Groundhog wreaks havoc on Sheldon Park Community Garden in Harrison

The Sheldon Park Community Garden lost almost 100 crops Tuesday after a groundhog made its way into the garden and ravaged the planter boxes.

Drew Jonczak, the primary gardener at the Sheldon Park Community Center in Harrison, where the garden is located, said the groundhog managed to get through the garden’s perimeter fence and, in the span of two days, damage many of the vegetables growing in the unprotected planter boxes.

Jonczak had been preparing to harvest the vegetables soon.

The gardening process began about three months ago, when Jonczak planted a variety of produce including cucumbers, tomatoes, beans, peas and onions.

While Jonczak does the bulk of the gardening, a few volunteers help out. Children also occasionally lend a hand as part of programs held at the community center.

A free distribution program organized by Jonczak and the community center is being discussed, which would help feed families struggling to buy fresh ingredients in the Natrona Heights community.

Although the planting process began a bit later than planned, Jonczak still had hoped to get two or three harvests out of each bed over the course of the year.

“I want to get the plants in and get the plants out,” he said.

Jonczak is an experienced gardener and keeps up his own large backyard garden. He said he grew 700 lettuce plants when the program began, in order to “get the program going.”

“Giant Eagle’s in my backyard,” he joked.

Jonczak plans to replace the plants that were destroyed with plants from his home garden, which he said can thrive because there are fences around each of the boxes that contain vegetables. He hopes to incorporate this type of defense at the Sheldon Park garden.

Because the garden’s budget provided by American Family Network and the community center is small, Jonczak said, he has asked a maintenance worker at the center for any extra fencing that he has on hand.

Once the community center has been better protected, Jonczak said, he plans to plant zucchini and corn in the garden.