Community gardens are important to ensuring access to healthy and nutritious food and to promoting positive mental health for many people in the community. Community Garden Coordinators play an important role in helping to reduce the risk of transmission of COVID-19 in these settings and to ensure a healthy environment for community garden members, students, and volunteers. Community gardens may continue to operate with some adaptions.
All community garden operators should practice and encourage basic precautions to prevent the spread of COVID-19, including maintaining physical distance from others, regular and diligent handwashing, cleaning and disinfecting frequently, avoiding touching your face with unwashed hands, and staying home if sick.
Each community garden is expected to have a garden access plan outlining how infection prevention and control measures will be implemented.
Check with your local government. They may have a standard garden access plan for all community gardens to use. If a standard plan is not in place, work with members of your community garden to develop an access plan.
Community Garden Coordinators are responsible for communicating the garden access plan to all garden users. A copy of the garden access plan should be posted on site for reference as needed.
Garden access plans should include three sections that address (1) access and use; (2) physical distancing; and (3) enhanced hygiene.
Gardens are to be used by registered garden members and official staff/volunteers only. Visitors should not be allowed at this time, including members of the public. Post signage advising visitors to not enter the community garden area. Proxies may be used if people are temporarily unable to tend to their plot (e.g., due to self-isolation) given they are aware of the garden access plan and understand the necessary protocols.
Gardens must not be visited or used by people who are sick OR who have travelled outside Canada in the last 14 days OR were identified as a close contact of a confirmed COVID-19 case or outbreak. Post signage at the entrance to the garden notifying users not to enter if they are sick or meet any of these restrictions.
Garden users who are sick, including but not limited to experiencing symptoms of COVID-19, should be advised to stay home. Garden users can check their symptoms using the BC COVID-19 Self Assessment Tool. The BCCDC has more information on
symptoms and
self-isolation.
Post signage at the garden entrance to promote what COVID-19 prevention measures should be practiced.
In-person educational programs may only be provided if measures detailed in this document can be maintained. Consider online educational training as an alternative. If a small group of people needs to gather to support a project, ensure the measures detailed in this document can be maintained throughout the project.
Modify the garden environment to ensure garden users can practice physical distancing (i.e., maintaining a distance of at least 2 metres between people). Consider high traffic areas (e.g., sheds and water fixtures) and post signs as reminders for physical distancing.
Direct traffic in one direction through the garden with the use of chalk or tape markings on the ground, ropes, barriers or other markers as required. For example, if there are two exits, consider designating one for entry and the other for exit.
If garden plots are close together (less than 2 metres) or physical distancing is difficult to maintain, assign a garden access schedule to garden users identifying when they can access the garden (i.e., which days of the week and time of day). Do not schedule two people to be working on plots next to each other at the same time unless they live in the same household.
Advise garden users to limit family groups to ideally 1-2 people per household at a time. Advise parents/caregivers they are responsible for ensuring their children maintain at least 2 metres of physical distance from other garden users.
Community garden users should cough or sneeze into their elbow sleeve or a tissue. They should then throw away used tissues and immediately perform hand hygiene.
Ask garden users to bring their own tools to avoid sharing (whenever possible) and ensure they are taken home after each use. If communal tools are used, they should be cleaned and disinfected at least twice daily.
Disinfecting wipes or a disinfecting solution may be used.
Identify common touchpoints/surfaces such as water spigots, doorknobs, railings, and consider ways to reduce contact or determine a plan for them to be cleaned and disinfected more frequently (e.g., at least twice daily).
Fresh fruits and vegetables should be
washed or scrubbed under cold, running, potable tap water prior to being eaten.
Additional information on cleaning and disinfecting is available from the
BCCDC.
Work with the school district or independent school authority to determine the facility access that may be needed (e.g., water supply and tool shed access). Follow all infection prevention and control measures outlined by the school district or independent school authority.
If a school garden is not currently being maintained, garden coordinators can work with the school district/independent school authority to find community organizations or groups that may be interested in managing the school garden until the school can use it again.
Develop a plan to prevent COVID-19 transmission if any seeds, seedlings, or harvested food is being delivered to others. Where possible, arrange for contactless deliveries. Persons involved in deliveries should practice physical distancing, hand washing/use of alcohol-based hand rub, and cough or sneeze into a tissue or their elbow.
Consider ways to provide new garden space to people who may be facing barriers to food access whenever possible. This could include:
- Maintaining a separate waiting list for people facing barriers to food access;
- Connecting with gardeners not using their plot this year to ask if it may be reallocated to someone on the waiting list for the season;
- Coordinating donations of food grown to community food programs;
- Donating food grown in open plots to community food programs;
- Sharing food grown with garden members who are not able to garden this season due to illness or need to self-isolate; and
- Opening school gardens not currently being used as part of school programming to provide additional garden space for the community.
