Wednesday, May 22, 2013

FYI



Monday, May 27th, is Memorial Day. It is a federal holiday so many organizations and government agencies may be closed that day. If you have places you usually go on Mondays, you should check with them to make sure they’ll be open. Memorial Day is a day of remembering the men and women who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. You may wish to take a moment that day to remember their sacrifice to our country.

If you have questions about food programs, need help finding a food pantry, or are looking for information about the summer lunch program for kids in your area, you can call the National Hunger Hotline at 1.866.348.6479. The Hunger Hotline is staffed M-F from 9a.m.-6p.m. Eastern Time who speak both English and Spanish. Again, that number is 1.866.348.6479.

A couple of months ago I told you that you could use food stamps at the Farmer’s Markets, but did you know that any retailer or Farmer’s Market that is approved to accept food stamps can also sell you plants and seeds? If you have a place to put in a few plants, growing your own food can be a cost-effective way to keep food coming in, even when your food stamps run out at the end of the month. Food stamps will not pay for soil or containers for your plants, but you could get a plant that has a larger container with more soil in it. 

In many farmers’ markets across the county, master gardeners can answer questions about plants and sometimes they do free workshops on gardening. You may also live in a city that participates in a community garden program which would enable you to get a small plot of soil to plant your seeds or vegetable plants.  If you have access to a computer you can check to see if there is a community garden in your area by using this interactive map found at tinyurl.com/citygardens. This is the perfect time in most of our country to plant some veggies!

Take good care!

No comments: