The North Tenth Street Co-op in Lafayette is one of roughly 110 projects participating in Communities Take Root. The garden is maintained, in part, by the City of Lafayette and the Lyn Treece Boys and Girls Club.
The contest is decided by online votes, with the winning communities receiving orchards tailored to their food needs and climates.
Purdue plant pathologist Ian Thompson is coordinating the local effort through the N-10 garden. He says the competition includes a range of unique rural and urban plots.
"It's really quite broad. But all of the projects share the central goal of growing healthy food in their community."
Thompson says if the N-10 wins an orchard, it would ideally include hardy, low maintenance fruit trees such as apples or pears. Winners are awarded permanent orchards from the Fruit Tree Planting Foundation.
Thompson says voting is an easy and important way for Tippecanoe County residents to get involved.
"You can vote every day. And it sort of seems like we go through a pattern where people vote a few times on a daily basis and then it falls off."
He says peaches, blackberries, and grapes are other options for fruit-bearing plants in greater Lafayette.
The Communities Take Root competition runs through August and voting can be done on a daily basis. More information is HERE.