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Fresh food produced within 100 metres. Have you got the desire to dig and even the need to weed, but sadly the only soil in your life is holding up a small basil plant on your kitchen windowsill?
Stop your pining to plant and check out the world of community gardens.
Located on park, city and now even private-land community gardens, forgive the pun, are a growing concern as urban dwellers seek out the outdoors.
"Partly, I started because I have kids and they live in the inner city and I still wanted them to pick and eat apples off a tree. Get their fingers dirty, do the things you do if you were in the country," says David Tracey of the Vancouver Community Agriculture Network and garden design company Ecourbanist.
"Partly, it's also the food. I wanted to eat, fresh good tasting, inexpensive, organic and safe food."
Tracey, a 10-year veteran of the beautiful Strathcona Garden, also points to human contact as another fruitful aspect to the community garden life.
"At Strathcona, there are people from all over the world who grow things from all over the world. You know these people would probably never meet if it weren't for the garden.
"I always say the most important word in community gardening is community."
Strathcona, at 20 years of age, is a grand dame in the community garden world. She houses more than 200 plots, welcomes 100 families and that's only in the food garden. The inner city oasis is also home to a community orchard and wildlife sanctuary.
"There are real benefits to having these gardens," says Ron Caswell, manager of operations of Vancouver East District for the Parks Board. "It gets people outside, gets them involved with growing food and the whole sustainable food situation -- food within a 100 miles or in some cases a 100 yards.
"It gets the community out working together in a park. It's a community activator and it's activating under-used park land that might be used for other things."
If you think you'd like to check out the community garden scene, start by going to www.city.vancouver.bc.ca/parks/parks/comgardn.htm.
Dana Gee, The Province
Published: Tuesday, May 20, 2008
© The Vancouver Province 2008
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