stay in KidzKare for use on Raising Rochester needs (just bought some folding stools for those like me who have trouble getting down and up again) but there was a bunch of produce left over for the Food Pantry on Monday.

We harvest regularly at our new Grow to Give Garden at Faith Church on Sunday and Tuesday evenings at 6:00pm and Monday and Friday mornings at 9:00am. In addition, We need help to weigh, pack, label, and record the produce on Fridays at 1:00pm at First Congregational Church, home of the Food Pantry. Everyone is welcome and you can sign up to participate in our grand adventure at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/8050a45aeab29a46-grow or just click below. We expect more records, more fun, and more fulfillment of our duty to our neighbors throughout the summer.

***PLEASE READ ALL THE INFORMATION BELOW*** Welcome to our first garden season!  We appreciate your help in this important endeavor that will provide fresh, local produce to local families in need. We need many volunteers to help with watering, weeding, thinning and harvesting throughout the summer...

06/15/2018

Join us for the 5th Annual "Cinema at the Cemetery" fun and fundraiser on Saturday, June 16th at Guardian Angel Cemetery at the southeast corner of Rochester Rd and Snell Rd. Doors open at 7:00pm and the movie will begin at dusk.

Our family friendly movie this year is "Despicable Me 3". Entry is a donation of $5 minimum per car. Flavored ice drink will be available for $1 each. Bring your blankets and lawn chairs, summer games, dinner and snacks. More than $1,500 has been raised so far for Raising Rochester.

06/15/2018

Lots of produce getting harvested already. We will have the following at the Rochester Farmer's Market tomorrow:

Lettuce
Romaine
Bekana (Mild mustard green to use as a salad green)
Mizuna (Moderately spicy mustard green)
Spinach (the deepest green you will ever see)
Kale
Beet Greens
Turnip Greens
Swiss Chard
Arugula
Cilantro
Radishes
..with so much more to come!