Pink Slagle and her family were weekend ski warriors for years at Sugarloaf. Once she retired, she and her husband left Scarborough to move to Carrabassett Valley

where the Sugarloaf ski area is located.

Prior to her retirement, she worked as the grower in a commercial greenhouse in Skowhegan before owning her own floral shop in Pittsfield, followed by a banking position in Scarborough.

Since she settled full-time in Carrabassett Valley 12 years ago, she has branched out her outside activities to kayaking and hiking on trails in the “Valley.”‘”  She got involved in the town library and served as president of the board for several years. Then she got back into gardening for others.

She helped create the Carrabassett Valley Community Garden and has two other gardeners helping out.

One of them is Chris Newell, who lives in Carrabassett Valley year-round with his wife, Christine. Among the many activities Newell is involved with, he also serves on the board of the library and the Carrabassett Valley Outdoor Association.

The other is David Reyneke, who also lives in Carrabassett Valley full time and owns a marketing and technology agency called Wallabout Collective. He has been trying his best to use technology to improve visibility and collaboration in the garden. After completing the Master Gardener Volunteer program a few years ago he got involved with the garden as part of his volunteer work. He is most passionate about mutual aid and bringing people together around a common goal, which the garden has been a great example of, he said.

Pink and Chris recently took a few minutes away from their gardening and other pursuits to answer a few questions for us.

How did the garden project start? How did you get involved?

Slagle: When I retired and moved to Carrabassett Valley full time in 2013 there had been interest in starting a community garden in the space beside the library. A group met to discuss logistics of how to do it, who gets a plot, and what the guidelines would be. I suggested a different course of action: Since we could all afford to buy our own organic carrots, let’s take this opportunity to enjoy the gardening experience, and give the produce to local people in less fortunate circumstances. We have now been doing this for over a decade.

Newell:  I was checking out a book at the library last year and noticed a sign-up sheet for help in watering the garden.  From there, I met Pink and began watering and tending the garden.

What do you like about gardening?

Slagle: I love the progression each year of preparing the empty beds, planting the seeds and seedlings, tending them through our short growing season, and being able to provide good food to our neighbors. With regard to the library garden, I value and enjoy the community of growers and volunteers each season — in and out of the garden.

Newell: I have gardened for over 45 years now and love the opportunity to step into the garden and just focus on the land and the plants growing.  You can easily shut out the rest of the noise your life makes each day and just revel in the quiet and the progress the plants are making over the course of a gardening season.

Do you have favorite items to grow?

Slagle: Too many! We always have a plenitude of green beans that grow over tall arches, connecting the raised beds in a pleasing aesthetic.

Newell: I love the snap peas because they are very hardy and we can easily get a jump on the growing season in May when other plants still need more warmth to commence growing. On the other end of the spectrum, it’s great growing tomatoes as they love the warmer weather and they present many opportunities to tend to them over the summer (staking, pruning, etc.) while we wait for the glorious burst of color and flavor when the fruits are ripe.

Who does the gardening bounty benefit?

Slagle: We have connected with many different people and groups in Carrabassett Valley, Stratton (village) and Eustis over the years. But we will always be open to whoever needs it.

Have there been good years and bad years for gardening here?

Slagle: Of course! But we have been able to persevere through challenges of weather, pests, and soil conditions and still produce bountiful harvests. Last year we were fortunate to receive a generous donation that allowed us to put in new raised beds and upgrade the soil, which has definitely enhanced our garden for the future.

Newell: Last year was not our best but we learned and recovered this year. Pests were an issue as they always are in a garden. We turned to the University of Maine Cooperative Extension for soil testing and learned that we needed to take some off-season steps to enhance the soil and the net result is a much better growing season this year. Not to say that the soil was the answer to the pests — we have white moths flitting about now that lay eggs in the garden that produce cabbageworm caterpillars that love to eat plant leaves. But a healthy garden starts in the soil and may have been a help to keep the other pests from last year from returning.