Growing Together: Jenny Burrell and the Ag Center Community Gardeners
November 9, 2026
By Erin Plitt
Jenny Burrell started with a simple wish: to grow a tomato. More than a decade later, her experience at the Peconic Land Trust’s Community Garden at the Agricultural Center at Charnews Farm in Southold has blossomed into something much larger—a connection to the land, lasting friendships with fellow gardeners, and a shared vision for the garden’s future.
When Jenny first joined, she committed to planting a 20-by-30-foot plot and turned to the internet for inspiration on what to plant. A self-described weekend warrior, she tended her garden whenever time allowed. At home, a challenging combination of salt, shade, and deer made growing food difficult. At the Agricultural Center, however, deer fencing, irrigation, shared tools, educational workshops, and accessible growing space opened up new possibilities. Her first tomato variety, Sweet 100, rewarded her enthusiasm with more fruit than she knew what to do with.
Over the years, Jenny has discovered that some of the garden’s greatest resources are the people tending the neighboring plots. Each gardener brings different experiences and expertise, and, most importantly, a willingness to share what they know. That same spirit inspired the gatherings the gardeners began organizing. What started as an opportunity to meet and share experiences has evolved into monthly get-togethers where gardeners share food, exchange ideas, and imagine what they can accomplish together.
Today, that collective energy is helping breathe new life into the garden’s shared spaces. Robin Harris, Senior Stewardship Office Manager, is helping bring the gardeners’ ideas to life. With funding secured through the Urban Farms and Community Garden Grant, awarded in November 2025, the community is reclaiming shared areas and planting the seeds for the garden’s next chapter. Together, they are clearing and revitalizing common spaces, expanding berry plantings, establishing a year-round greenhouse, nurturing fruit trees, and exploring even more possibilities.
The garden’s abundance is also reaching well beyond its fences. Hundreds of pounds of produce have been donated to CAST this season, thanks to Robin’s Donation Garden and fellow gardeners who contribute their surplus harvests to a shared refrigerator. Gardeners take turns delivering the fresh produce, helping ensure that the fruits of their collective efforts reach those who need them most. It is a wonderful example of how a community garden can grow far more than food—it can cultivate generosity and strengthen connections throughout the community.
Looking ahead, gardeners hope to use additional grant funding to improve irrigation for the shared berry plantings and fruit trees. The new greenhouse will allow them to start seeds earlier in the season, with even greater potential for future growing and educational opportunities. Just as important, the improvements are being shaped by the gardeners themselves, whose ideas and hands-on involvement are helping determine what comes next. As Jenny puts it, “Next year is just going to be dynamite… but I guess that is what every gardener says!”
Another hope for the future is to welcome more young people and new faces into the garden. With farmland and growing space increasingly difficult to access on Long Island, the community garden offers an opportunity to grow fresh food while learning alongside experienced gardeners who are eager to share their knowledge. The garden is evolving to be even more inclusive and welcoming, with new raised beds available for those who may have physical limitations that make gardening in a traditional ground-level plot challenging. Whether someone is a seasoned grower or planting their first seed, all are welcome to participate, contribute to shared projects, bring fresh ideas, and enjoy the rewards of gardening together. For Jenny and her fellow gardeners, the next chapter is about growing the community just as much as the harvest.
Sometimes, that community spirit is expressed through the simplest gestures. On an especially hot day this season, Jenny was working in the blackberry patch while a group of volunteers were removing a stand of invasive bamboo nearby. Seeing how hard the group was working in the heat; she brought over popsicles to share—a small but memorable gesture that perfectly captures the generosity shared at the garden. Here, growth is measured not only in tomatoes, berries, and pounds of donated produce, but also in friendships, shared knowledge, and new connections.
Erin Plitt
Marketing and Communication Associate
EPlitt@PeconicLandTrust.org