BATON ROUGE - Residents gathered at BREC's Howell Park on Sunday to help harvest vegetables from the Baton Roots community farm before the bitter cold weather expected through the week.

"With the freezing temperatures, I was worried that some of the crops wouldn't make it and I just didn't want anything to go to waste. I wanted to share our bountiful harvest with everybody," Mitchell Provensal, with Baton Roots, said.

Baton Roots organizers took to social media Friday afternoon asking for volunteers. The farm says the response was overwhelming and the crops were wiped out within hours.

"I think people got really excited. The post got shared more than anything that we've posted before so people definitely got a little head start on us today," Provensal said.

Baton Roots is sponsored by Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome's Healthy BR initiative. The farm provides fresh vegetables to Southern Cofe, Free Fridges, and more. On Sunday, the volunteers took home anything they picked. All produce not taken will be donated to MLK Volunteers on Monday.

"I think this is a good thing for the community to come together, bond, and for things to be available. Just to be able to put your hands on it and pick it yourself means a whole lot and I can't wait to cook what I just picked," resident Valencia Offord said.

Baton Roots hosts many events for volunteers to harvest vegetables. For more information, click here.