GAMETI/RAE LAKES
Matla Junior Mantla says working in Gameti's community garden is helping him develop the skills he'll need to have a garden of his own one day.

Matla Junior Mantla is spending this summer working in Gameti's community garden. - photo courtesy of Judal Dominicata

"Gardening wouldn't really be a future career for me, personally, but it would be more of a hobby," he said. "It would be nice to start a garden of my own."

Mantla is one of the workers on Gameti's garden project, which now consists of two beds totalling 43,000 square feet, corn fields, rice paddies and goats and chickens.

It's Mantla's first time working in a garden.

"I've learned that gardening is actually really fun," he said. "I had never done gardening before, until now."

Having access to freshly grown, local produce has been wonderful for the community, Mantla said.

"I think it's pretty great because vegetables at the store are pretty scarce at times, people buy it and it sells out really quickly," he said. "We don't always have a chance to get them at the store."

It's also helping residents cut down on grocery costs, he added.

"We don't have to pay as much and we don't have to wait as long for vegetables to come into the store," he said.

In addition to material benefits, Mantla said the garden has also been good for his spirit.

"It's peaceful and calm. I can work at it at my own pace, but I try to get it done as fast as I can," he said. "Planting the plants is my favourite thing to do."

He's also learning practical skills. Part of Mantla's job includes organizing jobs for local kids and making sure they complete their tasks.

Now that the summer is progressing, Mantla said he's looking forward to the harvest. He said he noticed corn and radishes grew particularly well.

"When I saw the corn, it was small. Now it's pretty well grown," he said. "These radishes we planted two weeks ago and they are growing pretty nicely. They're pretty impressive."

Although it's hard to choose just one, lettuces have become one of Mantla's favourite plants to grow.

"Lettuces are pretty great," he said. "It's also the corn, that's also nice, and potatoes. But mostly the lettuce."

Mantla said he hopes to be in Gameti for the beginning of the harvest. He currently lives in Edmonton, Alta., and will be returning in the fall. He said in the meantime, he's learning lessons he can take with him wherever he goes -- including persistence.

"The vegetables don't grow right away," he said. "There are also going to be bugs and everything. It's going to be hard at times, but it's important to have patience for the vegetables to grow."

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