A Community Garden Takes Root In Eastport

Nestled just south of Sunrise Highway and tucked behind two baseball fields, lavender creeps from the soil as tomatoes glisten in the sun from their vines. Nearby, colorful rows of flowers beg to be admired as a friendly bee buzzes between patches of vegetables.The new Eastport Roots Community Garden is a work of the Eastport Green Project, which collaborated with Brookhaven Town to create a space for locals to work together to grow fresh vegetables and flowers.

The garden opened in June and features 15 raised garden beds, each given to a different gardener—whether a newbie or an experienced green thumb—to care for. In addition to practicing the art of growing their own food, the gardeners have started donating a portion of their harvest to local food pantries, and the garden is just the start of a local civic group’s goal of beautifying Eastport.

“On the first day dozens of people showed up from the Boy and Girl Scouts, and through word of mouth, just to help build the beds, even though they were not going to be planting there,” one of the organizers, Stephanie Turano, said last week while sitting in the garden. “They wanted this to be available for other people, so it was a confirmation to us that we were doing the right thing.”

The community garden has been in the works for roughly 18 months, starting when Ms. Turano was talking to her longtime friend and fellow Eastport resident Heather Spagnoli about how she wanted a place for the community to come together and share an interest. As it turned out, Ms. Spagnoli had been working toward creating a local garden, so the pair teamed up.

The idea only grew from there.

Immediately, the friends approached Brookhaven Town about finding a suitable location for the initiative and they were offered a space at the Eastport South Manor Athletic Complex—an offer they accepted.

“We were open to any spot at that point and they offered us this one here,” Ms. Spagnoli said. “We were really excited about it. And we did, at first, want something maybe more visible and on Main Street, but this turned out to be a great spot.”

With their small corner of the athletic complex secured, the pair turned their attention toward recruitment. Through mutual friends and social media campaigns, they developed an application process and held a lottery for the plots, finally settling on 15 winners. In late May, they held a “build day,” where the future gardeners and volunteers alike came together and built the garden beds. In total, there are 11 4-foot-by-8-foot raised beds, and four 4-foot-by-4-foot raised beds. The lumber was donated by Speonk Lumber and topsoil was donated by Long Island Compost.

On June 1, the garden officially opened and the 15 families started planting their crops, ranging from medicinal herbs to vegetables and flowers. According to Ms. Turano, they would like to keep the garden as organic as possible and have requested that no chemicals be used. Other than that, they encourage the participants to grow whatever they like to eat, adding that the sky is the limit.

“This is an athletic compound, so we get a lot of people who wouldn’t normally see it and everyone who does says, ‘Oh my gosh, what is this, how do we get involved?’” Ms. Spagnoli said. “I hope this can serve as an inspiration for other towns to kind of take some initiative and pull together a community garden for themselves.”

One of the biggest joys, both Ms. Turano and Ms. Spagnoli have said, is seeing members of the Eastport community coming together to support the project, saying that several people have made donations of flowers and artwork even though they are not growing anything. They are also thrilled to be sharing their harvest—all 15 plot owners have agreed to donate a portion of their herbs and vegetables to a food pantry. The group is even researching ways to connect with local families and deliver the produce straight to their doorsteps.

And the Eastport Green Project is not just about the garden. Formed in winter 2015 by Ms. Turano and Ms. Spagnoli, the group, which has roughly 25 active members and 50 total, is hoping to revitalize Eastport. So far, the group has worked with the Seatuck Cove Rotary to do plantings in five spots throughout Eastport—on both the Southampton and Brookhaven sides of the hamlet. They are also working to redo the hamlet’s “Welcome to Eastport” sign, and have already repaired and painted another sign directing visitors to the business district. Now, they are collaborating with the Eastport Fire Department to get American flags for display along Main Street.

Ms. Turano and Ms. Spagnoli are also planning on educational uses for the garden. They want to work with the local school districts, Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops, and senior centers to hold classes and field trips in the garden. On Friday, August 12, there will be a free yoga class in the garden at 8 a.m. taught by a local yogi.

So far, the garden is a hit. For Greg Wayrich of Eastport, the garden is a great way for him to get out of the house with his two children, Talia, 12, and Dylan, 9.

“They really enjoy it,” he said, noting they are growing basil, peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers and chard in their designated plot. “Every time we go there to water the plants they like to check on the progress of the vegetables as they are getting bigger. They really got into the building process and they are having fun with it, so it is nice for them to learn about.”

Julia Brandt of Speonk agrees that the garden is thriving, saying that she uses her space specifically to grow medicinal herbs. Eventually, she hopes to host a seminar at the garden—which features a space with a table and chairs dedicated to community events—introducing people to natural remedies. She also loves the sense of community the garden is fostering.

“I have already helped others and they have helped me, especially at the beginning when your plants are babies and need the most care—people are covering for each other,” she said. “I have already met a few really awesome people that I might not have otherwise met, so that has been a nice thing to come out of this.”

More information about the Eastport Green Project can be found online at facebook.com/eastportgreenproject/.

“We both live in Eastport, that is why this is so important to us,” Ms. Turano said of Ms. Spagnoli and herself. “We both work outside of Eastport, so we want to do our part in our town by growing community events in a spot for people to gather. We love Eastport.”