Our Market Garden
In our market garden, we grow culturally diverse produce with an organic, holistic, and chemical-free approach that yields nourishing foods for our bodies and our Earth.
Plant Power to the People
The Young Jupiter Market Garden’s purpose is to bring ethnically diverse, naturally-grown produce to Harrisonburg’s Afro-diverse community while generating income to build and restore community members’ essence of self-dignity and desire to also want to want more for themselves and their closed ones. Through mother nature stewardship, we are bringing our African Americans of slave decent and all African women to dive back into agricultural production as a means to end social, economical, and environmental deterioration.
Lenga Lenga (Amaranth Greens)
The green leaves of the amaranth plant, a flowering annual that is often regarded as a “weed” by many gardeners in the United States, but that is a prized ingredient in central African cuisine. Lenga Lenga is nutritious and hearty. Amaranth grows readily in most climates around the Americas, and is also highly appreciated in Central American cuisines. The seeds of the amaranth flower can be harvested and ground to make a hearty gluten free grain.
Ngai Ngai
Ngai Ngai is the Congolese name for the tender young leaves of the Hibiscus sabdariffa, called Rosella in English. The greens are a staple of Congolese cuisine, steamed or stir fried with onions and tomato until tender and dark.
Aubergine (Eggplants)
Eggplant — called Aubergine in Europe, Garden Egg or Guinea Squash in Western Africa— is native to Asia, and has long been used in Asian, Middle Eastern, Mediterranean, and African cuisine.
Okra
a staple of the cuisine of the African American south and African cuisines more broadly, okra is a nutritious and hearty vegetable rich in vitamin A and low in calories. Okra is loved fried, grilled, pickled, thrown into soup, or even fresh. It is almost a symbol of African American culture in the American South to some. It originated from the warm equatorial climates of Africa and South Asia.
Having a criminal record is a major obstacle to finding work, housing, and a place in the community. As these community members who in the next six months will be released out into our communities, they too are in need of a centering space where no shame, no blame, and no guilt hover over their desire of seeking a better new beginning. The Young Jupiter Market Garden is committed to building relationships with people nearing the end of nonviolent jail sentences to create a safe space for reentry. upon releasing date, these individuals have no clue onto what society and norms are currently. We offer case management resources to support them as they are going through the hassle of regaining their identification, finding a healthy home, and a job to make sure that they are in compliance with their PO officer. With the servitude these community members bring to the table to tending to mother nature needs and all who are walking on it, we pay off their charges keeping them in detention with their PO officers and the Judiciary oppressive system. Read more about relationship building with people experiencing incarceration to understand the importance of safe reentry space.