Regardless of where you live, you've probably noticed it: Fruit trees with rotting fallen fruit on the ground or bushes and herbs that are overgrown and beginning to dry out.
It's not that no one cares or there's too much to go around--it's more that there needs to be better organization and networking to get these fruits and vegetables to those that will use them and those in need. Just because you have a thriving lemon tree doesn't mean you need or even want 30 lemons each week. So what's one to do?
Depending on which state and community you live in, there are great foraging and food sharing resources online. In my community of Oakland, CA there is a new program called Foodpool. Foodpool's mission is to "create small, local groups to gather backyard garden produce and deliver it to food banks and food pantries." They noticed a trend that more and more people are growing their own food while more and more people are also going hungry. So they developed this network and way for people to form groups in their own cities to gather and deliver food to those in need.
Search for a Foodpool in your area, and if you notice there isn't one, you can start one and they'll help with resources and marketing. Foodpool is in the beginning stages, but holds a lot of potential. During this early fall harvest and as we start thinking about sharing the bounty of the season, it couldn't be more timely.
Other National Resources:
• Foraging
• Ample Harvest
• Dinner Garden
Related: Naturally Grown: Vital Zuman Sustainable Farm
(Images: color line via flickr and Ed Yourdon via flickr)
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We do this a lot in my community. It's small and tight knit anyways, but I have no qualms with asking a neighbor if I can pick edibles in their yard if I see them going bad. If possible, I try to follow up with a jar of something preserved from what I gathered as a thank you.
We recently moved to England, and people do a version of this all over the place. They set their excess out on a little stand, and have them priced (extremely cheaply, however) with a little box that people pay by the honor system. We totally love it, and have done lots of actual "shopping" this way, driving through country roads with an eye out for these little stands.
Portland (OR) readers can contact the
Portland Fruit Tree Project at http://portlandfruit.org/ and register any fruit trees they can't consume themselves. It's a cool little nonprofit, but appears to be limited to fruit.