There are many reasons communities come together to create a common area garden. Reasons can be as simple as creating closer friendships with neighbors while enjoying the beauty built by their own hands to teaching a community to grow food to feed the family and keep at risk youth busy and out of trouble. Fostering a deeper sense of community grows over time when an endeavor such as this is undertaken.
The types of community gardens neighborhoods might consider are ornamental and nutrition based. The ornamental garden is often called a pocket park and is grown to beautify areas in impoverished communities. The nutrition based garden is grown to feed either families of the neighborhood who tend the gardens or given to food banks to be distributed to those in need.
Either type of garden can be used as a teaching tool for local schools and as job training for those looking for work in the horticultural field.
Who is in Charge?
Any time a group of individuals come together on such a large project, it is important that there be guidelines clearly set out so that all involved understand what is expected.
The community garden can be handled in a couple of ways. One is to assign each person a chore in the garden to be carried out on a regular basis; in essence, this is their job for the duration of the garden. This is more along the lines of the common garden. The other way to manage the community garden is to assign a specific area of the plot to a family as their 'own' garden. They are responsible for their garden and they reap what they sow this is not dissimilar from the allotments found in the United Kingdom.
There are many questions that must be answered once the community decides which type of shared garden they will grow. Questions about where to find the land, what to plant, how to acquire needed supplies and will there be one go-to person from the group that will coordinate with everyone else?
To hash out all these questions so that everyone involved will understand the process, a community meeting should be called.
Points to Discuss at Meeting
- Who will be the person or persons who coordinate the efforts?
- Put guidelines down on paper and make certain everyone has a copy.
- Is the land public or private? Will the city allow use of city property to be used for a community garden? Will you be able to get a signed lease? This should be done whether the land is being rented or used for free.
- What will be planted? An ornamental garden used to beautify an area will be filled with blooming plants while a garden grown for food may have a variety of vegetables, fruits and nuts.
- Where will the financing come from for seeds, plants, fertilizer and tools? Will there be a water bill to pay the city? Fundraising is time consuming but is not as difficult as it may seem.
- Being flexible create and assign a list of expected tasks. Flexibility will foster better relationships.
Contact the local Cooperative Extension Office to inquire about an extension specialist or Master Gardener stopping by to assist in educating members about the process of gardening.
Consulting an attorney about liability should be on the list. It may be necessary to purchase insurance to cover injuries of those working or passing through the community garden.
Finally, give the garden a name that represents the community of people that created it.
Further reading: Advantages of Community Gardening, Community Gardens Alleviate Hunger, Community Gardens
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