COVID-19 Update: Please review Community Gardening Best Practices as advised by the Kingston Community Gardening Network Coordinator.
Queen's University supports four Community Gardens on campus.
1. Employee Health & Wellness Services manages a garden on main campus in the courtyard adjacent to Jeffery Hall. The Employee Community Garden aims to improve the health and wellness of employees while contributing to a more sustainable and vibrant campus community. The garden space provides employees with an outlet on campus to get outside, connect with each other, and create a beautiful shared space for the community to take pride in. It includes two large communal plots that are available May to October, on a first-come, first-served basis. Communal plots are shared garden spaces that are open to all registered gardeners for cultivating vegetables, fruits, and herbs. Gardeners work together to plant, harvest, and maintain the plots over the course of the season.
Register for the Employee Community Garden
2. The West Campus Community Garden provides allotments for Queen's University & Kingston community members. This popular initiative consistently has a waiting list for spots. Garden plots in this location are also on a first-come, first-served basis. There are 22 raised garden plots, approximately 3 feet by 7 feet, located at the West Campus site adjacent to the stone house near Sir John A. Macdonald Blvd. Gardeners pay an annual rental fee of $25, which provides access to the site during the season (May 1 to October 31), a garden plot, water, and gardening tools. No prior gardening experience is required, as each plot is maintained by an individual renter.
Register for the West Campus Community Garden
3. The An Clachan Community Garden is located at 47 Van Order Drive. The garden has 15 allotments for use by the tenants of An Clachan only.
Register for the An Clachan Community Garden.
4. New this year, Facilities has established a “Working on Wellness” community garden at 355 King for the staff that works in the building. The garden is equipped with 10 allotments and provides interested staff an opportunity to garden from May 1 – October 31. Staff are invited to use the produce grown for personal consumption and some will be donated to food reclamation programs in Kingston.
- Postpone any events to avoid people gathering in close contact.
- Practice social distancing within the garden when multiple gardeners are present on site
- Consider limiting the number of people in the garden at any given time. If too many people are present, please return at another time to access your plot.
- Wear gloves when using shared tools, or bring your own tools from home.
- Anyone displaying symptoms of COVID-19, or who has come into contact with someone who has symptoms of COVID-19, or who has travelled outside of Canada in the past two weeks should NOT come to the gardens.
- Everyone should wash their hands before entering the garden and upon exiting.
- Disinfect surfaces on a regular basis, including reusable bins and buckets, shared tools, railings, doorknobs, tables, and gate latches.
- Plan ahead. Be prepared for the possibility that there may be limited access to the garden or gardeners may be sick at critical times in the future; identify someone who may be able to look after your plot in the event you become sick, and offer to do the same for a fellow gardener.
- Stay engaged. The garden is the social center for many gardeners. Social distance need not lead to social isolation. Stay in touch even when you can’t gather in person. Use your virtual means, such as social media and newsletters, to foster connection. Some ideas: share stories, tips and strategies; recipes; photos of home gardens and gardens from previous years; online webinars on gardening topics.