Clayton Community Garden

Overview

 In 2010 the Clayton Community Center in partnership with the Johnston County Agricultural Extension office began offering Gardening A-Z classes. The Center provides administrative services, materials, and classroom space while the Extension office provides the curriculum and instructors. A desire to provide hands-on gardening experiences led to the creation of the Clayton Community Garden (CCG) in 2011 on land owned by the Town of Clayton behind the Clayton Community Center.

 Through various grants, Boy Scout projects, and community donations, the garden has expanded to include several ADA compliant raised beds, tool barn, greenhouse, hoop house, covered sink/prep station, 3 bin composting unit, automated irrigation, grapevine trellises, fully enclosed deer fencing, multi-level herb garden, special showcase garden boxes, picnic tables, a native bee hotel, and a dry rain garden. The Johnston County Beekeepers Association installed a honeybee hive for the garden. 

Ongoing financial support is provided the Town of Clayton and the Extension Master Gardener Volunteers (EMGV) of Johnston County. Garden activities are managed by an EMGV Coordinator and are performed by Extension Master Gardener Volunteers, Gardening A-Z class students, and other wonderful community volunteers.  While the primary purpose of CCG is education and demonstration of gardening practices applicable to this area, a secondary goal is to help the community by donating the harvested food to the Clayton Area Ministries Food Pantry and other local food banks. 7056 lbs. were harvested in 2022.

 As expected, good gardening practices as taught in Extension Master Gardener training as well as the Gardening A-Z classes are followed while working at CCG.  CCG volunteers also propagate most of the plants offered during the annual Master Gardener Plant Sale in April. The community enthusiastically attends the plant sale to obtain healthy vegetable and ornamental plants at reasonable prices.

 Volunteers of all ages and abilities are invited to join us on Monday and Thursday mornings between 8 am and 11 am from June through September and between 9 am and noon the rest of the year. (Mondays only between November and February.) Arrive late and/or leave early as needed to fit your schedule. Recent changes to add raised beds of various heights with increased accessibility will allow volunteers with limited mobility to be able to work in more areas of the garden.

For more information about CCG, contact Felice Chadwick at felice.chadwick@icloud.com or the Clayton Community Center at (919) 553-1550.