b'What to plantNot sure what to plant? be listed in the Plantwhatyoueat.Eatwhat Mattersyou plant, Yagid says. My rule of thumbis:Growthingsthatdont Magazinetravelwellthatyouwilleat.You can buy tomatoes in the store, but theyre bred to travel, so they dont Schooltaste as good, she says.are easy Lettuce, kale and herbs Guide Lettuce, kale and other produceto grow, as are carrots, beets and rad-ishes. Yagid advises against planting zucchini. It gets too big, and you can buy it at the farmers market. And, importantly, she says, read the tag on thrive in the South Orange Communitythe plant for how to care for it!Free listingGarden. Photo courtesy of the SouthWhat does Yagid love about com-with ad ofOrange Community Garden. munity gardening?Anytime you can get people away any size intotheveryfoodtheyeat.Manyfrom their phones and their screens kids tell me its magicand it is, in aandoutdoorsinnatureisagood waythe magic of science! thing, Yagid says. I cant think of Its also a way to get kids to eatanything better than just to be with their vegetables. other humans and plant a garden.Perfect for private schools,Kids often really like to eat rad-preschools and enrichmentishes,kale,lettuce,andtomatoesGiving backoncetheyvebeenpartofgrowing programs theminthegarden,HannemannTheSouthOrangeCommunity says. Many tell me that they tasteGarden requires gardeners to donate way better than the ones in the gro- aportion(lessthan10%)oftheir cery store, which is 100% true!producetolocalfoodpantries.A MaplewoodandSouthOrangeteam of volunteers collects the pro-community gardens have Facebookduce on Saturday mornings starting groups for members to share photos,around July. (You can opt-out on a ask questions and keep up with thegiven weekend if you need your pro-latest events.TheresalsoaFacebook group,calledSOMANew JerseyGardening,started by Joy Yagid, who was one of the founding members of the Maplewood Communi-ty Garden and whose name is,formany,synonymous withgardeninginMaple-wood. Its a great place to ask questions and share photos. RESERVE BY JULY 25 One of the most frequently askedquestionsis:Isthis poison ivy? Fun fact: Yagid ISSUE IN HOMES AUGUST 15 saysthatshowthegroup got started! People were al-ways asking in the SOMA Lounge group if something Contact your salesperson or visitwaspoisonivy(orPIas mattersmagazine.com many refer to it), and every-one would tag Joy, so she gaveVolunteer Jennifer Pisani holds a gorgeous head the people what they wantedof cabbage under the squash tunnel at the South Orange Elks Rent Party Garden. Photo bya gardening group. Zoe Berkovic.26/ matters magazine / summer 2025'