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Here’s how you can participate in Plant a Row
By Catherine Edman Daily Herald Staff Writer
Taking part in Plant a Row for the Hungry is easy.
Choose a plant, or several in your garden, and designate those as Plant a Row volunteers. Donate any fruits and vegetables produced by that plant to the program.
Plan to donate those items that have the greatest shelf life: peas, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, tomatoes, green beans, peppers, eggplants, summer squash, zucchini, winter squash, onions, beets, pumpkins, apples, pears and other firm fruits.
Make sure you clean the produce before dropping it off for distribution. A little bit of dirt can make a bit mess later in the processing stage.
Who says you need a house and yard to garden? Think deck. Or patio. Plenty of vegetables do well in containers — bush tomatoes, cucumbers or any number of pep-pers.
You can even participate if you tend to favor perennial flower beds. Just stick a few pepper or tomato plants in between some other beauties — and no one is likely to notice!
Herbs are a wonderful treat. If you’ve got more than enough, prepare them as donations, too.
If you have any questions about the program, or drop-off requirements, call our Plant A Row hotline at (847) 806-4277, Northern Illinois Food Bank at (630) 443-6910, or e-mail us at Plantarow@dailyherald.com .
— Catherine Edman
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