07 Jan Thu 2010
The State of Community Gardens : Failures and LACK of support!
Most people think that community gardens are supported by government and local city halls.Not so as I know of.Carver Park Community garden in Delray Beach ceased to exist last summer.Now it is the site of land fills !Chief Sitting Bull Organic Community Garden in Lake Worth was erased back in 2007 !Miami community Garden also disappeared as well ! Others more evaporated in such hard ecconomic times where soup kitchens and churches are crying for food produce donations to feed the growing numbers of the unemployed ,the homeless and some senior citizens !
Across US Small urban farmers who choose to use Community Gardens are encountering obstacles and MUCHO bumps and discouragements from both public and private entities .For example, I qoute an article by Elizabet Licata* in the last issue of HORTICULTURE magazine Dec/Jan 2010 issue page 104, "..more than 400 community gardens in Manhattan,New York , have been the subject of public battles since 1999.Sacramento,California, lost its Community Garden to condo developers in 2009.The recent Academy Award -nominated documentary THE GARDEN tells the Saga of the famous community garden in SOUTRH -CENTRAL Los Angelos that was plowed under in 2006." Unqoute.
I was lucky to have my work at one of the swallowed and destroyed community garden documented by a local Newspaper back in 2008.I lost everything without being even notified to remove tools or salvage some of the rare medicinal trees like the AYUERVEDIC NEEM TREE ,Papaya trees etc.. I was donating Organic Veggies to a local soap kitchen since 2001.Not any more.
In times so dire where we URBAN FARMERS struggle with Climate Change,Economic DEEP_RECESSION and double digit unemployment (in Florida!) add to this lack of support or Stimulus help to support local SUSTAINABLE ORGANIC HORTICULTURE -We pray for a change of heart and mind by those who are in AUTHORITY and CARE FOR local food production and sustainable green living to do THE RIGHT THING!
Note: Check out more articles by Elizabeth Licata at her blog:gardenrant.com