Every year the Community Action Agency of Northwest Alabama makes it possible for hundreds of households to plant their own seeds and cultivate fresh produce through the Gerold Williams Cooperative Garden Program.

About 300 households in Franklin County took advantage of the program this year, picking up their plants and seeds Friday at the Franklin County Farmers Market in Russellville.

“We provide supplies, which are tomato plants, two types of pepper plants and seven different seeds, and we provide a bag of fertilizer to use, in order to grow your own food,” explained Community Action executive director Tammy McDaniel. “It will grow a huge garden.”

The program has been in place since 1975, and McDaniel said it’s a great example of how Community Action helps people help themselves. Participants get to “reap the rewards of having something you’ve grown yourself that is fresh,” McDaniel said. Growers may do what they like with their produce – “can it, freeze it, sell it or all the above.”

Participation is permitted based on income, with sign-ups taking place each year in February and March. In addition to the 300 Franklin families, the program serves about 650 households between Colbert and Lauderdale counties.

“That’s a lot of gardens,” McDaniel said. “I think people – while they appreciate help that we can give them in other ways, with service and programs we have – (feel) this particular program is one they can take pride in, that they are putting something into it themselves not just taking whatever other services might be provided. They are actually invested in it.

“While it is work, it’s rewarding, and no one is just handing it to them.”

Participants are provided with seeds for cucumber, okra, turnip, squash, lima beans, corn, bush beans and purple hull peas, in addition to the tomato and pepper plants.

“It will grow a lot of food – way more than a family could typically eat,” McDaniel said.

It costs the agency approximately $18 per garden to supply the necessary materials. McDaniel said donations come in from local businesses, groups and individuals to fund the program, not to mention the volunteer labor that is always dedicated to its success.

“It’s something the local community has seen value in for 42 years,” McDaniel said. While funding was tight for the program last year, local people have continued to step up to make sure the program is funded. “Right now we’re optimistic that we’ll have enough to cover the total cost,” McDaniel said. “It’s helpful if the community can send in a donation, even $20-25.” It takes about $17K for the program overall.

In Franklin County, several people and businesses helped make the Garden Program possible, including local agency director Jill Hamilton; volunteer Judy Guyton; volunteers from CB&S Bank; and Clark-Pulley, which volunteered its warehouse for fertilizer storage and transported the fertilizer to the market for Friday’s distribution.

McDaniel expressed her appreciation to all who help make the seed giveaway possible.

“I hope this program is around a long time after I’m gone – another 42 years,” she said.