The Garden Connection – July 2025 | Beauty, Bounty, and Blessings in the Garden

In the fullness of summer, gardens often reveal both beauty and abundance — reminders of the quiet ways growth unfolds through care, patience, and shared effort. The fruits of the season can invite gratitude, generosity, and attentiveness to the many gifts present in creation.

This issue of The Garden Connection reflects on the ways gardens nurture community and offer signs of blessing through beauty, nourishment, and connection. From Garden Spotlight stories to reflections rooted in tradition, the newsletter highlights the many ways gardens foster thoughtful care for creation.

Read the full newsletter:
https://mailchi.mp/68235317a326/beauty-bounty-blessings-in-the-garden-connection

July 31, 2025

Dear friends,

Summer is in full bloom, and so is the good work happening in Catholic gardens across the country. In this issue, we’re celebrating volunteers, leaders, garden saints, and the growing connections in our network.

Whether you’re harvesting, planting, or simply taking in the beauty around you, thank you for being part of this community rooted in hope and care for creation.

Gratefully,
The CGN Team

Garden Spotlight

Since 2010, the St. Matthew Community Garden has been growing more than vegetables—it’s been growing generosity, resilience, and community spirit.

Spanning three acres, this volunteer-supported garden provides fresh produce at no cost to neighbors in need. Through pesticide-free growing, composting, and even hydroponics, it embodies care for creation.

Despite limited infrastructure – no dedicated water or power – and a small volunteer base, a faithful core of about a dozen keeps the mission going. In 2024, their dedication bore fruit: 7,500 pounds of produce were harvested and shared.

Let us give thanks for the quiet, steady work of St. Matthew’s garden team. May their efforts continue to bless and nourish their community!

Garden Saints of July & August
As we tend our gardens through the heat of summer, we turn to these saints -whose lives reflect a deep love for God, creation, and community. May their witness continue to nourish and inspire us.

🌿 July Saints

St. Benedict of Nursia (July 11) – Patron of farmers and father of Western monasticism. His Rule honors ora et labora – prayer and work – and reflects deep reverence for the land.

St. Kateri Tekakwitha (July 14) – Patron saint of ecology and the environment. She saw God in the land, trees, and animals, and inspires a reverent relationship with nature.

St. Mary Magdalene (July 22) – In the garden after the Resurrection, she mistook the Risen Christ for a gardener – reminding us that gardens are sacred places of encounter, transformation, and hope.

🌻 August Saints
St. Clare of Assisi (August 11) – A contemplative soul drawn to beauty and simplicity. Her communities cultivated gardens as places of prayer, peace, and provision – living in close harmony with God’s creation.

St. Rose of Lima (August 23) – Cared for the poor using food and medicinal herbs she grew in her family garden. She is a patron saint of gardening and cultivation of blooming flowers.

St. Fiacre (August 30 or Sept 1) – A 7th-century Irish monk and gardener who grew herbs and vegetables to care for the sick. He is honored today as the patron saint of gardeners and herbalists.

Celebrating Leadership in Faith & Farming
Congrats to Farmer Matt Jones, named one of Greater Baltimore’s 2025 40 Under 40!
As farm director, Matt has guided Little Portion Farm – a ministry of the Franciscan Friars Conventual – from its first plantings into a thriving space for food justice and care for creation. Under his leadership, the farm has donated over 100,000 pounds of fresh produce to feed neighbors in need.

You’re Invited: Gather at Little Portion Farm
Gather, a farm-to-table dinner, will take place on Thursday, August 21 at Little Portion Farm in Ellicott City, MD.
Enjoy a three-course meal featuring farm-fresh produce, locally sourced meats, and hand-crafted cocktails.
www.littleportionfarm.org/gather