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livingontheland - Re: [Livingontheland] sustainable communities

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Subject: Healthy soil and sustainable growing

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  • From: anna Lorrai <cactusandquail@yahoo.com>
  • To: Healthy soil and sustainable growing <livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Livingontheland] sustainable communities
  • Date: Fri, 30 May 2008 10:42:55 -0700 (PDT)



Tradingpost <tradingpost@lobo.net> wrote:

Well, if it's been going for 30 years then somebody made it work. Interesting tho that it uses writen leases and at times it's ended up in court.

paul tradingpost@lobo.net

*********** REPLY SEPARATOR ***********

On 5/29/2008 at 9:58 PM yarrow@sfo.com wrote:

>Yes, yes I do belong to an organic community garden. We don't have
>anything in common -- the only requirement is to be a resident of
>this town. Each person signs a one-year lease, renewable as long as
>you keep on paying the city and keep the plot more or less ok
>looking. A few of us garden year-round, here in this wonderful
>year-round gardening climate. Some plots get weedy and the city
>mostly does not enforce the lease terms because it has been sued in
>the past by folks who felt "entitled" to keep the plot even if they
>do not follow the rules. One person said there was nothing in the
>lease about not providing rat habitat (in his untended raspberry
>bramble), so that provision was added. Everyone is supposed to keep
>the plot planted or mulched year-round, but in practice from fall to
>spring too many plots go weedy. Few people follow the rule to keep
>the paths mulched and weed free.
>
>But on the whole, it works. It's been going for at least 30 years.
>The uncooperative people get weeded out, though they do make life
>difficult for everyone else while they're sorting themselves out. We
>have a place to leave extra produce, plants, and supplies, for anyone
>to take.
>
>A nice thing about this garden -- what makes it different from others
>I know of in surrounding counties -- is that plot sizes are bigger.
>Average is maybe 300 to 400 sf, but a few are up to 1000 sf or so. By
>contrast, a couple others in the area that put a lot of emphasis on
>community building have 64 sf (16 x 4) plots.
>
>Of course, I can't plant fruit trees or build permanent structures,
>but then I can't afford a million-dollar starter home in the area,
>either.
>
>One of the longtime gardeners used to volunteer as the coordinator.
>She knew everyone and helped people plant and weed, but she quit last
>year when the city refused to kick out noncompliant lessees. She's
>still a gardener and still helps people with their gardens, though.
>We have work parties about 3 times a year (to weed and mulch, build
>and fix fences, and do other projects) and a potluck in the fall (it
>hasn't fit into my schedule so far, though).
>
>The main community building thing is being in the garden and
>gradually getting to know other gardeners who come to the garden
>regularly. Also, it's open to the community (sort of like another
>public park, with no-picking signs posted), so we get children taking
>tours, people wandering in (it's near the main library), artists
>coming to paint, lots of dogwalkers using the perimeter path, etc.
>
>
>>In theory community gardens sound like a great idea. But as they
>>say, the Devil is in the details. From what I've read community
>>gardens only work out where those involved belong to something in
>>common, an organization, an apartment complex, a church, whatever,
>>where they know each other and hence have some consideration for the
>>others. A loose neighborhood collection of unrelated people can
>>quickly lose interest and let weeds go to seed, or spoil others
>>plots with sprays or just steal others produce. I'd be curious if
>>anyone has actual experience to the contrary.
>>
>>paul tradingpost@lobo.net
>>
>>*********** REPLY SEPARATOR ***********
>>
>>On 5/29/2008 at 7:57 PM yarrow@sfo.com wrote:
>>
>>>At 11:16 AM -0700 5/29/08, anna Lorrai wrote:
>>>Even if people lived in cities there are ways to grow food. I few
>>>days ago I watched Bill Mollisons " Global Gardener " on Youtube. In
>>>the urban section he showed many city farmers but the most impressive
>>>to me was the forward thinking developer in Davis California. This
>>>development has many homes but is built in such a way that the
>>>commons are self watering and growing food bearing trees. The
>>>children can ride their bikes about on the bike paths, pick fresh
>>>fruit and it is a very beautiful place to live. If more developers
>>>would build with self sufficiency in mind there would be less "Need"
>>>....
>>>
>>>
>>>Yeah, but being in California, those homes cost a bundle these days.
>>>
>>>One thing that has sprung up in lean times, over and over again, is
>>>victory gardens. There was a school garden movement at the turn of
>>>the century (19th to 20th!), and victory gardens were popular and
>>>productive in the U.S. during both the first and second world wars.
>>>The community gardening movement, if you can call it that, has
>>>persisted and is a terrific way for urban/suburban gardeners to grow
>>>food.
>>>
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>>
>>
>>
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