Living Car Free - Community gardening

This year, a youth organization in town has been active in getting community gardening projects set up. Two churches have allowed for plots on their properties and one of the seniors' facilities will also have some plots.

Today I booked a space at my church. I live in a townhouse complex and it doesn't really work to have a garden there. (A number of us have tried a community garden there, but it didn't work well, partly because of neighbourhood politics.)

So now it's time to start planning what I'm going to plant. If I do this right, I'll be able to have a lot of stuff preserved or stored for the winter. Then, for the cold months, I'll be looking at solutions for things like fresh herbs and fresh vegetables for salads.

147743I used this last winter, good results with basil and cilantro(chinese parsley):

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16896819015&nm_mc=OTC-Froogle&cm_mmc=OTC-Froogle-_-Garden+++Patio-_-AeroGrow+International++Inc.-_-96819015

We have community gardening plots scattered throughout the city. They roto-till the ground about this time of year, so it's a lot easier to get the planting done. Some of them also have tools you can borrow, or a locking tool shed. This is important if you don't want to lug the tools on your bike every time you go to the garden. I used to do this every year, but I've been lazy in the last few years.

A newer trend is called neighborhood gardening. This usually starts when neighbors "discover" a plot of unused land (like a vacant lot) and get permission to garden it. Often the work is done communally and the harvest is shared.

A newer trend is called neighborhood gardening. This usually starts when neighbors "discover" a plot of unused land (like a vacant lot) and get permission to garden it. Often the work is done communally and the harvest is shared.

This is what my wife has started doing. Although she is new to the neighborhood garden, it seems to be a lot better than raising veggies on your apartment deck in 5 gallon buckets. It seems like an ideal solution for those who love to garden but have no land to plant in, the wife loves it.

This is what my wife has started doing. Although she is new to the neighborhood garden, it seems to be a lot better than raising veggies on your apartment deck in 5 gallon buckets. It seems like an ideal solution for those who love to garden but have no land to plant in, the wife loves it.
If you only have an apartment deck and want to grow edibles (and it gets 6+ hour of sunlight per day) you should try out aquaponics (http://www.backyardaquaponics.com/).

Has anybody tried those upside-down hanging thingies for growing tomatoes? "As seen on TV"


http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=upside-down+tomato+garden&tag=googhydr-20&index=aps&hvadid=4031416301&ref=pd_sl_55zoogbzne_b
147937

Downsides of community gardening:
- if you have to travel a lengthy distance to the plot, you have to be disciplined about making regular trips.
- you seldom get the same plot year after year(?). An important feature of gardening is building up the soil.

Plus side:
- you probably get to hang out with other gardeners and hopefully get tips about growing. Gardening isn't that easy. Local knowledge is a big help.
- you can usually pick a spot with good sunlight and most likely pretty good soil. Not always a possibility with the backyard garden.


Still, I think I would hang on to a little herb garden or a flower pot at my house. I'd hate to have to travel for herbs while I was in the middle of cooking something.

Has anybody tried those upside-down hanging thingies for growing tomatoes? "As seen on TV"


http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=upside-down+tomato+garden&tag=googhydr-20&index=aps&hvadid=4031416301&ref=pd_sl_55zoogbzne_b
147937

No but I have a couple in the box that I am going to try this year...late getting them out, my MIL already has tomato plants well on their way in the garden!

Aaron :)

Has anybody tried those upside-down hanging thingies for growing tomatoes? "As seen on TV"

I want to know about the giant blueberries.

We have our own garden this year, but I toured some of the nearby community gardens for ideas, and picked the brains of some of the old guys that happened to be out turning over soil on the days that I was out there. They had a lot of a great advice. There's a great one in Burnaby, if you're interested in taking a look. They have a ton of plots, and some sort of mandate that each user's garden needs a certain amount of non-edibles (flowers, flowering trees, etc.) so it's really nice, too. Location is on Meadow Ave off Byrne Road in Burnaby, across from the "It's About Thyme" Nursery. User's keep their plots until they give them up, so some plots have some fairly well built sheds, greenhouses, planters, etc. It was very educational for me.

* edit: Not sure if you're nearby, but figured you might be, based on your location.

We have our own garden this year, but I toured some of the nearby community gardens for ideas, and picked the brains of some of the old guys that happened to be out turning over soil on the days that I was out there. They had a lot of a great advice. There's a great one in Burnaby, if you're interested in taking a look. They have a ton of plots, and some sort of mandate that each user's garden needs a certain amount of non-edibles (flowers, flowering trees, etc.) so it's really nice, too. Location is on Meadow Ave off Byrne Road in Burnaby, across from the "It's About Thyme" Nursery. User's keep their plots until they give them up, so some plots have some fairly well built sheds, greenhouses, planters, etc. It was very educational for me.

* edit: Not sure if you're nearby, but figured you might be, based on your location.

That sounds like the ideal community plot. Getting sound advice from local experts can be extraordinarily helpful. Save you many years of trying to figure it out on your own.