Last year, we brought you a scene from a Lakewood backyard.
As autumn approached, a group of women shot rakes at ripe apples hanging from a tree. They giggled as the red gems fell to earth. They gathered them, sorted them, recited poetry about them - and then, they delivered their haul to local food pantries for people in need.
Barbara Masoner, co-director of Grow Local Colorado, said the story generated interest. People wanted to help out. But there was one problem: We attended the last glean of the season, and there was nothing left to pluck.
So, as a service to interested readers, we're bringing you some news earlier this season: Masoner and her army of fruit pickers are gearing up to start picking, and they still want help. She said both interested volunteers and people with fruit trees who want to give the group access, can contact Brandee Beauregard, their new gleaning coordinator, at [email protected]. Interested volunteers will be added to an email list, where they'll get notifications on times they can lend a hand.
Last year, Masoner said, her group gathered 3,109 pounds of fruit, then handed them off to organizations like Metro Caring, Denver Food Rescue and We Don't Waste.
"It was everywhere," she said, "a lot of school food pantries."
She said to expect a "major haul" of apples this year, maybe some plums.
'The peaches and apricots will not happen, because we had a late frost," she added.
But the pears should be ripe for the picking, she told us. The first glean will likely be from an Asian pear tree on Sunday.
