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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 5, 2009 15:06:30 GMT
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Post by lagatta on Jul 6, 2009 20:32:49 GMT
Yes, that is fascinating. There has been an urban gardening movement renaissance in recent years, in many parts of the world, but Will Allen's approach seems to be making it much more effective and promising.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 6, 2009 20:40:25 GMT
Hmmmm... that's quite a bit of grant money.
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Post by nic on Jul 15, 2009 5:29:10 GMT
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 15, 2009 5:40:13 GMT
I snorted cynically reading about city meetings having to follow health guidelines when ordering in food for meetings. Uh, don't they know that in the private sector, people routinely get through meetings without having to stuff their faces.
The other items are good ideas. Well, using the medians would be impractical, but why not turn unused public land into allotments?
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Post by Deleted on Jul 15, 2009 6:11:34 GMT
The other items are good ideas. Well, using the medians would be impractical, but why not turn unused public land into allotments? There are places where the medians are more than 200 meters wide, so it is not completely out of the question -- there just aren't all that many places where it would be feasible. |
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 15, 2009 13:37:43 GMT
Yeah, I wasn't thinking so much of the width, as of access and safety plus the fact that plantings on a median should be kept low anywhere near the crossovers. Also, the idea of plants being grown with exhaust pipes whizzing by on both sides says "contaminated soil" to me.
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Post by Jazz on Jul 15, 2009 15:01:18 GMT
Excellent article Bixa. I think Will Allen is exceptional and we will all gain eventually from his work. There certainly is a renaissance of growing food locally as the concern grows about oil prices, exploding populations, the quality of the food etc. His philosophy is pragmatic and humane. Here in Toronto, there is a great deal of interest in urban farming. We can all begin simply and it takes very little land to grow some food. This site shows small unexpected gardens, my favorite is the stacked milk carton garden! www.ruaf.org/node/1805Jac Smit has some good photos of the use of urban space throughout the world. www.jacsmit.com/gallery.htmlVertical gardens/farms and living walls are being taken much more seriously. This site is remarkable, showing both existing and proposed vertical farms, 3 fascinating pages. www.environmentalgraffiti.com/ecology/15-living-walls-vertical-gardens-sky-farms/1202This is proposed for downtown Toronto,  The description, www.treehugger.com/files/2007/06/sky_farm_propos.php |
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 15, 2009 15:11:17 GMT
Ah, thank you, Jazz! I look forward to exploring all of those sites. Just looked at the Jac Smit one and wish its message would be taken to heart by the world. This is possible, it's pleasant, educational, community- and social-minded, and certainly looks better than empty lots full of dog feces and blowing trash.
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Post by auntieannie on Jul 15, 2009 20:25:49 GMT
Anybody seen a documentary titled The Power of Community: How Cuba survived peak oil? www.imdb.com/title/tt0814275/And do you know of a group of "Guerilla gardeners" near you? It is popular in London amongst other places. |
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Post by Jazz on Jul 15, 2009 23:25:32 GMT
I will see if I can find that documentary Annie. Yes, we have Guerrilla Gardeners here in Toronto. Not many groups in my neighborhood since most people use their land, however limited. Here are some photos of planting years since 2005. publicspace.ca/gardeners.htm It's a great idea! |
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Post by tillystar on Jul 17, 2009 12:37:36 GMT
I saw a really interesting episode in the series "Around the World in 80 Gardens" that featured Havana's urban farms and also guerilla gardening there. In fact I recommend the entire series for those of you really interested in gardens it was really fascinating and worth a DVD rental. If not the list of gardens they visit are on the website and worth a google! www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/tv_and_radio/aroundtheworld_index1.shtml |
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 17, 2009 14:37:11 GMT
I really want to see that series, Tilly. It doesn't seem to be available online via the bbc anymore, but I think all of it can be found on youtube: <--- that is the intro and there are some episodes in the sidebar. The youtube search engine should reveal all of them. |
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Post by tillystar on Jul 19, 2009 10:43:44 GMT
Oh great, thank you! I missed a couple and think I will have a watch this afternoon.
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Post by nic on Jul 22, 2009 6:59:24 GMT
Vertical gardens/farms and living walls are being taken much more seriously. I have a hard time getting behind vertical gardens -- they're catnip for green fantasists. It's not like we live in Hong Kong. There's plenty of land for farming, and we can definitely get better usage out of our lands. |
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 22, 2009 14:28:33 GMT
Actually, there is not plenty of land for farming. There may be vast tracts of open land in any given country, but the quality of the soil, the availability of water, etc. can keep it from being farmed. Also, there's the question of who owns the land. Who is this "we" and what and where are "our lands"?
Vertical gardens are a way of bringing green beauty into urban environments. They can be adapted for small spaces, which is all many people have. Whether or not vertical farming is ultimately practical or not is moot. What is important is that such ideas be taken seriously and their practicality assessed by experimentation.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 26, 2009 23:47:58 GMT
hollygrovemarket.com/ Just down the road a stretch,this long awaited urban community garden is up and running. Situated on the sight of an abandoned plant nursery it offers the neighborhood some much needed hope and has generated much enthusiasm for future ventures in the area. Am going to a fund raiser Tuesday p.m. with some other gardeners. Very exciting stuff!
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Post by bixaorellana on Sept 19, 2009 6:11:37 GMT
This video is skimpy on details, but interesting nonetheless. It shows urban farming and community activism on the south side of Chicago.
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Post by bixaorellana on May 20, 2010 0:26:01 GMT
You have most likely never heard of Mr. Ameroso. Yet from a rubble-strewn vacant lot in Brooklyn where he showed New Yorkers how to grow food in 1976 to a three-acre stretch of Governors Island that he’s helping to sow now, he has been behind nearly every organized attempt to grow and sell food in the city, as well as many of the city’s best-known food organizations. Click on the photo to read the full article. And a large group of fascinating articles on urban agriculture is to be found here: topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/a/agriculture/urban_agriculture/index.html
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