FARMINGTON -- A community can do a lot with 40 acres of farmland.

It can be used for shared gardens for people of all ages and abilities. Workshops can be offered on how to grow and preserve harvests. Small animal-husbandry projects could be explored. And people can learn first-hand about the value of locally grown food and the concept of sustainability.

Stone Soup Garden, planned for a 40-acre parcel of former farmland on Farmington Falls Road now owned by LEAP Inc., represents a fledgling collaboration of Farmington-area community programs and people who can't wait to get this new venture started.

LEAP Inc. is offering use of land that is part of its property at Oliver House, a licensed, assisted-living facility. The private, nonprofit agency provides community and residential supports for people with cognitive and intellectual disabilities. LEAP is an acronym for Life Enrichment Advancing People,

Last week, a group of community-health majors in Denise Higgins' Nutrition and Obesity class at the University of Maine at Farmington, itching to get going, prepared, planted and mulched a bed of garlic that will ready for harvest next summer.

The planting was done under the supervision of Dave Fuller, the University of Maine Cooperative Extension's agriculture and natural resources professional who is Stone Soup Garden's adviser.

UMF students Lila Haynes and Sarah Pine worked with Higgins and others to write a grant to the Libra Foundation to fund a part-time coordinator that was submitted last week.

"I am so thankful to be part of the collaborative effort to get this up and running. I feel it will be such a great opportunity for all," Haynes said. "It is so important that people learn how to sustain themselves by growing their own food."

"I just have so much passion inside me about this topic and project that it is sometimes hard to find the right words to convey what I would like to see," she said.

The idea for the shared community garden hatched when LEAP's director, Rick Dorian, took a Cooperative Extension's master gardener class with Fuller. In return for 40 hours of training, these gardeners volunteer their time and expertise with community projects.

Dorian said he and Fuller started talking about the possible uses of the 40 acres and then UMF community health professor Maurice "Bud" Martin, who sits on the LEAP board of directors, suggested involving students.

"We are thrilled that this project is taking shape," Dorian said. "And there will be many benefits to the people LEAP serves. Directly, there will be more people around to help them learn about gardening, they will meet new people and also get to help others."

Dorian's vision is to have the field divided into community garden plots. There are already a set of raised beds built to accommodate people in wheelchairs. There are tools on site, a shed for people to store their own equipment and a parking area has been enlarged.

"This is a very creative project and we are inviting a lot of people to get involved," he said.

Higgins said the excitement in the classroom about putting into practice things students are learning is huge. The concepts of learning about where good comes from, the politics of food and how people can grow things themselves are incorporated into her classes so these young educators will the message back to the communities where they will work.

One book she uses as a text is Barbara Kingsolver's, "Animal, Vegetable Miracle," that tells the story of how the author's family was changed by one year of deliberately eating food produced in the place where they live.

"I feel this garden is an opportunity for people of all generations to come together to teach, learn and share the lost arts of sustainable living," said student Sarah Pine. "Together as a community we can learn how to become better stewards of our land and improve our quality of life."

Other groups involved are the Healthy Community Coalition, the Grange, local agriculture producers, and ARAMARK food service at UMF and community volunteers. For information, contact Higgins at denise.higgins@maine.edu.

Betty Jespersen -- 778-6991

bjespersen@centralmaine.com