“Goodie boxes” leave veggies up for grabs in Portage

A popular downtown gardening initiative is returning this season to provide Portage la Prairie residents with free, fresh produce directly from the sidewalk.

The Portage la Prairie Community Revitalization Corporation (PCRC) has planted six “Garden Goodie Boxes” at high-traffic locations across the downtown core. The communal gardens are designed to foster environmental stewardship and ease the burden of rising grocery costs by making healthy food accessible to everyone.

“Each garden goodie box is planted with a combination of different vegetables,” said Hope Faschoway, community facilitator for the PCRC. “They can be picked and utilized by anyone here in the city of Portage.”

This year’s boxes are heavily stocked with tomatoes and cucumbers. They are located in front of A&V Electronics, Subway, the BDO Centre and near Portage Collegiate Institute (PCI) and the MCC Thrift Shop.

Faschoway noted that the program relies on a community-wide effort. While local businesses sponsor the boxes by funding soil, seeds and water, the daily upkeep is managed by the PCRC’s summer students and Green Team.

However, passersby are also welcome to pitch in.

“It’s a community initiative for everybody,” Faschoway said. “If anyone’s interested, they can definitely help themselves, pick any vegetables, or help maintain and weed them if they feel like it when they’re just walking by.”

Community feedback has been highly positive, with several residents regularly checking on the crops. Faschoway, who frequently visits the boxes with her own children, said the benefits extend beyond individual households. Any surplus or ripened produce harvested by staff throughout the season is immediately donated to local organizations, including the local soup kitchen.

“Nothing better than knowing where your vegetables are coming from,” Faschoway said.

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