[Community_garden] Grass Roots

[adam36055 at aol.com]

 The saddest thing in the world is a nicely set out "community,"  garden created by a very well meaning person who loves the idea, that nobody gardens in. 
 
Mind you, I'm prejudiced, but I was part of Liz Christy's crew that threw seed bombs into empty lots on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, and then, incrementally turned feral lots into community gardens. 
 
A community garden will only work if you have people who will break their fannies to create and maintain a community garden - gardeners first, with a willingness to seriously commit time, effort and sweat. 
 
You have the land Mr. Hammett, then put and advert out for maniac gardeners, walk them through your plot of land, explain that this is to grow food for the hungry and empower poor people and see whose fingers get itchy at the idea of gardening for the good of the community - 
 
and a few flowers to take home.  If community gardens are not fun, then we'd be better off writing a check and bending our elbows in a bar, being engaged in intimate calesthenics or bowling, wouldn't we?
 
Best wishes, 
Adam Honigman
Gardener who enjoys all of the above except writing a check.  
 
-----Original Message-----
From: jhammett at hopeministriesbr.org
To: community_garden at list.communitygarden.org
Sent: Thu, 12 Oct 2006 9:54 AM
Subject: [Community_garden] What comes first?


Hello all, I am new to this listserv.  I am intrigued by Adam's question of
"What comes first?"  The neighborhood/community interest in a garden or the
garden itself?  I am employed by an NPO that operates a food pantry in Baton
Rouge, LA, as well as a mentoring program aimed at stabilizing low-income
families housing situations.  We are currently contemplating starting a
community garden here at HOPE.  We are blessed with quite a bit of flat,
sunny land on a busy urban street (the most underutilized land in the
neighborhood, in fact).  We would like to grow a garden in order to stock
fresh produce in our food pantry as well as to bring the community together
in the realization that they do have the power to take control of their diet
and not be so reliant on the corporate-based food distribution system
currently operating in our country.  But here's the rub?  Do we go out and
secure a large grant, hire a Gardening Coordinator, build raised beds and
then throw a planting party, inviting the neighborhood? Or do we build
grassroots support for the garden and make it more of a neighborhood project
from the start?  I am tend to favor option #2, but this is the long-run
approach and could take a very long time.  Whereas we are a well-established
organization which does have the resources (and access to resources) to
build a garden in a much more expeditious fashion.  So what to do?  I would
love it for those of you on this list to hash it out with me.  Ready, set,
go!

 

Jonathan M. Hammett

Case Worker

Family Mentoring Program

United Methodist HOPE Ministries

(225) 355-0702 ext. 28

(225) 357-6351 fax 

jhammett at hopeministriesbr.org

 

The mission of United Methodist HOPE Ministries is to coordinate ministries,
provide resources & establish relationships that help the people we serve
move toward self-sufficiency with dignity.

 

 

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