On Saturday, March 18th 2023, in partnership with the City of Petaluma, Daily Acts’ collaborated with B. Mitzvah Academy (B.Mitzvah Academy — Congregation Ner Shalom) for a youth volunteer day at the Cavanagh Center Food Forest. As volunteers trickled in, each youth member greeted their friends with hugs and smiles, while adults caught up with one another before the opening circle began; already, the sun began to shine through the morning clouds.
The group circled up and learned about Daily Acts, and how the Food Forest came to be. Many participants had familiarity with the sheet mulching process and fruit trees, and some had experience weeding and pruning in their own gardens. Before jumping into work, each participant shared something that they were excited to learn about. Responses ranged from learning about plants that we can eat, how to take care of fruit trees, how to be more mindful of our environment, and general excitement about being outdoors, getting our hands dirty, and being with friends.
Joining this program was a local fruit tree pruning educator, Lucas Tammien, who helped the group learn about how to prune the pomegranates and pears that are within the landscape. During the program, our volunteers pruned fruit trees, removed lemon balm and Bermuda grass, and deadheaded Jerusalem sage. All of these efforts support the health of the ecology of the landscape. To wrap up the day, folks gathered in the residential food forest across the street, at Trathen Heckman’s home, to learn about how a small landscape can grow an abundance of soil, food, and habitat.
