Moke Hill Community Garden Receives Grant

Dec 10, 2025 by editor

The Calaveras Community Foundation has generously provided grant funding to support the Mokelumne Hill Community Garden located in the historic Marredda Gardens owned by the Mokelumne Hill Veterans Memorial District.  This $3,200 grant will allow us to purchase and install a 10 x 10-foot wooden shed along with shelving and hardware.  On most Wednesdays, students from the adjacent Mokelumne Hill Elementary’s afterschool program walk to the Community Garden to learn by working with each other how to build a garden.  As a part of the Marredda Gardens our project continues an historic legacy of the past.  Known as Upper Italian Gardens, here immigrant Italian farmers grew fruits and vegetables for sale to townsfolk and miners.   From 1867 into the1920s, the gardens provided produce for the surrounding communities that was delivered using horse-drawn wagons.

The 10 x 10 wooden shed will have a gable roof, solid floor, and double doors.  Once installed, we will purchase shelving and hardware for hanging tools and storing supplies.  Now, with a secure place to store our tools and equipment, we can continue the work of developing a garden space for the community and acknowledge the gardeners of the past.

The students of Moke Hill Elementary and the community at large are grateful to the Calaveras Community Foundation for this opportunity.

For more information about this exciting project contact Maggi Blood:  maggi.blood@gmail.com