On a recent Saturday afternoon, the Ralph Bunche School Nursery rang with the sound of drills as a new raised bed was being installed. This wasn't the typical garden build, though -- the construction of this bed was the culmination of a project that City Slicker Farms' Youth Crew had been working on for several weeks.

Over the last six months, low-income senior residences in Alameda and San Francisco Counties have become home to new community garden spaces. These community group gardens are places of activity and health for the senior residents and program participants.

In partnerships with the Area Agency on Aging, Alameda County Public Health Department, Satellite Affordable Housing Associates, and San Francisco Department of Public Health, City Slicker Farms has been able to build eight new community gardens across both counties.

The goal of these gardens is to increase senior citizens' access to healthy food, while providing gentle exercise and helping keep participants active and independent for as long as possible.