tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32103335692124437832024-03-15T18:09:25.693-07:00commmunity gardeningCommunity Gardening in all of it's manifestations is a proving ground for experiments in social and ecological sustainability. Read How.Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.comBlogger109125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-23875998696420469382024-02-28T13:37:00.000-08:002024-02-28T13:37:37.848-08:00Community Composting - The New Community Gardening<p> <span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 12px;">Community Composting has become the Community Gardening of the 2020’s. Now, community gardening is thriving throughout the United Staes and in many other countries. New community gardens are being created regularly and cities large and small are providing support for community gardens. So much so that you could say community gardens have become mainstream. In most places, community gardeners do not have to convince elected officials or municipal agencies to support them or not to destroy their garden, a fate community gardeners over the years have faced.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 12px;"> </span></p><p><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 12px;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh59-Zg4-KHUocYaUx8UEeIhCKt9yAgoV-X3UJIrVMz7_J_wCtARTG0cZSWEiSLSUmVNNRbSwX0hTYASzL7kyt4wIbGweznShmLa4cNis8bbdhpvonSk4Eidbek8Nz70--2ymaIYfYv00Z9qrnQ76jmzKYvm6Rv26YNN29T-g-7oDYo3FvqUOCwRqNW0yBN" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="2788" data-original-width="3718" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh59-Zg4-KHUocYaUx8UEeIhCKt9yAgoV-X3UJIrVMz7_J_wCtARTG0cZSWEiSLSUmVNNRbSwX0hTYASzL7kyt4wIbGweznShmLa4cNis8bbdhpvonSk4Eidbek8Nz70--2ymaIYfYv00Z9qrnQ76jmzKYvm6Rv26YNN29T-g-7oDYo3FvqUOCwRqNW0yBN=w400-h300" width="400" /></a></div><br />This fact was brought home to me recently when I visited a photographic exhibit, The <a href="https://www.nycgovparks.org/art-and-antiquities/arsenal-gallery"><span class="s1">Community Gardener Portrait Project</span></a> at the New York City Parks Department Gallery called the Arsenal. The photographs by Zachary Schulman were excellent portraits showing the diversity of NYC Community Gardeners. The fact that Community Gardens and Community Gardeners were being celebrated Is an indication of the support the gardeners receive from the city. There are struggles in some gardens where development pressures exist but the real struggle in New York City is for the community composting programs and sites.<p></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEihLgd28Hiuya33XeKo2F8ivQ21r73CGAJVlJpWHCqDNdpcqNOYamHrmDFr1Gtf5m95dJ3o9xk3FMORnwyde52zlbZaztWFovwg8zIgBcj6z7f340Rovnt6y-hc9bICiGSFGp6vzCDyQHz9Vycd13Kn7kA8xgIY4Chlgw2VdlJYd5zIJIv0g-b3oU6Xc1yG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEihLgd28Hiuya33XeKo2F8ivQ21r73CGAJVlJpWHCqDNdpcqNOYamHrmDFr1Gtf5m95dJ3o9xk3FMORnwyde52zlbZaztWFovwg8zIgBcj6z7f340Rovnt6y-hc9bICiGSFGp6vzCDyQHz9Vycd13Kn7kA8xgIY4Chlgw2VdlJYd5zIJIv0g-b3oU6Xc1yG=w400-h300" width="400" /></a></div><br />The Mayor and the Sanitation Department cut all funds for Community Composting Projects in a round of budget cuts announced in November of 2023. A yearly budget of $3 million was cut to zero. Over the years the Department of Sanitation (DOS) and the mayors who have and are controlling the agency have flip flopped on supporting composting in general and now community composting. Community Composting funding is just a drop in the bucket of the overall DOS budget yet it provides a service whose benefits far outweigh the cost. It is a way for any resident of New York City to make sure that their food scraps get composted and the product used in city parks, community gardens and private residences. Additional benefits include reducing New York City’s waste steam and providing meaningful jobs.<p></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgP-kNhK08WGWNOlHi3FZJ_jijdbCIBTscEbud6HcjJ2IJq6DAuK0khClJqw9oju-9Sxvj42hrbVn0iy5_AEehu1BUbxn2LIsp05WWq3d5Iq39BxQ8XnMC5q48TxI4YfctUfc2BOCmQ73KHlu4RWXdpnhMy-E7mH9rJ_8DyOD-g7OwCtQwMJFsoKBScmJg5" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="769" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgP-kNhK08WGWNOlHi3FZJ_jijdbCIBTscEbud6HcjJ2IJq6DAuK0khClJqw9oju-9Sxvj42hrbVn0iy5_AEehu1BUbxn2LIsp05WWq3d5Iq39BxQ8XnMC5q48TxI4YfctUfc2BOCmQ73KHlu4RWXdpnhMy-E7mH9rJ_8DyOD-g7OwCtQwMJFsoKBScmJg5=w300-h400" width="300" /></a></div><br />According to <a href="https://www.wastetodaymagazine.com/news/new-york-city-food-scraps-composting-donation-2024-grownyc/#:~:text=%E2%80%9CCommunity%20organizations%20across%20New%20York,to%20parks,%20gardens%20and%20residents."><span class="s1">Waste Today</span></a> magazine, “Community organizations across New York City compost 8.3 million pounds of food waste annually and distribute over 1.7 million pounds of locally made compost to parks, gardens and residents”. While these numbers may seem impressive, the <a href="https://www.nyc.gov/assets/dsny/site/about"><span class="s1">Department of Sanitation</span></a> collects 24 million pounds of trash, recycling and compost EVERY DAY. The numbers are staggering and point to the need for more focus on the first R of Reduce, Reuse and Recycle to reduce the amount of waste, cost and carbon footprint of New York City.<p></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh5PliitLDqMTOF0dYchQnt58-BQFozAuCyyt19XCu5tetVTs1im5IPkqFeiprMvEVf6AbxSE8Q_YED6Fh62yl4UVKdeNxemG9p6A43txd4AH5__rk5M95e_RF2iB7y8bW9pcJhYpZBWLV1OdL16LO5-qwi_005cSTBt4v4p9zZhFMD0eFAqodJGLCiRQAF" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="4284" data-original-width="5712" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh5PliitLDqMTOF0dYchQnt58-BQFozAuCyyt19XCu5tetVTs1im5IPkqFeiprMvEVf6AbxSE8Q_YED6Fh62yl4UVKdeNxemG9p6A43txd4AH5__rk5M95e_RF2iB7y8bW9pcJhYpZBWLV1OdL16LO5-qwi_005cSTBt4v4p9zZhFMD0eFAqodJGLCiRQAF=w400-h300" width="400" /></a></div><br />Since the budget cuts went into effect several donors have stepped up to support community composting and save jobs. An anonymous donor has given an undisclosed sum of money to <a href="https://www.grownyc.org/compost"><span class="s1">GrowNYC</span></a> to continue their program and save 65 jobs until the new fiscal year which starts July 1. A little bit of guestimatiing would place that donation at somewhere around $750,000. A company that makes composting bins for home use, <a href="https://www.mill.com/news/nyc"><span class="s1">Mill</span></a>, along with other philanthropists donated an additional $350,000 to support <a href="https://bigreuse.org/pages/compost"><span class="s1">Big Reuse</span></a>, <a href="https://earthmatter.org/"><span class="s1">Earth Matter</span></a> and the <a href="https://www.lesecologycenter.org/compost/"><span class="s1">Lower East Side Ecology Center</span></a> Community Composting efforts and save over 40 jobs. While this support is admirable, private funding of municipal projects sets a bad precedent and should not be expected to replace funding that the city should provide.<p></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgPkPp6fcI5u94zeAVWhc86C19pABXt_-L1epemT6xIjQdP-HDMtf0AYUtgRNnLaaqwcdPjy89w-9ufsbYMtd2y-sgGpL2t2Dd_qcwLbIP8N9LNe9CovSFv6q_sZVWTwuwSots5x34ye9kbfc8Lpm4SJ4TuRA8H8yNZSuhJs0XP2K3HIDxj_CGQzXH6lFyM" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="480" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgPkPp6fcI5u94zeAVWhc86C19pABXt_-L1epemT6xIjQdP-HDMtf0AYUtgRNnLaaqwcdPjy89w-9ufsbYMtd2y-sgGpL2t2Dd_qcwLbIP8N9LNe9CovSFv6q_sZVWTwuwSots5x34ye9kbfc8Lpm4SJ4TuRA8H8yNZSuhJs0XP2K3HIDxj_CGQzXH6lFyM=w400-h300" width="400" /></a></div><br />The way Community Composting works it that residents save their compostable waste like banana peels and other leftovers, often freezing them until they can be dropped off at a local farmers market, Community Garden or other drop off site. From these drop off sites the compostables are trucked to Governors Island, Queens or the Lower East Side where the scraps are mixed - usually with wood chips and is broken down into a usable product, compost. The final product is delivered to parks, community gardens and given away to private homeowner to fertilize the soil, minimize weeds and lessen the need for watering. In the case of Earth Matter on Governor’s Island the compost is used on plantings on the island.<p></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEirWgZoGQvFsSH0F-ED-xsIyeSxq_2I_pihFIalt64mbCO6e9VWh3jD4TkKe5EhMPr9hDJt6-_BU2UGCOjiW9a-xIy9ErcTCc-HbhxPEVnfQsp4KFK765IMuIg6fTfNmuIjrnofHldQImI_fB7NXg-bQsJwgi1oLP76HMyJIqgc5AHDGJIWPfk37D6ZNg9v" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEirWgZoGQvFsSH0F-ED-xsIyeSxq_2I_pihFIalt64mbCO6e9VWh3jD4TkKe5EhMPr9hDJt6-_BU2UGCOjiW9a-xIy9ErcTCc-HbhxPEVnfQsp4KFK765IMuIg6fTfNmuIjrnofHldQImI_fB7NXg-bQsJwgi1oLP76HMyJIqgc5AHDGJIWPfk37D6ZNg9v=w400-h300" width="400" /></a></div><br />The material is all handled locally so it does have to be transported long distances and many people are involved in the process. Recently the DOS has begun curbside pickup of compostables which is one of the reasons they want to move away from Community Composting. However, that program can only be enhanced by the outreach and education about composting provided by the organizations involved in Community Composting.<p></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjWErmyHOiTDcWG_WKOUCd5Cy9ONAm7I3eZWnwT5o2mPTeAF69rJQmGlmqZW9PvHErtb0jndBE7alcktrNDJuKgo6inBq-aTJBYFoB3nog_iKteSVFqSUeQAfq0U22QwR4CxkkOXDSPpr9IzJ34sx7CKhDDR2RwEMn6Y0xuBYk6guhL8SanTuqdfo3XogOT" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="769" data-original-width="1024" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjWErmyHOiTDcWG_WKOUCd5Cy9ONAm7I3eZWnwT5o2mPTeAF69rJQmGlmqZW9PvHErtb0jndBE7alcktrNDJuKgo6inBq-aTJBYFoB3nog_iKteSVFqSUeQAfq0U22QwR4CxkkOXDSPpr9IzJ34sx7CKhDDR2RwEMn6Y0xuBYk6guhL8SanTuqdfo3XogOT=w400-h300" width="400" /></a></div><br />Many of the workers in the Community Composting programs are young people dedicated to do their part to ensure environmental sustainability. This is why I say that Community Composting is the new Community Gardening. Community Gardeners from the 1970’s until today saw that they could make an impact in their communities and community gardening on underutilized land provided that opportunity. Today there are very few remaining spaces to start a community garden in New York City but the organic waste problem exists. <p></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg53kcgDf9r_iGGZmlpIuvnPUV8Fs7jfpWX63Av4r366fZrBhxUG67bEdiatpiNi7kDK0sfm75rx56nCkRs1Jt25AqaY_Jrs2tHVUEkdi5XHSJsBknmHVTGEE9kZmjOdG0yYbEv2b-gcIWenAoMRuKuGIkMSnOSXwlEhMs_oIGzDVUI45LCigKrUBKVjAi5" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="768" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg53kcgDf9r_iGGZmlpIuvnPUV8Fs7jfpWX63Av4r366fZrBhxUG67bEdiatpiNi7kDK0sfm75rx56nCkRs1Jt25AqaY_Jrs2tHVUEkdi5XHSJsBknmHVTGEE9kZmjOdG0yYbEv2b-gcIWenAoMRuKuGIkMSnOSXwlEhMs_oIGzDVUI45LCigKrUBKVjAi5=w300-h400" width="300" /></a></div><br /> I believe that the city cut the Community Composting budget because of its' grassroots nature. This is exactly what Community Gardeners faced in the early years. Community Gardens have come to be accepted but it took many years to get to that point. Community Composting’s benefits should be clear enough that it doesn’t have to take protests, private funding and petitions to convince the politicians to support Community Composting. Local solutions to environmental problems whether that be starting a community garden to make your neighborhood more livable or small scale local composting projects like Community Composting are good for us all.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><p></p>Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-88239593478349806432024-01-05T12:31:00.000-08:002024-01-06T11:43:56.143-08:00Oral History of New York City Community Gardens<p> Over the past couple of years I have interviewed community gardeners and community gardening activists and discussed with them the early days of the modern community gardening movement in New York City. The time period stretches from the late 1970's to the early 2000's. I turned these interviews into a total of 8 audio podcasts thus far. The people that were interviewed were either colleagues from my time working at Council on the Environment and then GrowNYC or community gardeners who I worked with on projects at their gardens. There are a number of other people who I wish to interview but it does take a bit of organizing to arrange an interview and then to edit those interviews into a podcast. Most of the editing was to remove tangents or asides that may not have been relevant. I can't claim to have put together a definitive history but the stories that are told and the events described in these interviews are good starting point for anyone who wants to know about this time period or to write about these people or events.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><i style="text-align: left;">🍎</i></p><p>The first podcast was with Gerard Lordahl, the Director of what was called the Open Space Greening Program at GrowNYC when I worked there. Gerard and I worked together for 31 years from 1986 to 2017 and the interview includes some reminiscing while recounting the history. This episode was published January 31, 2021 and contains notes and links to groups mentioned in the interview. The episode is 48 minutes long and is very creatively called <i>Community Gardening Part 1</i></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhYIbNmw8ie6YKrpXugBj6NXybnkqRiAKiraMj5ytZc7XdNKZnmH0Cfr_0ZM4ELFrNQ3JFi4PF1iAw9gi9p0br3YEC_cDF6-su_TzlJ2FNUWA3XFKqAHGO5NTbIQztFY8poIdX3sREHXcbABLu8JO2VTJ4jbsWbwfmMao3CDZTxe59zlaohkxq2YWVCbIlK" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="2357" data-original-width="2105" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhYIbNmw8ie6YKrpXugBj6NXybnkqRiAKiraMj5ytZc7XdNKZnmH0Cfr_0ZM4ELFrNQ3JFi4PF1iAw9gi9p0br3YEC_cDF6-su_TzlJ2FNUWA3XFKqAHGO5NTbIQztFY8poIdX3sREHXcbABLu8JO2VTJ4jbsWbwfmMao3CDZTxe59zlaohkxq2YWVCbIlK=w357-h400" width="357" /></a></div> Lenny Librizzi and Gerard Lordahl in 1986<br /><br /><p></p><p><a href="https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ecobytes/episodes/Community-Gardening-Part-1-epapab">https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ecobytes/episodes/Community-Gardening-Part-1-epapab </a></p><p style="text-align: center;"><i style="text-align: left;">🍎</i></p><p>In the second podcast published on March 9, 2021, I tell the story of a visit I made to a community garden on Staten Island called Olivet Heavenly Harvest Community Garden. Many of the gardeners are cancer survivors and they have created a unique and beautiful garden together. It is one of the most inspiring stories about a community garden and shows the social impact of community gardening. This episode is a little over 8 and a half minutes long and is called <i>Community Garden Spotlight - Olivet Heavenly Harvest Community Garden.</i></p><p><i></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgb2yccCO-d3tM_t5o9XH72NplU8Ax20IeBKSVThIxvHVqUlWw5FHUx6Rmyj2ZXncHhlDPz_xsMKE__OB00DgozG_GqIiGGDcg_9tg_zPfe4IWjrMyTERECRVflD3uUvIl2C4ThPa7-OFXljE-k-K-m14ScPeQb0oboK5KXZ_t8zPlU30c5muC-upD6oWtj" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="768" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgb2yccCO-d3tM_t5o9XH72NplU8Ax20IeBKSVThIxvHVqUlWw5FHUx6Rmyj2ZXncHhlDPz_xsMKE__OB00DgozG_GqIiGGDcg_9tg_zPfe4IWjrMyTERECRVflD3uUvIl2C4ThPa7-OFXljE-k-K-m14ScPeQb0oboK5KXZ_t8zPlU30c5muC-upD6oWtj=w300-h400" width="300" /></a></i></div><i> </i>Kelly Morris at the Olivet Heavenly Harvest Garden<br /><br /><p></p><p><a href="https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ecobytes/episodes/Community-Garden-Spotlight-Olivet-Heavenly-Harvest-Garden-ertomk">https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ecobytes/episodes/Community-Garden-Spotlight-Olivet-Heavenly-Harvest-Garden-ertomk</a> </p><p style="text-align: center;"><i style="text-align: left;">🍎</i></p><p>The third and fourth podcasts were published on April 3 and April 5, 2021. They were the two parts of an interview with Jane Weissman who was the Director of GreenThumb, New York City's Municipal Community Gardening Program, from 1984 to 1998. Jane has many stories to tell about the inner workings of New York City agencies and how the program developed from simply leasing land to community groups to providing an array of materials and services. Jane was part of a group of advocates that helped preserve community gardens from being bulldozed. The episodes highlight the contributions of several women and were titled <i>Community Gardens- Strong Women</i>, approximately 25 minutes long and <i>Community Gardens - Strong Women Conclusion</i> which is 35 minutes long. The second part is a retelling of the threats faced by community gardens from then Mayor Giuliani. In this episode Jane mentions these 2 volumes of stories told by the gardeners. Here are the links to the .pdf documents. </p><p><a class="Link-sc-k8gsk-0 cUyHlA sc-bWJUgm gVJRNL" data-encore-id="textLink" data-slate-inline="true" data-slate-node="element" href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Hu-VBO32iqkCeNPQv6yZX35RrgfdvEmD/view?usp=sharing"><span data-slate-node="text"><span class="sc-cTTdyq dgjojm" data-slate-leaf="true"><span data-slate-string="true">City Farmers:Tales from the Field</span></span></span><span contenteditable="false"></span></a><span data-slate-node="text"> and </span><a class="Link-sc-k8gsk-0 cUyHlA sc-bWJUgm gVJRNL" data-encore-id="textLink" data-slate-fragment="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" data-slate-inline="true" data-slate-node="element" href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1N95k7HQ9HwV8xSwm3TQDIrougXm0-DXI/view?usp=sharing"><span contenteditable="false"></span><span data-slate-node="text"><span class="sc-cTTdyq dgjojm" data-slate-leaf="true"><span data-slate-string="true">Tales From the Field II</span></span></span></a></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg1IitTzDiW6ihGU9q79jtzwEUACCReEmctBsh1JWi-Y2ZcIyqzXNilLZeqXTblDCk-lSGmHqklYgX6QauXOlIxSiy8gaCstjfYiBwbhSXQKXiDejRE8mFG6KfKc_wjkvP0nnMcRoRfDISXQRvUHui11thFPtdokR7TZN8fbST8kBoeRVJeQmzgZhmkLiIA" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg1IitTzDiW6ihGU9q79jtzwEUACCReEmctBsh1JWi-Y2ZcIyqzXNilLZeqXTblDCk-lSGmHqklYgX6QauXOlIxSiy8gaCstjfYiBwbhSXQKXiDejRE8mFG6KfKc_wjkvP0nnMcRoRfDISXQRvUHui11thFPtdokR7TZN8fbST8kBoeRVJeQmzgZhmkLiIA" width="320" /></a></div> Lenny Librizzi and Jane Weissman<p></p><a class="Link-sc-k8gsk-0 cUyHlA sc-bWJUgm gVJRNL" data-encore-id="textLink" data-slate-inline="true" data-slate-node="element" href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Hu-VBO32iqkCeNPQv6yZX35RrgfdvEmD/view?usp=sharing"><span contenteditable="false"></span></a><a href="https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ecobytes/episodes/Community-Gardens---Strong-Women-ett1n2">https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ecobytes/episodes/Community-Gardens---Strong-Women-ett1n2</a> <p><a href="https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ecobytes/episodes/Community-Gardens--Strong-Women-Conclusion-eu880f">https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ecobytes/episodes/Community-Gardens--Strong-Women-Conclusion-eu880f</a></p><p style="text-align: center;"><i style="text-align: left;">🍎</i></p><p>The next podcasts were published on June 29, 2021 and are three parts of an interview with Ena McPherson. Ena is a community gardener / activist in Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. In the first part Ena talks about her early influences and how she became involved in community gardening by helping to create and preserve community gardens in her community. The first part is called <i>Community Gardens: An Interview with Ena McPherson </i>and is 24 and a half minutes long.</p><p> The second part is called <i>Community Gardens: Hattie Carthan as Told by Ena McPherson</i> and is 13 minutes and 30 seconds long. Ena tells us about Hattie Carthan who pioneered urban forestry and urban agriculture in her community She was an advocate for Environmental Justice before that term was used. Ms. Carthan was an inspiration for all community gardeners. </p><p>The third part of this interview is titled <i>Community Gardens, Conclusion of an interview with Ena McPherson </i>and is a little over 33 minutes long. In this episode Ena recounts how she created a community garden with young people and her work to preserve this garden. I played a small part in this effort by working with teens to install a rainwater harvesting system.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhZtEshiBmhSq7Rtcy-ltWebt1ZTF4MaseccYSE9vlZzb6_J-m1Ft_H2zSzByPUmjcz4r9KlqDPCttGBp_KuGu_dxbo1v4v0rVkqRT0QAU0rda2S1F1AWN_0_DB5YmfhWSHNYSTpyh8Y2QFCgkgDuMBpFDsh0nOyi_AdyoxFhn17-ErDYkZXph37Mke_NEY" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="762" data-original-width="562" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhZtEshiBmhSq7Rtcy-ltWebt1ZTF4MaseccYSE9vlZzb6_J-m1Ft_H2zSzByPUmjcz4r9KlqDPCttGBp_KuGu_dxbo1v4v0rVkqRT0QAU0rda2S1F1AWN_0_DB5YmfhWSHNYSTpyh8Y2QFCgkgDuMBpFDsh0nOyi_AdyoxFhn17-ErDYkZXph37Mke_NEY=w295-h400" width="295" /></a></div>Ena McPherson<br /><br /></div><br /><a href="https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ecobytes/episodes/Community-Gardens--An-interview-with-Ena-McPherson-e13jmt3">https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ecobytes/episodes/Community-Gardens--An-interview-with-Ena-McPherson-e13jmt3</a><p></p><p><a href="https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ecobytes/episodes/Community-Gardens-Hattie-Carthan-as-told-by-Ena-Mcpherson-e13l2as">https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ecobytes/episodes/Community-Gardens-Hattie-Carthan-as-told-by-Ena-Mcpherson-e13l2as</a></p><p><a href="https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ecobytes/episodes/Community-Gardens--Conclusion-of-an-interview-with-Ena-Mcpherson-e13lbg0">https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ecobytes/episodes/Community-Gardens--Conclusion-of-an-interview-with-Ena-Mcpherson-e13lbg0</a></p><p style="text-align: center;"><i style="text-align: left;">🍎</i></p><p>The eighth episode of this oral history of Community Gardens in New York City was published on November 2, 2023. It is titled <i>East New York Farms</i> and is approximately 46 minutes long. We recorded the episode in the Herbal Garden in East New York, Brooklyn and it is an interview with community gardener Johana Willins and former Cornell Cooperative Extension agent, John Ameroso. Johana and John were the visionary founders of East New York Farms, a community based farmers market, founded in the 1990's on a bare bones budget. The market continues to operate and helped pave the way for the many local neighborhood craft / produce markets so prevalent today. Note that there is construction noise in the background during this podcast. It was a difficult podcast to coordinate and unfortunately the day we chose to record was the day the streets surrounding the garden were being repaved.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgsS4-Xb4fkaOE9YQzp0yqdf6I4scDqeNgQ5lU4R7PoHDr_FWE9DYNxPJgFJIOte4Bxu8htvMTbFVzC86bS9W5PLg3P-MzVCJv0ceoJzeNTJkig2Rid7Zby_pJRXUXTKOokY_LmcFSY_UufqJo7hGcCGfVj9mYkTACC-WVVMrxOLa_wy6KJgwMGUKbG-hvL" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="769" data-original-width="1024" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgsS4-Xb4fkaOE9YQzp0yqdf6I4scDqeNgQ5lU4R7PoHDr_FWE9DYNxPJgFJIOte4Bxu8htvMTbFVzC86bS9W5PLg3P-MzVCJv0ceoJzeNTJkig2Rid7Zby_pJRXUXTKOokY_LmcFSY_UufqJo7hGcCGfVj9mYkTACC-WVVMrxOLa_wy6KJgwMGUKbG-hvL=w400-h300" width="400" /></a></div> John Ameroso and Johana Willens<p></p><p><a href="https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ecobytes/episodes/East-New-York-Farms-e2bd7e0">https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ecobytes/episodes/East-New-York-Farms-e2bd7e0</a></p><p style="text-align: center;"><i style="text-align: left;">🍎</i></p><p>More episodes / interviews will be recorded soon as I make an effort to to preserve the voices and rich history of community gardens in New York City. </p>Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-62073781028948487212022-07-18T09:52:00.002-07:002022-07-18T09:52:36.096-07:00More Than a Bike Ride<p> This weekend I took a bike ride. That is not an unusual event but in this case it was a bike tour of community gardens. It was called a Queens waterfront garden tour because of the proximity of the gardens to the waterfront. This day, July 16, 2022 also happened to be <a href="https://waterfrontalliance.org/city-of-water-day/" target="_blank">City of Water Day</a> in NYC and many events were scheduled throughout the city to highlight the 578 miles of waterfront and the rivers, lakes and ocean that can be found within and bordering the city. Three of the 4 gardens we visited were less than 1000 feet from the closest body of water, although actual access to the water was non existent or treacherous. A number of folks in attendance have been promoting the idea of providing public access to the waterfront, maybe not for swimming but definitely for kayaking or canoeing or for strolling along waterfront esplanades. This day I was able to combine three of my passions: bicycling, gardening and getting onto the water.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkscUUxXcgYZdXY8XF4eEq4q8F3SCoSg870NGcvvYmNXGUZvoKP3v7z24GZ9eea1UBqDyLQbRlHoh8uA42L_Sw5fyjtjF_7KgCKRSfcfNPImFAI6tGVAQJZxpzXINgldDNBJDiWFTndEXzyb5ebbi9QkjzF_JY9fhbgaoZrfuem_vZIDfyFjjRF7wkog/s3088/A230494F-A664-4F2E-8968-8BF7C3AFBE30.heic" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkscUUxXcgYZdXY8XF4eEq4q8F3SCoSg870NGcvvYmNXGUZvoKP3v7z24GZ9eea1UBqDyLQbRlHoh8uA42L_Sw5fyjtjF_7KgCKRSfcfNPImFAI6tGVAQJZxpzXINgldDNBJDiWFTndEXzyb5ebbi9QkjzF_JY9fhbgaoZrfuem_vZIDfyFjjRF7wkog/w300-h400/A230494F-A664-4F2E-8968-8BF7C3AFBE30.heic" width="300" /></a></div><p>My day started early as getting from my home on Staten Island to northwest Queens required biking, taking a ferry and then riding over the Brooklyn Bridge and then an additional 6 miles following bike lanes around the Brooklyn Navy Yard, through the Williamsburg and Greenpoint waterfronts and over the Pulaski bridge into Queens. I would estimate that almost 90 percent of the ride was on protected or separated bike lanes. At least in these areas, NYC has done a good job of providing <a href="https://www1.nyc.gov/html/dot/html/bicyclists/bikemaps.shtml" target="_blank">bike infrastructure</a>.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeV-DGNZxC6IMWUS1Txl5-WRzkemsDltTOG6fC_381UisRlm1Ka0wlfKHiUYfGe3Y6DS45b3DK0LB_oksEYbQuIUFTOnVr7N48-s9UvyQaOiLXHFJfBvTzk8R9jhI5J3X0iINbUBVrjrFqUuZPt8UutNLkv9ulbXNZm9K1tYRTr2_qfZ0ev9v0MeabSw/s4032/D28DAEC1-3C8A-4773-8F10-CDDE1967E9CB.heic" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeV-DGNZxC6IMWUS1Txl5-WRzkemsDltTOG6fC_381UisRlm1Ka0wlfKHiUYfGe3Y6DS45b3DK0LB_oksEYbQuIUFTOnVr7N48-s9UvyQaOiLXHFJfBvTzk8R9jhI5J3X0iINbUBVrjrFqUuZPt8UutNLkv9ulbXNZm9K1tYRTr2_qfZ0ev9v0MeabSw/w300-h400/D28DAEC1-3C8A-4773-8F10-CDDE1967E9CB.heic" width="300" /></a></div><p>My destination was <a href="https://smilinghogsheadranch.org/" target="_blank">Smiling Hogshead Ranch Community Garden </a>where the tour would start. It seems that when the gardeners were first clearing the site they unearthed a pig skeleton which inspired the name. This site is located on top of railroad tracks which surface at points in the garden. The area was a major industrial location for many years. I was quite amazed by how beautiful the garden looked as I had originally seen it not long after the pig skeleton was found amid the weeds, trash and highly compacted soil <a href="https://commmunitygardening.blogspot.com/2011/06/community-garden-version-of-high-line.html">11 years ago</a>. I cheekily called it the Low Line - a Queens bargain version of the multimillion dollar Manhattan High Line. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnmcpru0vJraJrHtMrz0LLGGmQ5g6eNkhhUnf-wSGCBVB0xZGMfIjRjWnkoeNr-t7xPApi6x2yEpJZ4vwtX1IXOB9nqz29Yoad93TU-1OdFyNzKAqAtYaOIKuHLBQRxLrdJtryrBGWpjCGTaEhW8Wp3oypZh4h3oFLG3ePHy0j4p_2wAdELNnZrBhNxA/s4032/7A496EFC-B929-47CD-A4C3-2C5EBF538582.heic" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnmcpru0vJraJrHtMrz0LLGGmQ5g6eNkhhUnf-wSGCBVB0xZGMfIjRjWnkoeNr-t7xPApi6x2yEpJZ4vwtX1IXOB9nqz29Yoad93TU-1OdFyNzKAqAtYaOIKuHLBQRxLrdJtryrBGWpjCGTaEhW8Wp3oypZh4h3oFLG3ePHy0j4p_2wAdELNnZrBhNxA/w400-h300/7A496EFC-B929-47CD-A4C3-2C5EBF538582.heic" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p>There were banana trees that one gardener told me come back year after year and were interplanted with rose bushes - maybe not a usual companion planting. I also found fig trees, a pawpaw tree and grapes which some of the children were sampling as they stood on the picnic tables to be able to reach the fruit. There was a large vine trained into a topiary animal with shaded seating underneath. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNzB0lh_Z4NL0B-uhGLIkRT40zVDT6w-1dx51lzjZoQVnn9M1IItDPaACqe5rwrRbiwY2Ys0NChWI5F6jqLxJRc_qXBf6NK4z6-rJYzjDdWFESE0PWpDr34JbcFKGMQICtWrgWRtX45PNcyhxUey8KRDLWsnLsAG3qSV6YeqDbN7nBGtfPHhOTiw2mCQ/s4032/85188758-0EB7-419B-81F7-ED726C598F54.heic" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNzB0lh_Z4NL0B-uhGLIkRT40zVDT6w-1dx51lzjZoQVnn9M1IItDPaACqe5rwrRbiwY2Ys0NChWI5F6jqLxJRc_qXBf6NK4z6-rJYzjDdWFESE0PWpDr34JbcFKGMQICtWrgWRtX45PNcyhxUey8KRDLWsnLsAG3qSV6YeqDbN7nBGtfPHhOTiw2mCQ/w400-h300/85188758-0EB7-419B-81F7-ED726C598F54.heic" width="400" /></a></div><p>One garden bed was filled with prickly pear cactus and there was enough swiss chard ready for harvesting to feed hundreds of people. Several Elderberry shrubs were flowering and another gardener pointed out that a raised bed had been fashioned by weaving elderberry branches together. The bed was full of shiso (Perilla frutescens) plants and elderberry leaves were sprouting from the woven branches.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSkaU2kZHHXw6v7CiCTZqxHBiyoY6OCXLZVdW9_VsOM0w2elAh87lum7qoylcMP_5F2hIXwYkYdMr4ceJVVysGFauE5Ww54DEBNd1puEPhAKBam2y7_mqDjzdWciGm3wuYPnuQ6Ey4uv6TnIkR3loeK-_fo6N9VFy3gE4nxeWjCOktlJkhREiQQulnLA/s4032/FC58F1EF-0AEA-4A99-81EF-EAA0B39A1138.heic" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSkaU2kZHHXw6v7CiCTZqxHBiyoY6OCXLZVdW9_VsOM0w2elAh87lum7qoylcMP_5F2hIXwYkYdMr4ceJVVysGFauE5Ww54DEBNd1puEPhAKBam2y7_mqDjzdWciGm3wuYPnuQ6Ey4uv6TnIkR3loeK-_fo6N9VFy3gE4nxeWjCOktlJkhREiQQulnLA/w400-h300/FC58F1EF-0AEA-4A99-81EF-EAA0B39A1138.heic" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p>Several rainwater capture systems were scattered around the site. Capturing and utilizing rainwater is an important component of protecting the waters surrounding the city. Gardener Gil Lopez told me they could use a larger capture area and larger opaque tank in addition to the smaller systems they had cobbled together. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9P1HEm8xDNsHGvrg7eaSHH5RpxObUjZHweMj72Qf_bPDCAnF1yuJ4gIKRCkwyLwB1wzfnwpRDOZrgoz5Eu75KxI032LhtVjDa3xNLa_QJc5cVlt0t_UM1OkQpk7rSrgWUEDzQyLb5KmNoNhyqCfZaYIxrps8_9JAR8PCGlYV8bCkpeBEqi4kQb16_jA/s4032/D93961D1-B92A-4398-BF4E-630DEE5B7688.heic" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9P1HEm8xDNsHGvrg7eaSHH5RpxObUjZHweMj72Qf_bPDCAnF1yuJ4gIKRCkwyLwB1wzfnwpRDOZrgoz5Eu75KxI032LhtVjDa3xNLa_QJc5cVlt0t_UM1OkQpk7rSrgWUEDzQyLb5KmNoNhyqCfZaYIxrps8_9JAR8PCGlYV8bCkpeBEqi4kQb16_jA/w300-h400/D93961D1-B92A-4398-BF4E-630DEE5B7688.heic" width="300" /></a></div><p>They just might get that and other support as the local Councilwoman Julie Won and the NYC Parks Commissioner Sue Donoghue took part in the ride. In fact the Commissioner visited all 4 of the gardens and we passed through or alongside several parks that are included in her domain along the ride. The <a href="https://greenthumb.nycgovparks.org/" target="_blank">GreenThumb</a> Director Carlos Martinez also completed the entire ride. Carlos has been a long time supporter of rainwater harvesting in community gardens. GreenThumb staff did a great job of leading the tour and keeping everyone safe.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKol1z350nCRD7Yr-8zuPUWxtjyTDbSct7iO_8HyW9uHMrNDCZJTYnYFxd3lOiQvFehJM5XWSFcPQrrL3twG_1-3PbV1KVant-hQYavl9B1xw1ShgwFc7Q67ENS5XqRXZffYNWNq-G0qHQCzr1SZRffJO6Hc_0eBmqQgLxesWWciPt6Dr_zAaFTt3l0g/s4032/B0657045-484B-4818-ABC1-29420667E8FD.heic" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKol1z350nCRD7Yr-8zuPUWxtjyTDbSct7iO_8HyW9uHMrNDCZJTYnYFxd3lOiQvFehJM5XWSFcPQrrL3twG_1-3PbV1KVant-hQYavl9B1xw1ShgwFc7Q67ENS5XqRXZffYNWNq-G0qHQCzr1SZRffJO6Hc_0eBmqQgLxesWWciPt6Dr_zAaFTt3l0g/w300-h400/B0657045-484B-4818-ABC1-29420667E8FD.heic" width="300" /></a></div><p>Smiling Hogshead Ranch is located on long defunct railroad tracks that were part of the industrial workings of this area. If you could head west following these tracks they eventually cross over the Dutch Kills close to where it meets Newtown Creek. This would have been the route the industrial materials and products would move in and out of this area to the rest of New York City and the nation. Our bike ride headed east following the hidden tracks to the next stop on the tour, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/licrootsgarden/" target="_blank">The Long Island City Roots / Firefighter Michael E. Brennan Memorial Garden. </a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvG23ZCLE3JeWphki9T4Vuu0qndfIiwopQG512Y7X27OVVITbkxAjtTyn5bTJod4ASiXAt7scKFDr6qKa99-e7H0SjnK1Aegklh5lr_mvMNV5ChgG-WOUGBk3bDsMtIzcY4IDgCJE1Jz0aOHp7lvkqmsbV9U3mDE235GljhlYiNr7rUEiuBdFOVJcGbw/s4032/A47C2E3A-ED9C-42E6-BD79-2E3F8E58C73C.heic" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvG23ZCLE3JeWphki9T4Vuu0qndfIiwopQG512Y7X27OVVITbkxAjtTyn5bTJod4ASiXAt7scKFDr6qKa99-e7H0SjnK1Aegklh5lr_mvMNV5ChgG-WOUGBk3bDsMtIzcY4IDgCJE1Jz0aOHp7lvkqmsbV9U3mDE235GljhlYiNr7rUEiuBdFOVJcGbw/w400-h300/A47C2E3A-ED9C-42E6-BD79-2E3F8E58C73C.heic" width="400" /></a></div><p>Over the years I have spent a considerable amount of time working at this site also built on top of the railroad tracks. While working at <a href="https://www.grownyc.org/greenspace" target="_blank">GrowNYC</a>, I wrote and received an EPA grant that paid for the installation of a shade structure and rainwater harvesting system which was built during the summer of 2006. As any good garden structure, it has several uses including as a seating area for meeting, having lunch or resting from a bike ride. In 2013 I also assisted in expanding the garden westward with a deck area, raised beds for growing vegetables, a composting area and a location for beehives.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiZKq7jB8_gmPhkZ1dLvgdA11vdy5IZopVtmBvSXl5--jfWNkD8nef_-WKqy-pab68koCkmnpa6yYpCT15e4mGNmr1B-Y5VqTJIfLV044qYnB6CyQdF6MBQHMcGdO7pdVopG1RvgvY9vLJeSRhDdjfALLhCrLgwXBir5ILc_GS7v2pYzydsCtG1-UGdQ/s4032/BA6886D1-C6E3-4298-8A54-CF662AA2E0F3.heic" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiZKq7jB8_gmPhkZ1dLvgdA11vdy5IZopVtmBvSXl5--jfWNkD8nef_-WKqy-pab68koCkmnpa6yYpCT15e4mGNmr1B-Y5VqTJIfLV044qYnB6CyQdF6MBQHMcGdO7pdVopG1RvgvY9vLJeSRhDdjfALLhCrLgwXBir5ILc_GS7v2pYzydsCtG1-UGdQ/w400-h300/BA6886D1-C6E3-4298-8A54-CF662AA2E0F3.heic" width="400" /></a></div><p>Over the years I worked very closely with gardener Noah Kaufman coordinating the projects. Noah welcomed the bike riders and gave remarks detailing the industrial and gardening history of the site. In addition to the vegetable area, the garden has a lawn area, several patio / seating areas and extensive ornamental plantings including a beautiful trumpet vine. The garden is literally a 200 foot stones throw to the end of the Dutch Kills. There is room for a plaza and a kayak / canoe launch site here which Noah and others are advocating to be built. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZXleRy7xzH-AuZWM2PmOVuZHiMqXJzX-fttBDTKhAhVxb0ECKkyYgrGTxB4dk-9SowtBarUn9-kaeyGGetn4nnZPwH35F5G_UcxFZGYFM1nzMtKw4E98vbJXNvVKBoVv9-JS0UfR3FLoD0ws-Ul3EgWB1m_nbcZ0TSSrgU58Nyt9bLVLGnFR_rl_guA/s4032/1D8F9BE6-7B15-4617-B14E-4159AB58ACC6.heic" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZXleRy7xzH-AuZWM2PmOVuZHiMqXJzX-fttBDTKhAhVxb0ECKkyYgrGTxB4dk-9SowtBarUn9-kaeyGGetn4nnZPwH35F5G_UcxFZGYFM1nzMtKw4E98vbJXNvVKBoVv9-JS0UfR3FLoD0ws-Ul3EgWB1m_nbcZ0TSSrgU58Nyt9bLVLGnFR_rl_guA/w300-h400/1D8F9BE6-7B15-4617-B14E-4159AB58ACC6.heic" width="300" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">The next part of the ride entailed navigating across busy Queens Boulevard onto Queens Plaza, thankfully with separated bike lanes most of the way to our next stop, </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WindmillDutchKills/" style="text-align: left;" target="_blank">The Windmill Garden</a><span style="text-align: left;">. This small relatively new garden is almost a mile from the East River but is in an area lacking in open space. </span></div><p> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-NPSowaKy3ci60vjqXHf8HXXMJW2PJTiIuAFk1B5xTyF5fMdmKN7-1SWQXksmN6aA0_XUZcRMr8dPTK6CPPybqLgJwGSzIAgVzLZ7q_HTpgLZYvupw-UwaTWHQMTI-Zvow3G9Ii5sCHjSgMzHNjPyRTEWwYYPFaAih2WYCBBZ0RFoq4LhLypLPtWGdA/s4032/8F70A1AF-E47C-4DB3-AE5F-1697A5A427B7.heic" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-NPSowaKy3ci60vjqXHf8HXXMJW2PJTiIuAFk1B5xTyF5fMdmKN7-1SWQXksmN6aA0_XUZcRMr8dPTK6CPPybqLgJwGSzIAgVzLZ7q_HTpgLZYvupw-UwaTWHQMTI-Zvow3G9Ii5sCHjSgMzHNjPyRTEWwYYPFaAih2WYCBBZ0RFoq4LhLypLPtWGdA/w400-h300/8F70A1AF-E47C-4DB3-AE5F-1697A5A427B7.heic" width="400" /></a></p><p>They also have a rainwater collection system installed in 2020 highlighting the importance of community gardens in helping mitigate the effects of storms on the city waste treatment system. Though small, the garden has a mix of ornamental and edible plantings including purple coneflower, Japanese maple trees, birch trees and roses. At one point a cucumber was harvested and given to one of the riders.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixN-unPEsVSREGCdUttPFgvTIjZax-bn1HPXp4-n50saS2mDMNm0SjsDui2BopZ1Mnq0NO4LcEbGjp6T1Xpm0ku6atgVJvK-1r3VOczoBfy0G3PYd21cDqn2Pi2N6a6MisUqcHEmt_TNzyBAdDAsIDCbAMYUhhAzpgYjZ7oQFJO0pYyNxbzf0WZrE0Xw/s4032/A17BEA69-71A4-477D-AD3C-561411453ABC.heic" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixN-unPEsVSREGCdUttPFgvTIjZax-bn1HPXp4-n50saS2mDMNm0SjsDui2BopZ1Mnq0NO4LcEbGjp6T1Xpm0ku6atgVJvK-1r3VOczoBfy0G3PYd21cDqn2Pi2N6a6MisUqcHEmt_TNzyBAdDAsIDCbAMYUhhAzpgYjZ7oQFJO0pYyNxbzf0WZrE0Xw/w300-h400/A17BEA69-71A4-477D-AD3C-561411453ABC.heic" width="300" /></a></div><br />The last leg of our ride brought us to the <a href="https://www.instagram.com/twocovesgarden/" target="_blank">Two Coves Community Garden</a>, a large site where several streets form a large triangle intersection. The garden has asphalt paved paths, numerous seating areas, plantings of all kinds and an extensive composting operation. Several gardeners welcomed the riders with applause as we completed our 4 mile bicycling marathon. The garden is within 800 feet of the waterfront and also very close to Astoria Houses public housing and is well used by the community.<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT_-pP8bO2hOWdaKIom0Z0ipnHHpsFX0oxhRrVsNspirwbWkWQrVU1uwlFyChfXELibsdycpt6fikJL0Vu_SryDzGqTynTXy1lnFkNDsvbX0v7VhgxJ-iNB9EuZrB3cOPGwuuqihrsfGRrkjgmWq7uFFMV2_kPlkIRFDxw3HeQF3IXpZaI8HyW_Ny7uw/s4032/E05CB6DD-05B8-4874-A924-473245471E0D.heic" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT_-pP8bO2hOWdaKIom0Z0ipnHHpsFX0oxhRrVsNspirwbWkWQrVU1uwlFyChfXELibsdycpt6fikJL0Vu_SryDzGqTynTXy1lnFkNDsvbX0v7VhgxJ-iNB9EuZrB3cOPGwuuqihrsfGRrkjgmWq7uFFMV2_kPlkIRFDxw3HeQF3IXpZaI8HyW_Ny7uw/w300-h400/E05CB6DD-05B8-4874-A924-473245471E0D.heic" width="300" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">I set off retracing my steps back to Staten Island but a headwind had picked up and storm clouds were gathering to the north so I rode to the NYC Ferry stop in Long Island City and took the ferry from there to Wall street in Manhattan. It was City of Water day after all so why not add an East River Ferry ride to my Staten Island ferry trips.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvuBjMb6vNYkBCyP6lKi6fnvzuLMtCwd7MIeZUvSbZHst40DK2nGCuR2pChtcqj7oITee6DRds0Lm89UgXGx9fWXfxfgNRgOPudOFAAJWKaKNWKcPWuZkCATiuydGBDwR2kD7-0TXCKwG5b1r_tvyejPZ5SjjzQMQXYO1HGrwPGePIlMh2tw0-tv1mTA/s4032/A84CF88D-2F54-4BEE-AC3B-61294E29FD66.heic" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvuBjMb6vNYkBCyP6lKi6fnvzuLMtCwd7MIeZUvSbZHst40DK2nGCuR2pChtcqj7oITee6DRds0Lm89UgXGx9fWXfxfgNRgOPudOFAAJWKaKNWKcPWuZkCATiuydGBDwR2kD7-0TXCKwG5b1r_tvyejPZ5SjjzQMQXYO1HGrwPGePIlMh2tw0-tv1mTA/w300-h400/A84CF88D-2F54-4BEE-AC3B-61294E29FD66.heic" width="300" /></a></div><span style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><br /></span></div>When I think and write about community gardens I want to make connections between and among the gardens and other issues. I see community gardens as a microcosm of the larger city and the benefits the gardens provide are varied and extensive. The community development that happens in and around the gardens is most important. Other environmental benefits from composting, to storm water management, to air and noise pollution control to wildlife habitat are also benefits that the casual observer of a community garden might not see.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVE6lztjgoCdA2dU4ZIeVxQgiMmDlqCI-MV73BK66kgYNlpDh7AkX_Wq7ATioZVOb78GTejpKSzbPPrFSFzmFhOPRun_xIKyb0vZ6Xh3tmXTjMpRs0jSft1gTV-1IiuO0fSkdTia5iXxg2fSjvnP1E1hNkn-XJRxa8AWVAA6kHTONsnu8F-LAC7LBgdA/s4032/4D0E9998-0480-4B02-B709-935C93E15674.heic" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVE6lztjgoCdA2dU4ZIeVxQgiMmDlqCI-MV73BK66kgYNlpDh7AkX_Wq7ATioZVOb78GTejpKSzbPPrFSFzmFhOPRun_xIKyb0vZ6Xh3tmXTjMpRs0jSft1gTV-1IiuO0fSkdTia5iXxg2fSjvnP1E1hNkn-XJRxa8AWVAA6kHTONsnu8F-LAC7LBgdA/w300-h400/4D0E9998-0480-4B02-B709-935C93E15674.heic" width="300" /></a></div><span style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><br /></span></div>This day spent in these 4 community gardens far exceeded my expectation as a seasoned community garden observer. Connections were made to our industrial past and our railroad history and our waterfront teeming with opportunities to utilize the waterfront for recreation, relaxation, travel and commerce. The water capturing ability of the gardens will continue to be important in our wet, warming future. Community gardens can be part of the growing bicycling infrastructure with possibilities for secure bike parking around or near gardens and potential rest stops for those on longer bike rides. My 20 mile bike ride turned into much more than just a bike ride.</span></div><p> </p><p><br /></p>Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-90342817728620897212021-11-12T06:33:00.001-08:002021-11-14T05:10:48.960-08:00Revisiting Empty Common Community Garden<p> "We have a Sichuan Pepper Tree. Have you ever tasted one? It makes your mouth go numb." Lileng, my tour guide to the Empty Common Community Garden picked off a tiny pepper and handed it to me. Once you bite down on the seed it releases a citrusy flavor and gradually a slight, pleasant numbness to your lips and mouth. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcTyGNnYJ7ZYjoMx74OOcMDdTC_0OqSKAvBV5C-w46-Mpr6sTlIlwXvnMBSdErwJ2UsLkHHNagYR8G3EaEu9pmnCj5MSxTUq1s5wgnVF5S9I_fWoRIHkaPhsD2lPqgw_mtoZvFxb09O3lu/s2048/IMG_1969.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="399" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcTyGNnYJ7ZYjoMx74OOcMDdTC_0OqSKAvBV5C-w46-Mpr6sTlIlwXvnMBSdErwJ2UsLkHHNagYR8G3EaEu9pmnCj5MSxTUq1s5wgnVF5S9I_fWoRIHkaPhsD2lPqgw_mtoZvFxb09O3lu/w300-h399/IMG_1969.HEIC" width="300" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The Sichuan Pepper Tree</div><p></p><p>This was my second visit to this garden located in Cambridge, England. On my first visit 4 years ago there weren't any gardeners around so this time I was happy to find several gardeners present. They were working on building a hut where gardeners could meet protected from the rain and cold. Charlotte, Lileng and Callum were anchoring the sill to the concrete block foundation. When I inquired about funding for the hut Charlotte told me, "We got grants from Cambridge City Council, The National Lottery via Transition Network, we are a part of Transition Cambridge and the Co-op Community Fund which the co-op shops donate to local causes."</p><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /><a href="https://www.blogger.com/#"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSKj9QGIEGyPF1xfdnExNJZ9H3QPsj2R9s2FpYGlNJE_Ly0ytTp5J5q1qcl8Kc6c6OCW5m6Jt0qGVKeQJyC7R8ULSxQma5GtowzmXqkwpIapVD542tg3d3h4c4ztu1Els_mXXYAtQ6yO9O/w611-h458/IMG_1974.HEIC" /></a><br />Lileng, Callum and Charlotte<br /><br /><br /><br /> The garden has matured a bit since my last visit. It was started in 2013, so some of the trees are maturing and the perennial plantings are becoming well established. An herb spiral is one of the focal points of the garden and spot to fly the Earth flag. <br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/#"><img border="0" height="681" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDslV7wI8kIPWrkHKSGNoShfVXb0GM6VHggcFi9XDIaKxeiB0x00f04E3O1xNv1r0myQp2VWDHMN6lZlK3BkvAF4_JPjUIZa795rNlWXPSkEIuK-ves27j6Su_OWzZbtDpsdPMUzwSjMDR/w511-h681/IMG_1980.HEIC" width="511" /></a></div><br />The plantings surrounding a semicircular log seating area are filling in nicely. Even though I visited after the peak growing season it was a bright sunny day and the beauty in the garden was everywhere. <br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfao_HlZfcd602WmjaK_YVGi80Ymin4fV3MxLGGacZJItbPxpdfgQpf-pGImTXY5VUx9s_WuH_J3W-LhRsKsiBI5Xet0UW8g4nPi7knb9Desyy1FSp-2xTYSPxSUyVe8XaO2N24LnUpiI9/s2048/IMG_1986.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="510" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfao_HlZfcd602WmjaK_YVGi80Ymin4fV3MxLGGacZJItbPxpdfgQpf-pGImTXY5VUx9s_WuH_J3W-LhRsKsiBI5Xet0UW8g4nPi7knb9Desyy1FSp-2xTYSPxSUyVe8XaO2N24LnUpiI9/w442-h510/IMG_1986.HEIC" width="442" /></a></div></div><br /><div><br /></div><div>The plots are all communal and the group decides what to plant and the harvest is also shared and sometimes poached by night visitors including muntjac deer that stop by in the evening to browse. Other pests are also a presence and Lieng pointed out netting and plastic rings used around the Pak Choi to deter flea beetles and snails. <div><br /><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiStKy9rtFeuIg1MjFLed_lLaUx6hgO9_zxWebhTTU-8ySKvylGrAGC88hzHrO6cyWgIzOCnzOBCOachmv4g3kAKjsuYiJNpzS4cWPQPCn58eWXWSHgZhaJIyKrAuRdegJYsWfU8qhnXQ99/s2048/IMG_1972.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiStKy9rtFeuIg1MjFLed_lLaUx6hgO9_zxWebhTTU-8ySKvylGrAGC88hzHrO6cyWgIzOCnzOBCOachmv4g3kAKjsuYiJNpzS4cWPQPCn58eWXWSHgZhaJIyKrAuRdegJYsWfU8qhnXQ99/w480-h640/IMG_1972.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The garden is located at the edge of an allotment garden. Allotments are found in England and other places in Europe and serve as remote backyards for urban dwellers. They are usually rented or sometimes purchased from the municipality. The Allotment gardens are much different from community gardens like this one where everyone shares the work and harvest of the whole garden. When I asked garden leader Charlotte if the gardeners paid rent or fee she told me, "There is no fee. People tend to buy things we need as they come up, some give money occasionally and one person gives us money monthly by direct debit. "<br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This quarter acre garden has 15 active members and an email list of about 80 people who are interested in the garden or support what the gardeners are doing. Much like community gardens everywhere non- gardening groups use the garden space. Others that regularly use the Empty Common garden include a a Tai Chi group, a poetry group and a group called <a href="https://heritage.woodcraft.org.uk/about/" target="_blank">Woodcraft Folk</a>.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCV1jAhKCNeTwh2o3ZIfWCkrZMOv-Eg34Kx4wH-6jIABRDOsZrrCp5yOjSf-cdYiUTE5WWUsUjyjn4dw8g_IM_GEW2mGM-atT2D93INWLB6jOXJfhsrVRucYiHSxPdDIJZsnIAE9CkSW3M/s2048/IMG_1984.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="528" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCV1jAhKCNeTwh2o3ZIfWCkrZMOv-Eg34Kx4wH-6jIABRDOsZrrCp5yOjSf-cdYiUTE5WWUsUjyjn4dw8g_IM_GEW2mGM-atT2D93INWLB6jOXJfhsrVRucYiHSxPdDIJZsnIAE9CkSW3M/w396-h528/IMG_1984.HEIC" width="396" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="text-align: center;">There are a few existing structures in the garden including a shed, hoop house and composting toilet which I made use of during my visit. </span><span style="text-align: center;">A lot of the materials used in the garden are found or recycled. Everything from the leaves and organic matter which is turned into compost, to sticks and twigs used for supports on a bean trellis to some of the materials being used in building the new meeting hut that were salvaged from a temporary structure that was dismantled.</span></div><div><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUnu_NNbDAmKI0LLd9a9tG8omfyoEyZl8VgxreYZ-YkVmYHUGXnuqwwbcD1Dl4baheSTLe0RiLSljIMUYlpbw_Pfqz3NzhNV-zcF5zcRqxX6XoFwJ6JYuBeICRdStJnqtkNl4C4ln6NhCT/s2048/IMG_1978.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUnu_NNbDAmKI0LLd9a9tG8omfyoEyZl8VgxreYZ-YkVmYHUGXnuqwwbcD1Dl4baheSTLe0RiLSljIMUYlpbw_Pfqz3NzhNV-zcF5zcRqxX6XoFwJ6JYuBeICRdStJnqtkNl4C4ln6NhCT/w480-h640/IMG_1978.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><br /> </span><span style="text-align: center;">This garden is a wonderful example of all that a community garden can be. A common ground for people to meet and share ideas and share the effort of improving the land we inhabit. The gardeners use of permaculture techniques makes sure there is habitat for creatures both large and small while providing food for the gardener's bodies and souls.</span></div><div><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpdGDK3BgV_2fpAAV0jjVUNWvje35Exo8HkaZbeq8IV3iX2LoADOj-phr59pg91C9qt_nYWPdX3zQoqmUl9X-5pKODwsTcfSq48rv1d1JzzzI0k5BuE9BKoZIQVwNan9zkFo9wMcfnMLRE/s2048/IMG_1966.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpdGDK3BgV_2fpAAV0jjVUNWvje35Exo8HkaZbeq8IV3iX2LoADOj-phr59pg91C9qt_nYWPdX3zQoqmUl9X-5pKODwsTcfSq48rv1d1JzzzI0k5BuE9BKoZIQVwNan9zkFo9wMcfnMLRE/w512-h640/IMG_1966.HEIC" width="512" /></a></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">More information about Empty Common Community Garden can be found on their <a href="https://emptycommongarden.blogspot.com/">blog </a></div> <div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><br /></div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /> </p></div></div></div></div></div>Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-37487831405065484082021-02-02T20:08:00.000-08:002021-02-02T20:08:27.348-08:00Renewal<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikEhG8V0rAb3kkfieVyNwKzu8hmnaH2BHXuIxSQyZK37VnzVbbujWNmhU-ZwONpXzHcx4GLyHszw977zsONIoSu5BMfMqFMGhLmBpNM50gM9_15QSsmaGNoJosTDZXVdwWLe58CoLuYpgg/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img data-original-height="876" data-original-width="1153" height="486" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikEhG8V0rAb3kkfieVyNwKzu8hmnaH2BHXuIxSQyZK37VnzVbbujWNmhU-ZwONpXzHcx4GLyHszw977zsONIoSu5BMfMqFMGhLmBpNM50gM9_15QSsmaGNoJosTDZXVdwWLe58CoLuYpgg/w640-h486/IMG_0037.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="text-align: left;">I visited the Olivet Heavenly Harvest Garden in the middle of the Coronavirus pandemic on a bright sunny day in June 2020. Punctuating the lively socially distanced conversations taking place was the chop chop sound of ice choppers and spades being used to reduce the size of the compostable material to help speed up the composting process. The raised beds were lush with all types of vegetables, most of which was destined for distribution to local food pantries. This was a necessary change made by the gardeners to safely garden in the time of the pandemic. In 2020, 1650 pounds of vegetables were donated to pantries run by a local Methodist Church, Community Health Action of Staten Island, El Centro, the Refrigerator, The Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary and a soup kitchen at Project Hospitality. This list only highlights the number of people who are food insecure.</span></div><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioL7kI-oy0ufvOJBNWKTpT482PO342Im7SBLazGVK1-Sr2zGtJx-VPUR8GgQB-vlYvRx6-m7p1N6GyAqEImqrQCxxWkT0_FNjY2Xrfy7m-BOC6094BSaJHOlW__cSqarZJT2bV7Mz7MEFt/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img data-original-height="858" data-original-width="1140" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioL7kI-oy0ufvOJBNWKTpT482PO342Im7SBLazGVK1-Sr2zGtJx-VPUR8GgQB-vlYvRx6-m7p1N6GyAqEImqrQCxxWkT0_FNjY2Xrfy7m-BOC6094BSaJHOlW__cSqarZJT2bV7Mz7MEFt/w640-h482/IMG_0038.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br />In a normal season, produce is given away each Saturday to people in the community. The gardeners roll out a covered produce stand built by volunteers recruited by Ralph, a young gardener, as his Eagle Scout project. The gardeners don't have to advertise their giveaways. With just word of mouth in the neighborhood, the vegetables are often all given away before the 10 am to 1 pm hours are over. They have regular Saturday visitors including one woman who loves green tomatoes and would always request them. In addition to tomatoes they grew garlic, okra, bok choy, collard greens, lettuce, beans and cucumbers.<p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-YLvXTB2_INNS65Rj7WTuZdjpIhyWHAYqJrk3btDXQSIj-XQ6GJ3mR8ykJWYq8C8JzF2EhKWk4Gh1H5mwEjIhVCToDAjk9BVwH5w_OQk0WhmQZI6Ztk1J3uRkTl88xyYrAk9pavOQq_J4/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img data-original-height="1567" data-original-width="1154" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-YLvXTB2_INNS65Rj7WTuZdjpIhyWHAYqJrk3btDXQSIj-XQ6GJ3mR8ykJWYq8C8JzF2EhKWk4Gh1H5mwEjIhVCToDAjk9BVwH5w_OQk0WhmQZI6Ztk1J3uRkTl88xyYrAk9pavOQq_J4/w295-h400/IMG_0035.jpeg" width="295" /></a></div><p></p><p>Having visited community gardens throughout the US as well as in England and Sweden, I've seen many types of community gardens. The Olivet Heavenly Harvest Garden inspired me more than any other. There is a very active multi-generational group of gardeners here. Many of them are cancer survivors. They are all supportive of each other’s circumstances but from what I saw there were no limits on the work or activities going on. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6_GT-nnYkI5mlJzYdBh9aHAr5fVIDDfzt6jK986Iz1kSrvdqRv9CG5O1iBVH4ysJ2gUv8IbJFDzwgefgbNRYIOC_zvMDg9VNcOKQRPMmqO6BY4zDVihw8PK7wC45rWXiFNBUYJUPWWj0b/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6_GT-nnYkI5mlJzYdBh9aHAr5fVIDDfzt6jK986Iz1kSrvdqRv9CG5O1iBVH4ysJ2gUv8IbJFDzwgefgbNRYIOC_zvMDg9VNcOKQRPMmqO6BY4zDVihw8PK7wC45rWXiFNBUYJUPWWj0b/w640-h480/005C9FB8-6A1F-40F3-8FC1-3FA299CD4778_1_105_c.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div>This winter, when I visited a small group of three of the most active gardeners, Kelly, John and Mike, they rattled off all of the types of cancers represented in their group; colon, liver, prostate, ovarian, breast and skin cancers. They sometimes would see each other at doctor's offices. As Mike told me,"We are good for 6 months until our semi annual checkups" In between doctor visits they spend their time creating an amazing garden.<p></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP_aA9gu3bbruQ70gg8yneTlHO1JEWezgVl2YZCotobTa_Hl31pIsiFpmA7BIyjVwWM_xu_I2-mQU7WoJuFiZQbLaY_v0Cb2r0EYmXU9VTcIr7TwQzXa9wmatjbyj2hQOe7GRdCBub_d2M/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img data-original-height="1791" data-original-width="1141" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP_aA9gu3bbruQ70gg8yneTlHO1JEWezgVl2YZCotobTa_Hl31pIsiFpmA7BIyjVwWM_xu_I2-mQU7WoJuFiZQbLaY_v0Cb2r0EYmXU9VTcIr7TwQzXa9wmatjbyj2hQOe7GRdCBub_d2M/w255-h400/IMG_0036.jpeg" width="255" /></a></div><p></p><p>They have a unique way of organizing the garden. The plots are "rented " to local people who can afford it for $100. The core group of gardeners tend the plots for the renters who will get a head of lettuce or a tomato or two from time to time but the largest share of the produce is donated. This coming season they plan to grow 2000 pounds of produce by utilizing a space to grow onions and potatoes down the block in the backyard of the house used by the minister. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHOEHGC9lJUOtOZV0AaTc4MyJof4iJSnfStfcPRT1BCLFqvua4XvOq-P7DLq-eiEseK4wl_7gJZDNUD4UeERTQ8Mo7_gjT-e0jyHj-N8V14PqjlJcz36Ba1eBlyYxzjI9IiDmbKqKffbAy/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="768" height="446" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHOEHGC9lJUOtOZV0AaTc4MyJof4iJSnfStfcPRT1BCLFqvua4XvOq-P7DLq-eiEseK4wl_7gJZDNUD4UeERTQ8Mo7_gjT-e0jyHj-N8V14PqjlJcz36Ba1eBlyYxzjI9IiDmbKqKffbAy/w335-h446/88555A0C-6E85-46F3-9FB3-7192E902D7AE_1_105_c.jpeg" width="335" /></a></div><p></p><p>The garden is located on the grounds of Olivet Presbyterian Church on Staten Island. In highly developed cities like New York, very little municipal land is available for planting community gardens, so land owned by churches, mosques or synagogues is being used more and more often. This is a perfect example of that trend. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHo5TUnIBeOK2phKDrdRAp9Ksl_1thMbSCjApw7dW65Vs7oyQ6-1fbO2LvUkFFbS3OfZcf4bthRybSdonWSUXSet27W1-wNfNchkWVLY7c4hbqFlL-KyW-GP8uyS7xV9_jBDp2YYwwxRa9/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img data-original-height="846" data-original-width="1131" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHo5TUnIBeOK2phKDrdRAp9Ksl_1thMbSCjApw7dW65Vs7oyQ6-1fbO2LvUkFFbS3OfZcf4bthRybSdonWSUXSet27W1-wNfNchkWVLY7c4hbqFlL-KyW-GP8uyS7xV9_jBDp2YYwwxRa9/w640-h478/IMG_0034.jpeg" width="640" /></a><span style="text-align: left;">The unique characteristics of the space surrounding the church were taken into consideration in the layout of the garden’s plantings and activities. A retaining wall was used for cascading cucumber vines to make use of vertical spaces. Dotting the garden are repurposed pop up awnings minus the shade covering being used as trellises for climbing pole beans. The vegetables are grown within a fenced in area but the gardeners neatly tend the landscaping outside the fence with flowering plantings. One area surrounding the church steps is lovingly tended by Kelly as a Memorial Garden. The garden is also used as a location for plant and tree giveaways sponsored by city agencies and others.</span></div><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi7sAD-OqQG66dsjhHiaK-p16ZIWaQ0yWY_0Rbj06gLUqWwym2ToF4kZVFVAz9-usZWXFcui_oBW3ulr_8X_kWXJ32hegR_5Ek44_5W42scPknVgWQRaS8NHz99WprOqxXOVIkahyphenhyphenyrmpf/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="768" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi7sAD-OqQG66dsjhHiaK-p16ZIWaQ0yWY_0Rbj06gLUqWwym2ToF4kZVFVAz9-usZWXFcui_oBW3ulr_8X_kWXJ32hegR_5Ek44_5W42scPknVgWQRaS8NHz99WprOqxXOVIkahyphenhyphenyrmpf/w479-h640/F8750ABE-19D8-45FF-939B-EBE266282C87_1_105_c.jpeg" width="479" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>They spend a bunch of time processing food scraps to be worked into the composting systems they have set up. The chopped up food scraps are composted into the only soil amendment they use on the vegetable plots. In fact they have a bin set up outside the garden gates to accept food scraps 24 hours a day. On the day I visited they were meeting to discuss accepting more food scraps from other collecting sites. The city of New York has unfortunately cut the municipal composting budget by 90%. Community gardeners and other volunteers are pitching in to do the work that should be done by city agencies. The gardeners did not seem to care about budget cuts although they mentioned that donations and volunteers are always welcome. As John told me, "Here it is about us and every year we make the garden a little better"<p></p>Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-58938955596325211552019-12-02T17:41:00.001-08:002019-12-02T18:00:22.514-08:00Community BuildingIn the course of a Thanksgiving Day conversation with my cousin, the subject of Rudy Giuliani came up. These days he is very much in the news as a key figure in the Donald Trump impeachment inquiry. People who are familiar with the happenings in the late 1990's in the community gardening world know Mr. Giuliani in a much different context, so I recounted this story to my cousin.<br />
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At Giuliani's <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1998/01/02/nyregion/inauguration-rudolph-w-giuliani-overview-inauguration-giuliani-outlines-police.html" target="_blank">second inauguration</a> on January 1, 1997, protesters unfurled a banner protesting the loss of a community garden. He made light of it in his remarks as the protesters were hauled away but afterward sought to punish the protesters by attempting to get rid of as many community gardens as he could. Over the course of the next year, community garden properties on city owned land were placed into an auction of vacant properties. These community gardens were far from vacant and no distinction was made between a thriving, active garden and a fallow, inactive one. Approximately 120 gardens were scheduled to be <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/30033906?seq=1" target="_blank">auctioned in May, 1999</a>.<br />
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This group of gardens ended up being purchased and preserved as community gardens by the Trust for Public Land (TPL) and the New York Restoration Project (NYRP). Giuliani's vendetta had the unexpected (by him) effect of galvanizing the community gardeners to protest and organize to save the gardens. In fact, the notoriety of a possible loss of 120 community gardens in NYC at one time, became worldwide news with articles appearing in the New York Times, the Washington Post and even European newspapers. Had he sold off the gardens one by one, the critical mass of activist community gardeners affected by this maneuver would not have been formed.<br />
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All of a sudden what was a "fringe" movement was now known by the general public. People were now aware what community gardens were and how beneficial they were to the communities where they were located. This helped TPL and NYRP to fundraise over $5.3 million for the purchase of the garden properties. My cheeky comment to my cousin was that Rudy Giuliani deserves a reward from the community gardeners for popularizing community gardening so they no longer had to explain what a community garden was when they mentioned to someone that they are a community gardener.<br />
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At the time there were many other truly vacant lots that could have been auctioned and helped the city toward the stated goal of shrinking government. That $5.3 million could have supported programs in the community gardens and the community gardener's efforts. This time of antagonism between the city government and it's community gardening citizens did not have to create a climate of mistrust that still lingers even though subsequent Mayors Bloomberg and DiBlasio were more supportive.<br />
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The political outlook that conflates Socialism with Communism with Community with Community Gardens is mistaken. Community Gardeners for the most part are not Communists or Socialists or Democratic Socialists. They are people who are doing something good for the community and for themselves. Although a famous Democratic Socialist, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/home/aoc-plants-a-garden-and-the-twitterverse-pays-attention/2019/04/29/38c614fa-66b9-11e9-82ba-fcfeff232e8f_story.html" target="_blank">Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez</a> has a community garden plot in a garden in the Bronx.<br />
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Community Gardens can be looked at as a microcosm of the larger society. Now I might add that community gardens and programs that support composting, job creation and healthy living using community gardens as the staging area for all these to happen sounds a lot like the platform of the Democratic Socialists. But the community gardeners don't call it that. In Cleveland, a group called <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2019/nov/28/cleveland-ohio-city-champions-rid-all-urban-farming-segregation" target="_blank">Rid-All</a> is tackling the problems of inequality and poor health in the community. They call it building community. There are other examples of community building groups like Rid-All in <a href="https://www.thekaleproject.com/the-power-of-community-gardens-in-new-york-city/" target="_blank">New York City</a>, <a href="https://detroit.curbed.com/2016/12/1/13807672/urban-agrihood-detroit-mufi#0?utm_campaign=detroit.curbed.social&utm_medium=social&utm_content=voxdotcom&utm_source=facebook" target="_blank">Detroit</a>, <a href="https://phsonline.org/programs/garden-tenders/growing-more-than-a-garden/" target="_blank">Philadelphia</a> and other cities.<br />
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When asked about community gardeners protesting the loss of their garden, Rudy Giuliani's reply was "<a href="https://www.villagevoice.com/1999/05/04/rudy-deflowers-new-york/" target="_blank">Welcome to the era after communism</a>". Yes, welcome to the era of community building.<br />
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<br />Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-44121324897321913422018-12-31T10:09:00.001-08:002018-12-31T10:09:58.139-08:00Soil Not Dirt<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeMNWgnJocg6SwP4tMtzFrZ32XUg6uBskT_woI80b4RnGC8Zv4Q50JGPD54vL64fa8OOh3aTfUhMupnzChP-qfGXo2jPl-tcdYO0ZPPbDGuL-quPBUpKzqk-xmYJrcNKYWEoXA86goruWU/s1600/IMG_4035.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeMNWgnJocg6SwP4tMtzFrZ32XUg6uBskT_woI80b4RnGC8Zv4Q50JGPD54vL64fa8OOh3aTfUhMupnzChP-qfGXo2jPl-tcdYO0ZPPbDGuL-quPBUpKzqk-xmYJrcNKYWEoXA86goruWU/s400/IMG_4035.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
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Recently I attended the <a href="https://www.usi.nyc/urban-soils-symposium-2018.html" target="_blank">3rd Annual Urban Soils Symposium</a>. Scientists are looking at urban soils as a distinct field of study that has nomenclature and characteristics different from soil science in general. I have written blog posts about <a href="https://commmunitygardening.blogspot.com/2011/03/its-soil.html" target="_blank">soils in urban gardens</a> outlining the awareness urban gardeners must have about the soil in their gardens. The presenters at the symposium and the questions and comments from attendees were often targeted to the urban soil issues of heavy metal contamination and what could be done. The blog post linked above gives detail about precautions to be taken. As with many issues when you get 2 or more experts discussing a topic you will have at least as many opinions as discussants. In this case the opinions ranged from - there is nothing you can do to outlining precautions that have been recommended by many scientists. The point is that there is more research to be done and that we don't have all of the answers.<br />
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Soil, water, seeds and sunlight are the essential ingredients for growing anything. Growing plants in urban areas maybe have a more difficult time with all of these factors but gardeners have always grown lush gardens in urban areas. The point for me is that we can't look at any of these factors in a vacuum. It doesn't help to look at these factors as a chicken or egg question - what comes first? It doesn't really matter what comes first if you see them all as interrelated and interdependent on each other. We can plant a seed in the soil, water the seed and let the sunshine do the job of providing the light and heat the seed requires to grow. The problems arise when one of the factors is out of balance. Too much rain, not enough rain, too much or not enough sunshine or non-viable seed are easily understandable problems usually with simple fix.<br />
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The issues with soils are much more complex and often not easily remedied. Commercial agriculture's quick fix is to just add 3 nutrients Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium (NPK) to soil to grow crops. This ignores the fact that healthy soil is a living thing. Besides NPK, soils contain many micronutrients, sand, gravel, loam and living organisms both micro-organisms and larger insects. Unfortunately soils also contain poisons such as pesticides and herbicides that usually throw off the natural life in the soil. Urban soils have human made materials that make these soils unique. The important thing to remember is that we have to pay attention to our soils and be caretakers of the soil.<br />
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Community Gardeners might just consider Soil as another member of the garden community. The Soil doesn't have a voice although we tend to pay attention to the Soil only when there is a problem. A better way is to cultivate a relationship with the Soil. Give the soil compost to help it replenish its nutrients. Plant things that encourage insects, pollinators and <a href="https://fungially.com/what-is-mycelium-natures-world-wide-web/" target="_blank">mycelium</a> growth to encourage the health of the soil. It is a Native American custom to give gifts back to the earth as thanks whenever something is taken from it. We should all be adopting this practice. We have to stop treating our soil like dirt.Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-66916497801847010692018-08-11T08:21:00.002-07:002018-08-11T08:21:55.346-07:00Honeybees and Community GardensCommunity Gardeners have kept honeybees in their gardens for many years. As gardens mature and gardeners focus on sustainability and how community gardens impact the environment more community gardeners are becoming beekeepers or inviting beekeepers to set up hives in the gardens.<br />
Beekeeping in NYC and other cities has increased tremendously a cities have created urban agriculture policies that include beekeeping. Some cities like NYC have rescinded laws that made keeping honeybees illegal. In NYC, honeybees were classified as 'venomous pests".<br />
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I've been beekeeping on and off for about 25 years. Initially as a volunteer beekeeper at Wave Hill in the Bronx, for many years helping other beekeepers (and learning from them), maintaining hives at gardens run by my former employer and for about the last 6 years keeping hives at locations around Staten Island. I learn something new about honeybees and beekeeping almost everyday. Many people I speak with are fascinated by honeybees and will often grill me about misconceptions they have about bees.<br />
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"Are they aggressive? Do they sting?"<br />
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No they are not aggressive. Honeybees are searching for pollen and nectar from flowers and you are not a flower. They will sting but you have to be threatening to them in some way. Often when someone is stung it is a yellow jacket, wasp or hornet that is the culprit so don't be so quick to blame a honeybee. There are 3500 species of bees in the United States and <a href="https://www.pollinatorsnativeplants.com/bees-an-identification-and-native-plant-forage-guide1.html" target="_blank">20,000 throughout the world</a>. The vast majority of bee species are solitary bees, often they nest in the soil or in cavities in trees, shrubs and even our homes.<br />
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Bees have evolved along with the plants they pollinate. A variety of bee species are responsible for pollinating one third of our food crops. Bees also contribute to biodiversity by cross pollinating native species. There are many benefits that bee species provide to various ecosystems. The honeybee is the only species that are managed by humans to pollinate food crops and to collect honey and other hive products.<br />
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"Is there really only one queen? Why don't they have more than one queen?"<br />
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Yes there is only one queen per hive. She lays all of the eggs that eventually populate the hive after the larvae are fed by the female worker bees. The male drones sole role in the colony is to impregnate a virgin queen. The social structure of the hive and their defenses are well served by having a solitary queen. All of the bees in the hive carry the scent of the pheromones of the queen on their bodies. The guard bees defend the hive from any invaders that don't have the queen's pheromones.<br />
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Why are honeybees having a hard time surviving?<br />
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There are many factors. Climate change often disrupts the hive with severe weather such as extreme heat, extreme cold and intense storms. Pesticide use, in particular Neonicotinoid pesticides weaken or kill hives. Habitat loss where honeybee forage sites are developed put stress on the colony. Hive pests which range from the tiny varroa mite to the giant bear.<br />
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"What can I do to help?"<br />
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My favorite question. As individuals we can help counteract the factors that are contributing to hive loss. First, don't use pesticides or herbicides. As bees forage for pollen and nectar they will come in contact with the residue of spraying. These small amounts of herbicides or pesticides can weaken and eventually kill bees and bee colonies. Second plant flowers, trees and shrubs that bees will use as food sources like some of the plants in the above list. If you don't have a space to plant, you can join a community garden, volunteer with a local herb society or with a local parks department or donate to or join a group whose mission is to help pollinator species.<br />
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<a href="http://pollinator.org/" target="_blank">http://pollinator.org/</a><br />
<a href="https://thepollinationproject.org/" target="_blank">https://thepollinationproject.org/</a><br />
<a href="http://millionpollinatorgardens.org/" target="_blank">http://millionpollinatorgardens.org/</a><br />
<a href="http://www.pollinator-project.com/" target="_blank">http://www.pollinator-project.com/</a><br />
<a href="https://www.nycgovparks.org/greening/greenbelt-native-plant-center/bee-watchers" target="_blank">https://www.nycgovparks.org/greening/greenbelt-native-plant-center/bee-watchers</a><br />
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Third, buy local honey and hive products. You will be getting something sweet while supporting local beekeepers efforts to help the bees survive.Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-1838214774316370432018-03-19T18:32:00.002-07:002018-03-19T18:32:43.633-07:00Joe Holzka Garden and the Humus Film FestivalLast Fall I met Sara, a young woman from Madrid, Spain, who was visiting New York and asked me to show her a few of the Lower East side gardens. We met, walked around the neighborhood and visited gardens that were open and chatted about community gardening in New York and in Madrid. Sara is a leader of a community garden in Madrid, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/estaesunaplaza/" target="_blank">Esta es una Plaza</a> . We talked about another organization in Madrid, <a href="https://www.lacasaencendida.es/" target="_blank">La Casa Encendida</a> that was sponsoring The Humus Film Festival of short videos about community gardens along with the Humus Revolution, a 3 day fun event about community gardens.<br />
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Now I realized that she also had an ulterior motive, to ask me to submit a short video about a community garden to the festival. I agreed. I thought it would be a fun project. But the winter came and I wouldn't be able to get any interesting footage in the winter. I did have some nice photos of the Joe Holzka Garden and when I looked through them I realized they could tell a story about the garden.<br />
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I've written about this garden before. It is close to my home and I'm an honorary member. I led a project to build a shade structure/ rainwater harvester. I also worked on a expansion of the garden which added raised beds that would be used to grow produce for a local food pantry. Recently I helped the gardeners rebuild some of the raised beds that needed replacement.<br />
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We also organized a fun event to celebrate the release of a new book, <a href="https://eatlesswater.com/" target="_blank">Eat Less Water</a> by Florencia Ramirez. Florencia visited the garden with me a few years ago and was so impressed by the garden that she mentioned the visit in the book. We read an excerpt from the book and shared food prepared by the gardeners, Kelly Morris and Aralis Munoz. It was easy for me to tell a story about the Joe Holzka Garden.<br />
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Thankfully there are computer programs that can take still photos and pan and zoom through the picture creating something called the Ken Burns Effect. My phone has a setting on the camera called Live Photos which captures several seconds of video when I take a still photo. So I made a movie using these photos with help from my son and my wife. It wasn't action packed, did not have dialogue but hopefully will show the world this wonderful garden. Enjoy!<br />
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<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/r4reFtL6t2s/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/r4reFtL6t2s?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
<br />Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-67809142088086911232018-01-17T12:36:00.001-08:002018-01-17T12:38:44.467-08:00A Community Garden in Cambridge, EnglandCommunity Gardens exist is some form in many places around the world. They may look different in Cuba than in Mexico than in Sweden. Part of the beauty of community gardens are the cultural influences that manifest in the way they look or are organized.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxUYeSTuUBNqyPMBYSUB1aLYe9B3X-rzGP8vfH85TWuR6WODB7wPggEUqCpS_3xvuCx6f6dqFxjo_cyNmyvMMIEF-e_F0mNAQTtLrqpOVAPkKMOJKJs_mftSLNTysrS27ZhZ_up_ZYuVnq/s1600/IMG_2122.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxUYeSTuUBNqyPMBYSUB1aLYe9B3X-rzGP8vfH85TWuR6WODB7wPggEUqCpS_3xvuCx6f6dqFxjo_cyNmyvMMIEF-e_F0mNAQTtLrqpOVAPkKMOJKJs_mftSLNTysrS27ZhZ_up_ZYuVnq/s400/IMG_2122.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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I recently had the opportunity to see a community garden in Cambridge, England. I was not able to connect with any of the gardeners as I visited on a Sunday morning when no one was around. The garden was open which right there might be an unrecognizable feature to a New York City community gardener. I was only visiting Cambridge for a short time so I couldn't visit again or arrange to meet a gardener.<br />
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Cambridge is a university town. Basically the university is surrounded by and intermingled with the town. There is a <a href="http://www.botanic.cam.ac.uk/Botanic/Home.aspx" target="_blank">Botanical Garden</a> that is affiliated with the University. Just south of the Botanical Garden are an <a href="https://www.cambridge.gov.uk/allotments" target="_blank">Allotment Garden</a> and the <a href="http://emptycommongarden.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">Empty Common Community Garden</a> which I visited. Allotments have been a popular type of opportunity for city dwellers to be able to garden somewhere close to the city. In some cases they look like backyards. There is a rental fee or in the case of a allotment I visited in Malmo, Sweden in 2005, the plots are owned and can be sold much like any other home or property. The Cambridge Allotments are rented on a yearly basis.</div>
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The interesting thing to me was that the Allotments and the community garden in this case were adjacent to each other. There wasn't a very clear delineation between the allotment and the community garden. The garden did have some plots , a greenhouse and a number of common areas. The common areas are what seemed to distinguish the garden from the allotment. The seating areas were made from repurposed logs and there were other fun and interesting features to the garden, I tried to capture these details in some of the photos. The land for both is owned by the City Council but it is not clear to me what the procedure is to join either one. Perhaps I will learn that on a future visit. </div>
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It seems analogous to me to the difference between Community Gardens and Urban Agriculture projects in New York and other American cities. An Allotment or Urban Agriculture project are individually controlled while the Community Gardens are, well...</div>
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<br />Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-50248368628068832702017-12-08T13:02:00.002-08:002017-12-08T13:02:46.831-08:00Collaboration<div style="background: white; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Note: I recently received an award from The City Gardens Club for my work as an educator. I'm posting these remarks I made at the award ceremony here because they show the collaborative nature of community gardeners and the individuals and organizations that support community gardens. I've added links where appropriate.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">City Gardens Club Remarks, November 13, 2017<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">Thank you</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">Susan. I’m proud to be receiving this award as you did several years ago.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">Thank you</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.citygardensclubnyc.org/" target="_blank">City Gardens Club</a> for this <a href="http://www.citygardensclubnyc.org/outreach-programs/awards/awards-recipients/" target="_blank">MelvilleAward</a>.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I don't think I would have been able to accomplish what I have without the support of my wife, Kathy. She has been my one-woman support team. If I listed all the ways she has supported me this speech would go on forever.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Thanks to <a href="https://www.grownyc.org/" target="_blank">GrowNYC</a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>for employing me all these years and supporting the accomplishments for which I am being rewarded today.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">31 years ago I was hired to be the Grow Truck Driver. Support for this position has come almost every year since from the City Gardens Club. Thank you City Gardens Club for that funding. The Grow Truck has been invaluable in getting the materials and supplies - often donated by organizations led by Melville Award honorees, the <a href="http://www.greenguerillas.org/" target="_blank">Green Guerillas</a> led by Steve Frillman and <a href="https://bpcparks.org/" target="_blank">Battery Parks City Parks Conservancy</a> led by Tessa Huxley - to all of the Greening projects at GrowNYC like school gardening projects led by Melville recipients; Alison Godshall, Nate Wight and GrowNYC’s Mike Zamm.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span> </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">I’ve recently retired as Director of Green Infrastructure at GrowNYC. In all of the projects Gerard and I have worked on, a key component has been educating city residents and youth in particular, about all aspects of Open Space – how to find spaces to grow plants in our city where open space is so scarce, how to grow those plants and all of the benefits we receive as individuals and as a city from those plants.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You might say Gerard Lordahl and I complement each other in the sense of enhancing each other’s work. I can thank Gerard more than anyone for the many successes I’ve had. Particularly because he did things I didn't care much about and I was the nerdy statistics guy that measures and counted things so I could tell you: <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">how many community gardens are in NYC </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"> - <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">600, </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">or how much space they encompass </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"> - </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">32 acres,</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">or how many community gardeners - 20,000 in all 5 boroughs </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">and that there are</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">200 gardens with rainwater harvesting systems</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">capturing 2 million gallons of rainwater each year.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">The last 15 years or so of my career I spent the bulk of my time on storm water management</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">and rainwater harvesting because I felt that rainwater harvesting has an environmental triple bottom line.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">It saves water.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">It prevents pollution.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">It educates the public.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">These rainwater systems are educational just by there existence. They provoke conversation and learning particularly in lower income communities and communities of color. This is very important to me to help insure that we have an educated public and that we don't have a Flint Water crisis in our city and that our city has an intelligent plan for dealing with storms like Sandy, Harvey, Irma and Maria.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">We created a <a href="https://www.grownyc.org/gardens/green-infrastructure-toolkit" target="_blank">Stormwater Management Toolkit</a> that can be found at GrowNYC.org</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">to give everyone the tools they need to know the issues and do something about it.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I trained hundreds of teens, young adults and homeowners about rainwater systems and how to install them. I also taught many rainwater workshops for GrowNYC, <a href="http://www.greenthumbnyc.org/" target="_blank">GreenThumb</a>, the <a href="http://queensbotanical.org/" target="_blank">Queens Botanical Garden</a> led by Susan Lacerte, a former Melville award recipient and with Mary Leou at <a href="https://steinhardt.nyu.edu/" target="_blank">Steinhardt NYU,</a> another Melville honoree, and in partnership with other community groups.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">I want to point out one partnership in particular,</span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><a href="https://brotherhood-sistersol.org/" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">The Brotherhood/ Sister Sol</a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">(BHSS), because that partnership highlights the work that we do but also because it gives me hope. At BHSS I worked very closely with teen program leader Nando Rodriguez and the BHSS youth to build 3 rainwater systems in their community. I first met Nando about 20 years ago as one of the youth working on the</span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><a href="http://www.oasisnyc.net/garden/gardensearch.aspx" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">CommunityGarden Mapping Project</a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">. Now he is doing great work with youth in Harlem.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">Over the years I have taught elementary school children, teens and adults how to measure, identify, assess and map the street trees and community gardens in NYC in the aforementioned </span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">Community Garden Mapping Project and <a href="http://www.oasisnyc.net/Trees/pdf/FinalTitleVIIIreport.pdf" target="_blank">Street Tree Mapping Project</a></span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gerard and I have both taught the <a href="https://treesny.org/citizen-pruners-stewardship/citizen-pruner-course/" target="_blank">Street Tree Pruner Class</a> to hundred of adults. In fact one of my students, Pam Ito was another Melville honoree.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I am most proud of the <a href="https://www.grownyc.org/learn-it-grow-it-eat-it" target="_blank">Learn It Grow It Eat It</a> program created with my colleague David Saphire. We taught hundreds of Bronx teens where their food comes from, how to grow food and how to be community leaders in their community that has few healthy food choices.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Thanks again to the City Gardens Club, for your generous support that has allowed the Grow Truck to continued to assist community gardens and now <a href="https://www.grownyc.org/gardens/manhattan/governors-island-teaching-garden" target="_blank">GrowNYC’s Governors Island Teaching Garden</a>. The wonderful video you will now see visually captures how GrowNYC staff has transformed an unused space on Governors Island into an outdoor classroom for children and families that allows them to experience first hand all of the aspects of environmental education I've taught and more.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">Thank you again to the City Gardens Club for the Melville Award. </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-51616247971258775682017-08-28T14:10:00.002-07:002017-08-28T14:10:40.707-07:00Can Urban Farming Save Us from Climate Change?Growing and eating local produce has many benefits. You know where your produce was grown and what agricultural methods were used. The produce is fresher so the vitamin content and health value is higher and the vegetables can last longer than store bought varieties. A small caveat here: many varieties for sale in grocery stores are selected and grown for their shelf life often at the expense of taste or nutritional content. At the same time, certain varieties or types of vegetables that are grown in community gardens or urban farms are rarely found in grocery stores, so when we eat locally grown produce, we get to enjoy certain vegetables or varieties we wouldn't otherwise: Kohlrabi? Lacinato Kale?<br />
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The 'Food Miles' or the transportation costs of shipping produce long distances is avoided with urban agriculture. There has been much debate and some research about how true that is with some research even showing that <a href="https://www.ers.usda.gov/webdocs/publications/46405/7028_err99_reportsummary_1_.pdf?v=41056" target="_blank">grocery chains do better with the Food Miles metric than farmers markets</a> .<br />
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The local produce grown in community gardens have additional social benefits which add value that is often not calculated. An excellent article describing the <a href="http://makezine.com/2017/07/11/bottoms-up-community-garden/" target="_blank">Bottoms Up Community Garden</a> in the Lower Bottoms neighborhood in Oakland, CA points out the community organizing power of community gardens. Many of the posts in this blog also point out benefits that are not usually calculated when doing cost/ benefit comparisons of local produce grown in community gardens as compared to produce farmed in a distant location.<br />
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It is well established that dense cities can only produce a very small percentage of their food needs within the confines of the city so there has to be a mix of locally grown and trucked in food in our diets. However, a recent article in <b>National Geographic Magazine</b>, September 2017, "A Tiny Country Feeds the World" by Frank Viviano, highlights intensive agriculture in the Netherlands which is about the size of the state of Maryland yet produces the second highest food export value in the world after the USA. Much of this is done using greenhouses and the latest technology to minimize water use and produce higher amounts per acre than other countries. They have created what they call Food Valley where the latest research on agriculture at <b>Wageningen University and Research</b> is combined with entrepreneurship to grow more food and share the technological advances with the world, much the same as the relationship between Stanford University and Silicon Valley. It seems that the calculus is constantly changing and improvements in materials and methods used research and technology, I believe, keep shifting the needle toward urban agriculture producing larger percentages of our food using less inputs.<br />
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So does Urban Agriculture have the ability to impact climate change? A recent <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-06-21/urban-farming-won-t-save-us-from-climate-change" target="_blank">article</a> says no. This is true at the moment but with the technological changes happening at a feverish pace that may change sooner than later. Energy use for transportation, heating and cooling, manufacturing and housing play a big role in greenhouse gas emissions so improvements must be made in those areas as well. The agricultural sector including large and small farms and urban farms will have to help as well. I believe urban farms and community gardens will contribute to slowing down global warming and impacting climate change and in fact lead the way in some cases. The social benefits of community gardening will also be an important piece of the puzzle of reversing climate change. <br />
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<br />Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-65439082111896932462017-05-22T12:59:00.000-07:002017-05-22T12:59:17.126-07:00Community Gardens and Donald TrumpTwo terms that should never be included in the same sentence, Community Gardens and Donald Trump. As DT's budget proposals are being released and analysts have had the opportunity to evaluate and understand the fine print in the federal budget, there is a link between the proposed budget and Community Gardens. In New York City, the <a href="http://www.greenthumbnyc.org/" target="_blank">GreenThumb</a> program is and for 40 years has been funded by federal Community Development Block Grants (CDBG). By some estimates as much as <a href="https://player.fm/series/wnyc-news/how-donald-trump-could-weed-out-your-community-garden" target="_blank">43% of GreenThumb's funding</a> comes from CDBG. The budget does not include funding for CDBG.<br />
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CDBG funds have been a mechanism for congress and the federal government to allocate funds to communities of all sizes for programs to improve the lives of residents. There are restrictions and formulas about how the funds can be used, they are supposed to be used for areas that fall below a certain income level. This made this type of funding a perfect match for most community gardens in NYC as the gardens were clustered primarily in low income, minority majority neighborhoods. The CDBG eligible neighborhoods change over time as gentrification takes over in a neighborhood but in NYC, the lion's share of community gardens qualified for materials, plants and technical and community organizing advice which helped most gardens thrive and grow.<br />
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The CDBG program was championed by Democratic and urban congress members as a way to channel funding to their constituents. Republican representatives have generally opposed this program as adding to bloated government programs. This program and many others that provide support to low income Americans are all targeted for elimination by Republicans. So we cannot just blame DT but he definitely supports the plan to do away with the CDBG program.<br />
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What will this mean? Potentially a loss of $1 million or more of support for GreenThumb, the 600 NYC community gardens, 10,000 to 20,000 community gardeners and hundred of thousands of visitors who take part in educational programs, community events or who enjoy the produce, quietude or the environmental benefits of community gardens.<br />
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We cannot let this happen.Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-42508631645012354712017-02-06T17:55:00.004-08:002017-02-06T18:06:51.653-08:00Community Gardening and Climate ChangeCommunity Gardens have both an effect on Climate Change and are affected by Climate Change. With all the recent chatter about Climate Change and all of the deniers that now seem to be running the government, I thought it might be worthwhile discussing the connection between community gardens and climate change.<br />
Several of the causes and manifestations of Climate Change could have serious consequences for community gardens including higher CO2 levels, warmer temperatures, higher or lower than normal precipitation and severe or unusual weather events.<br />
Higher levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere is one of the major causes of the greenhouse effect which generally raises average yearly temperatures. Another effect of higher CO2 levels, faster plant growth, has both a positive and negative effect on plants. A <a href="https://academic.oup.com/treephys/article/32/4/389/1639155/Urban-environment-of-New-York-City-promotes-growth" target="_blank">study published in 2012</a> showed that trees in New York City grew significantly faster in the urban environment than in rural areas. Now this is true for above ground biomass but at the same time the roots grow more slowly and the wood produced by the faster growing trees is a weaker wood. Warmer temperatures particularly at night accounted for some part of the faster growth. Both higher CO2 levels and higher temperatures are factors in the Heat Island Effect experienced in urban areas and could be looked at as both cause and effect of climate change.<br />
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Community gardens can help reduce the Heat Island effect as the temperature can be several degrees cooler in a community garden than on the asphalt covered streets and concrete sidewalks just outside of the garden. This phenomena of faster plant growth can in the case of vegetables grown in community gardens (or even on farms) results in <a href="https://www.epa.gov/climate-impacts/climate-impacts-agriculture-and-food-supply" target="_blank">increased yields but at the expense of lower nutrient content.</a><br />
Higher temperatures can mean a greater need for irrigation as plants will dry out more quickly. Weeds can also grow faster which can create additional weeding work and can stunt the growth of the plants we want to grow. Some pests can also thrive in the higher temperatures or have an additional generation during the growing season. Community Gardeners can also be <a href="https://www.epa.gov/climate-impacts/climate-impacts-human-health" target="_blank">impacted by higher temperatures</a> as the elderly, those with compromised immune systems or with chronic diseases are compromised during heat waves or just can't be out in the heat.<br />
Most of the United States has experienced drought in the last decade, in some cases longer. <a href="http://www.climaterealityproject.org/blog/facts-about-climate-change-and-drought" target="_blank">Scientists are making the connection between drought and climate change</a> particularly instances of severe drought. Drought conditions can put stresses on plants causing decreased yields or pest problems. In drought situations, increased watering or irrigation can put extra pressure on the local water supply. In community gardens, the use of water conservation techniques helps alleviate drought stresses. So most community gardens have adapted to drought conditions by using drought tolerant plants, mulch, compost, drip irrigation and <a href="https://commmunitygardening.blogspot.com/2011/07/water-water-everywhere-but.html" target="_blank">rainwater harvesting</a> . Unfortunately rainwater harvesting can't help very much if it doesn't rain at all.<br />
A number of gardens in NYC know first hand the effects of severe and unusual weather events. The community gardens that were damaged by Superstorm Sandy needed time, labor, materials and money to rebuild after being flooded by contaminated water or destroyed by falling tree limbs or complete trees. Sandy happened in 2012 and the community gardeners are still working toward making their gardens resilient. A good source of techniques to help make a community garden is this <a href="http://www.grownyc.org/files/osg/ResiliencyManual_ForWeb.pdf" target="_blank">resilient community garden manual </a> .<br />
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Community Gardening and community gardeners have a very real symbiotic relationship with climate change. The manifestations of climate change can have serious impacts on the ability of community gardens to survive. Community gardeners, just by being stewards of green spaces that help to mitigate climate change, find ourselves on the front lines as part of the solution that might just put the brakes on climate change.Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-68635024958870844942016-12-31T10:40:00.001-08:002016-12-31T10:40:50.769-08:00Community Gardeners BewareToday is December 31st, 2016. Often a time for people to reflect about the year that just passed. I'm not going to do that but rather remember that in past years, New York City mayors and city agencies would use the last few days of the year to bulldoze gardens or to announce plans to do so when they thought no one was paying attention.<br />
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On Dec. 30th, 1997, <a href="http://www.tenant.net/Tengroup/Metcounc/Feb98/gardens.html" target="_blank">four gardens on the Lower East Side of Manhattan</a> were bulldozed on the same day. This happened a mere hours before NY State Attorney General Elliot Spitzer filed a motion creating a temporary injunction halting the city from bulldozing any other gardens. It took years for that court case to be settled.<br />
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On December 28th, 2013, the <a href="http://inhabitat.com/nyc/16-year-old-coney-island-boardwalk-community-garden-bulldozed-ahead-of-childs-restaurant-revamp/" target="_blank">Boardwalk Community Garden in Coney Island</a> was bulldozed. There is now a concert venue on the site despite a series of lawsuits heard by a series of judges (who were replaced until a judge friendly to the developers was found). The courts ignored evidence that the site was Parkland and thus required 'alienation'. There are still lawsuits winding there way through the courts but the damage has been done.<br />
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On December 30th, 2015, City officials met with community gardeners to <a href="http://www.politico.com/states/new-york/city-hall/story/2015/12/city-hall-to-preserve-some-community-gardens-build-housing-on-others-029581" target="_blank">announce plans</a> for the NYC Housing Preservation and Development agency to convey 34 gardens to the Parks Department while developing housing on 9 gardens sites. The gardeners are pushing the developers to include community gardens in the final development plans. While this might sound like a victory as more gardens were saved than slated for development, the city still chose this date to announce gardens would be lost. At least in this case, the community gardens were not physically destroyed.<br />
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So you can see why I always watch the news and the on-line community gardener groups these last days of the year. So far, so good, this day with only a few hours of 2016 left. Of course I am not looking forward to the changes in the federal government in 2017 and what that might mean for community gardening. Let the community gardeners be prepared.<br />
<br />Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-21477895919889116362016-08-31T12:40:00.000-07:002017-01-03T12:59:27.769-08:00Rainwater Harvesting or Not<br />
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This has been a very dry summer. The rainwater tanks were often empty but at least when it rained we were able to collect water for later use. This summer, we worked on a number of projects in New York City Community Gardens which added to the overall number of gardens with rainwater capture systems as well as the number of gallons of water saved and diverted from the city's Combined Sewer System. Here are some photos:<br />
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La Isla Garden, Bronx, NY</div>
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Turn Up Garden, Brooklyn NY</div>
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Northeast Brooklyn Housing Development Pantry Garden,</div>
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Enchanted Garden, Bronx NY</div>
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Enchanted Garden, Bronx, NY</div>
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Frank White Garden, Harlem, NY</div>
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Hope on the Hill Garden, Harlem, NY</div>
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Jacqueline Denise Davis Garden, Bronx, NY</div>
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<br />Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-558900626817771992016-03-08T11:29:00.000-08:002016-03-08T11:29:45.107-08:00Green Infrastructure Walking Tour This is a 1.5 mile walk starting from the Brooklyn Botanic Garden that passes a variety of stormwater management installations from a Green Roof to Bioswales to Rainwater Harvesting projects Three community gardens are included on the tour.<br />
Link to map:<br />
https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=zvm_8ZEllmuI.kTmsQWlUmiC8&usp=sharing<br />
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<br />Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-80248843071620788622016-02-29T17:36:00.000-08:002017-01-04T11:40:50.881-08:00State of the Community Gardens<br />
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Community Gardening is thriving. Places where folks are starting community gardens in the US are spread through every state, cities large and small, suburbs, exurbs and rural areas. Heightened interest by young people has fueled a growth spurt in community gardens and the increased awareness of the benefits of community gardens has spurred a tremendous growth in municipal programs and support in general for community gardens and community gardeners.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaREPf26x9kRx0FsVSYE9ptiflkQW5TXAodCpeLSh60a1SJhva8v3ROg86jNwthtyEngX1kvBQY2CGy58sEfzNbQ70RDo9cyAO6z3s0WsyAHCaKxTw6BHI_JlTq46U9wBoX7JuZlrMdsLy/s1600/IMG_1863.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaREPf26x9kRx0FsVSYE9ptiflkQW5TXAodCpeLSh60a1SJhva8v3ROg86jNwthtyEngX1kvBQY2CGy58sEfzNbQ70RDo9cyAO6z3s0WsyAHCaKxTw6BHI_JlTq46U9wBoX7JuZlrMdsLy/s400/IMG_1863.jpg" width="300" /></a><br />
Where just a few years ago I knew most of what was happening in the community garden world, I am often surprised to find out where this growth is happening and who is supporting community gardening. I am most familiar with New York City community gardens where there is good examples of this burst of energy and support in community gardening.<br />
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Recently the New York City Housing Preservation and Development agency (HPD) <a href="http://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/01/23/nyregion/community-gardens-imperiled-by-new-yorksaffordable-housing-plans.html?">announced</a> the transfer and protection of 34 New York City Community Gardens on HPD land while relocating 14 other gardens on 9 sites slated for affordable housing. There is some debate about whether affordable is truly affordable but for gardeners in the 34 newly protected gardens this removes the specter of losing their garden in the future. The lost gardens are on sites that are large enough to make building affordable housing feasible. The current HPD commissioner Vicki Been, perhaps has a much better grasp of the value of community gardens than former commissioners. She co-authored a <a href="http://furmancenter.org/files/publications/The_Effect_of_Community_Gardens.pdf">study</a> showing the positive effect of community gardens on housing values.<br />
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At the same time, community gardens have been targets for <a href="http://gothamist.com/2015/11/18/community_gardens_ftw.php">real estate scams</a> where real estate developers fraudulently acquired community garden property and are attempting to evict the gardeners. In one example at the Maple Street Community Garden in Brooklyn, a pair of brothers claimed to have purchased the lot in 2003 for $5000. A judge ruled that the deal was "of dubious validity". In another unrelated garden / developer conflict, the Boardwalk Community garden in Coney Island was flooded by Super-storm Sandy, rebuilt by the gardeners only to be bulldozed illegally by the developers of an amphitheater / performance space. This dispute has been in the courts for several years because of a disagreement about whether the land was mapped as parkland and therefore could not be "alienated" without legislative action. There are still threats to the longevity of some community gardens but the support of legal teams has helped community gardeners fight off some of these threats.<br />
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In other positive developments, community gardens continue to provide environmental benefits now and will be going forward thanks to recently announced funding or possible future funding. The <a href="http://nyccgc.org/">NYCCGC</a> recently was awarded $2 million to study and implement green infrastructure techniques to capture stormwater at some of the 47 community gardens in the Lower East Side in Manhattan with an eye toward preventing future flooding. In NYC, at least <a href="http://www.grownyc.org/openspace/rainwater-harvesting/map">140 community gardens</a> already have some type of rainwater harvesting system capturing well over 1.5 million gallons of water per year used to water the gardens. Funding for new rainwater systems and other green infrastructure installations continues to be supported by government grants, foundation support, corporate funding, crowdfunding and individual donations.<br />
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Community gardens have used solar energy in a number of ways for many years. The 6BC Community Garden in Manhattan has had a solar photovoltaic system (photo below) powering the pump for their fish pond, lights and other electric needs. A solar system was installed as part of a recent project at the La Casita Verde Garden in Brooklyn funded by the <a href="https://kiwienergy.ecogold.us/2014/10/la-casita-verdesolar-pagoda/#wjDsVvsBA81H3J5q.97">Kiwi Energy Eco Gold Environmental Fund</a>.<br />
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The success of this project has led to discussions about future solar installations at a number of community gardens. More on this project in a later post. An example of a crowdfunded solar powered Aquaponics system is the <a href="https://www.ioby.org/project/ua-machine">Urban Ag Machine</a> located at the Edgemere Farm in Rockaway, Queens. The project was funded through the crowdfunding site IOBY. Solar panels on the side of a shipping container power the pump which circulates water through the system fertilizing the plants, filtering the water in the fish tanks and aerating the fish tanks. (photo below) The solar panels were donated by another crowdfunding source, <a href="http://divvygreen.com/">Divvy</a>. Plans are for the system to begin operating in Spring 2016.<br />
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Community Gardeners continue to play a role in advancing the idea of locally sourced food. Of course to long time community gardeners, that is what community gardening is all about, growing fresh vegetables and fruit for your family and neighbors. Now, some larger sites are able to grow enough to support CSA's, sell produce to the community, provide fresh produce to food pantries and soup kitchens and sell to local restaurants. Many community gardens raise chickens and bees providing eggs and honey but also the chickens help produce compost and the bees help with pollination.<br />
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The New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) currently has an operating urban farm at the Red Hook Houses in Brooklyn and plans to create at least 5 more in the next year. The urban farms will provide jobs for NYCHA residents through the <a href="http://www.greencityforce.org/">Green City Force</a> Program.<br />
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Community gardens provide the location and the material for education and training for people of all ages. Healthy eating, active lifestyle, green infrastructure, and environmental justice are just a few of the areas that community gardens provide a platform to teach. Following the lead of community gardeners, teachers and parents have started and maintained over 500 school gardens in the past 5 years. <a href="http://www.growtolearn.org/">Grow to Learn</a> provides advice, mini-grants, workshops and networking opportunities for folks starting or expanding school gardens.<br />
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I am currently training a group of teenagers from the <a href="http://brotherhood-sistersol.org/">Brotherhood Sister Sol</a> program in Harlem to install and maintain rainwater systems in area community gardens including the Frank White Garden adjacent to their meeting place. Our project is funded by the <a href="http://www3.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/resources/publications/grants/ej-smgrants-recipients-2015-all-regions.pdf">EPA Environmental Justice Grant Program</a>. In another effort to make funding for parks and green spaces more equitable throughout the city, the New York City Council provided funds in the Funding Year 2016 budget for supplies and improvements to community gardens in every city council district with community gardens.<br />
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After enumerating all of the benefits of community gardens and how they are thriving I also want to make it clear that community gardens are not a panacea. Yes, community gardens are a natural venue for all kinds of events and activities that will support and improve the community but it should also be something that the community agrees is important. Community garden groups also need small amounts of money to maintain the garden and purchase supplies to keep the garden clean and functional. Sometimes major improvements are necessary to replace or repair a shed, fence or raised beds which require both funding and labor. In the case of big projects some corporate groups have stepped forward to provide both. In fact at GrowNYC a staff person spends half of his time signing up and coordinating volunteer events in community gardens for corporate groups. The funds and labor they provide help to spruce up and improve dozens of community gardens each year.<br />
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Community gardens are in a good state. The gardens are flourishing and community gardeners provide countless resources to their communities. There is always work to do and there are opportunities for many more people to be involved and provide assistance. I applaud community gardeners for all that they have done and hope to continue to share stories and reports on community gardens for years to come.<br />
<br />Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-49658585560972496742014-11-29T13:35:00.003-08:002017-01-03T12:42:20.674-08:00Bad Behavior in Community GardensI have thought long and hard about doing this post. It doesn't make sense to me to focus on the negatives about community gardening but bad behavior in community gardens has been brought to my attention numerous times recently that I felt I had to address the issue. My reticence at bringing up this issue is that no matter how awful it is to the victim, having a prized tomato stolen does not equate to white collar crimes where everyone suffers because of the greed of a few or environmental crimes committed by corporations polluting our air and water thereby causing sickness and death in order to make a larger profit. I could write much more about these crimes but this is a blog about community gardening so I'd like to focus on some petty crimes that happen in community gardens.<br />
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Everywhere I went this summer folks I spoke to related stories about bad behavior in community gardens. I heard from a number of folks from Chicago, New Jersey, Boston and New York about produce being stolen. A gardener will watch a tomato, watermelon or pepper as it ripens, waiting to pick the fruit at the peak of ripeness and flavor. It always seems that the day before the gardener planned to harvest, the fruit disappears. Sometimes the fruit would be stolen before it is fully ripe, in effect wasting the nutrients that would be consumed if the fruit was allowed to ripen fully. The thief may be a garden member or an outsider. This petty crime pales in the scheme of things when compared to much more serious crimes but in the context of a community garden it violates the ethos of sharing and cooperation that is key to the smooth functioning of a community garden. It also turns off gardeners from participating. I heard the comment from a few folks that they would have to rethink their participation next season.<br />
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Other stories I heard were of community gardeners setting fire to a fellow gardeners plot as revenge for a perceived slight or as an escalation of an ongoing feud. I have gotten reports of community gardeners bullying others to keep them out of the garden and of someone repeatedly undoing the hard work of a fellow gardener by ripping out plants. In one garden rain barrels were stolen. There were complaints of a garden leader using the garden as a party venue and pocketing the profits from an admission charge or sale of alcohol. There are rumors of drug dealing taking place in community gardens. While some of these behaviors are illegal, they all once again violate the spirit of community and cooperation on which the community garden movement is based.<br />
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For every one of these bad behavior stories there are dozens of positive and inspiring stories of neighbor helping neighbor, of folks working through their differences, of produce being donated to those more needy, of generations working together and passing on knowledge. These things are what community gardening means to most of us. As in the larger world there are bad characters that commit crimes that impact us in ways small and large. There are many reasons that people commit crimes; they could simply be hungry and feel they can't get a meal any other way, they could have been mistreated their whole lives so they behave as they have learned that people behave, they could be doing it for fun or on a lark or they could know better but use their talents to commit crimes rather than do good.<br />
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I don't have an answer for getting rid of bad behavior in community gardens. My guess is that most of it comes from outside pressures or behaviors learned outside of the garden. Things that may be beyond our control. Do gardens become mini police states by installing cameras in our gardens to catch thieves red handed? Would the cameras then be stolen too? If nothing else I think the issue of theft, vandalism and illegal and immoral behavior should be discussed at garden meetings. These behaviors should not be tolerated and it should be made clear to gardeners and surrounding community alike that community gardens are refuges of cooperation and community and as such they are crime free zones.Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-82503709951526095652014-08-15T20:16:00.000-07:002014-08-15T20:16:20.569-07:00Seeing, Really Seeing, Community GardensI have had the pleasure of visiting quite a few community gardens over the past week. This made me think about what you can see and learn about community gardens by visiting them. Last week I attended the <a href="https://communitygarden.org/conference/">American Community Gardening Association Conference</a> in Chicago. One of the highlights of the conference was the garden tours led by local community gardeners. I used this opportunity to combine my interest in community gardens with my love of bicycling by going on a bike tour of the <a href="http://www.chicagoparkdistrict.com/parks/humboldtpark/#">Humboldt Park</a> area.<br />
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The neighborhoods surrounding the park are gentrifying. Safety and crime in the area is a concern for residents but I got the feeling that the crime rate was going down and the area was becoming safer. We visited 7 gardens, and an urban farm plus rode on a path through a prairie wildflower meadow that was in full bloom. Most of the gardens had community gardeners present to tell us about the garden and the community. The gardens were for the most part small and had a mix of vegetables, fruit, herbs and ornamentals. The gardens had great names: El Coqui Garden, El Yunque Community Garden, Our Block Community Farm, Bon Appetit Garden and Mozart's Community Garden.<br />
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We saw that some gardens were a bit overgrown with weeds as often happens during the dog days of summer when gardeners may be away on vacation, it may be too hot to get out and weed or garden members may tire of the long growing season. Some gardens were well developed, others were still in the process of being developed. Gardens had been remediated and some were only growing in planters and raised beds and not in the native soil to avoid any soil contamination issues. As is often the case, the community gardeners got as much from sharing their work as we visitors appreciated their time and effort.</div>
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The important thing to me is that I felt I learned so much more seeing the gardens first hand and speaking directly with gardeners than I could ever learn from a book or a blog. You can appreciate the flavor of the community and the hard work that goes into making and keeping a community garden from the way the gardeners communicate with each other and the surrounding community. These are nuances that come through much more in person than in print or on the screen. In fact I picked up some ideas for a simple but attractive bulletin board / message board.</div>
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I also had the opportunity just today to visit about a dozen gardens in the Lower East Side of Manhattan as I gave a tour to an intern. We met a few gardeners but I was able to share garden stories with our intern because of my familiarity with the gardens and the history of the gardens and the housing development pressure that many of the community gardeners experienced over the past 20 years. </div>
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My intern had a unique tour as she learned about how one garden, the East Side Community High School Garden, formerly called the Open Road Garden, was built on the site of a former bus depot so contaminated soil had been removed, a barrier installed and new soil brought in. The greenhouse in the garden was once heated by ingeniously designed compost bins which give off heat from the composting process to warm the greenhouse.</div>
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El Sol Brilliante has been around so long that the property values were low enough in the 1970's for the gardeners to buy the land and become one of the first Land Trusts in New York City. The Firemans Memorial Garden is located on the site of a building that was leveled in a fire where Fireman Marty Celic died in the blaze. The garden is a reminder of the days when landlords abandoned their buildings and some set fire to them or allowed others to burn them to collect the insurance. </div>
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On the same East Eighth Street block are the Green Oasis and Gilbert's Gardens adjacent to each other and at one point separate gardens but now one united garden. These gardens were also the film shooting location for the movie <u><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092494/">Batteries Not Included</a></u>. At the time (1987) the neighborhood had a bombed out look and the garden looked too green, so the producers donated $10,000 to the garden so they could place a plywood barrier on the fence and top off a few Ailanthus weed trees. The money was turned into a fancy gazebo and wrought iron fence, both still there. </div>
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There is also the <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/romerostudios/sets/72157624881466265/">treehouse</a> that looks like a nest in the El Jardin Del Paraiso. The nest is relatively new but artistic iron fences at Green Oasis and El Sol Brillante are reminders of the time when artists moved in to the neighborhood and left behind sculptural work before they had to move as they were priced out of the neighborhood. The Creative Little Garden is a tiny garden but another example of art in the garden. It is filled with artistic birdhouses and many other sculptural elements as well as places to spend time on a porch swing or sitting at cafe tables. </div>
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All of these gardens in Chicago and New York have visual interest and a unique beauty. The real uniqueness and beauty is in the stories and in the community gardeners. To experience this yourself, I highly recommend visiting community gardens and talking to community gardeners when you visit. There are some amazing stories.</div>
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<br />Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-51516136413322862602014-07-27T17:52:00.000-07:002014-07-27T17:52:14.878-07:00The Old is New AgainLike a number of other discoveries that people are making...that you can grow food in the city....that you can collect rainwater ... a project that I have been working on for the past year, Aquaponics, falls into that category of what's old is new again. The exciting thing for me about Aquaponics is that it is another example of a sustainability concept that can be adapted for community gardens.<br />
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Aquaponics is a combination of Aquaculture - growing fish - and Hydroponics - growing plants without soil. By combining these two things and circulating the water from the fish tanks through the plant growing medium, the fish water fertilizes the plants and the plant roots filter the fish water. The water is oxygenated as it splashes back into the fish tank and as it passes through the planting medium Nitrogen is removed which is good for plants but not so good for fish. There is more involved (the fish need to be fed!) but many companies are selling supplies and providing training. There are Aquaponics networks for teachers and for do it yourselfers.<br />
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My first project was working with a science teacher in a Junior High / High School in Queens, NY where we set up a unit that fit in an unused 3 foot by 5 foot corner of a classroom. This indoor unit complemented the school's outdoor garden. It is a perfect setting for teaching and learning science concepts and working on an ongoing science project. We hope the fish will survive the summer with less nurturing but it is set up to be a year round project growing lettuce and tilapia. The girls in the gardening club even named the fish the Pias.<br />
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Another project that in has been designed but not yet built as we wait for funding to be secured is an outdoor unit that fits in and on top of a 8 foot by 8 foot shipping container. The fish will grow in tanks inside the container with the vegetables growing in a small greenhouse on the roof. A solar panel will power a small pump to circulate the water. The project which I am working on with architect Carolin Mees is called the <a href="https://ioby.org/project/ua-machine">Urban Ag Machine</a>. This unit is designed to fit in a small outdoor space like a corner of a community garden.<br />
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I was first introduced to concepts like this while a student at the Institute for Social Ecology at Goddard College in Vermont in 1977 hence the reference to the old being new again. At the time the New Alchemy Institute (NAI) in Woods Hole MA was creating living machines which were greenhouse structures growing food, filtering waste and powered by solar and wind power. One of the founders of NAI was John Todd who was a very influential figure in my life. Even though NAI no longer exists, Mr. Todd continues this work with <a href="http://www.oceanarksint.org/">Ocean Arks International</a> and <a href="http://www.toddecological.com/">John Todd Ecological Design</a> .<br />
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Aquaponics holds promise to help feed the world. As the units that I have been working on and the ones John Todd and others have created show, the systems can be set up almost anywhere and can be designed to satisfy local needs for fresh produce and protein. The amount of feed necessary to produce one pound of fish protein is much less than to produce one pound of meat protein. For example it takes 1.2 pounds of feed to make 1 pound of salmon while it takes 8.7 pounds of feed to produce <a href="http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/aquaculture/faqs/faq_aq_101.html">one pound of beef</a>.<br />
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Would an Aquaponics system work in a community garden? The system and its upkeep and maintenance would have to be well thought out. The type of fish and vegetables that are grown should work for the climate and the community gardeners. There would have to be a group of people who share the work to maintain the Aquaponics unit. The distribution of the output should be discussed and decided in advance to avoid conflicts. All of these factors should be discussed regularly and contingencies have to be made in case anything goes wrong. What happens if the fish all die or the vegetables don't thrive?<br />
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Aquaponics has risks and rewards. Many people are doing Aquaponics so there is a wealth of knowledge available to assist anyone who attempts an Aquaponics project. With all of the promise that Aquaponics offers I feel that it is something that should be promoted and supported as a local food source. What better place for Aquaponics than in a community garden.Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-70062192561725057802014-02-01T09:46:00.001-08:002014-02-01T09:46:47.787-08:00Why Should I Join a Community Garden?As the temperature here in New York City has finally warmed above the freezing mark, we inevitably begin to long for even warmer temperatures and the ability to get out into the garden. It is also a time when folks begin to think about finding a community garden to join or to start one. In some of my previous posts you may have read about the many benefits attributed to community gardens. There are social benefits of meeting your neighbors, interacting with people of different cultures, of being a member of a supportive group, of feeling good about something you are doing. There are environmental benefits like restoring ruined land, providing habitat for insects and birds, combating climate change, preserving biodiversity and managing storm water. There are community benefits of cleaning up the neighborhood, increasing property values and providing a safe environment for children and seniors. There are the personal health benefits of eating fresh, local, organic, pesticide free produce, of exercise and of positive impacts on mental health. I am probably leaving out a few.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiduo1BqfoIVdVl5bMqlnYwg9zcs0CfTbHS4UcjUbRR6q2jgJrGBrFjxFv8D7at8SiXo0q0BC4ElybtZqdATzUR7hinyCnOF_jPPJNY1K2EXXL32B4phYxouSr7SmnrsacLkmM3Bj2fSDl6/s1600/DSCN3121.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiduo1BqfoIVdVl5bMqlnYwg9zcs0CfTbHS4UcjUbRR6q2jgJrGBrFjxFv8D7at8SiXo0q0BC4ElybtZqdATzUR7hinyCnOF_jPPJNY1K2EXXL32B4phYxouSr7SmnrsacLkmM3Bj2fSDl6/s1600/DSCN3121.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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All of these things do not mysteriously grow out of a plot of vacant land. They all take time and work by a group of people to create these benefits. So one should not expect to walk into a community garden, have the sun shine on you and be blessed with all of the benefits mentioned above.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuEW08lRvsNyBIVPeFnUGUIWO3Ke5RM7l060MC4V__p0FB7qRkMU1a2j-Qn4OpBV9Pt6xgzr2VoWreZMqbNY5ukAvRNAGRoegi2I9ijNP-Sq73txROwE2f-3rkNzX8YdYsVC47qy8Kp-gK/s1600/DSCF0173.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuEW08lRvsNyBIVPeFnUGUIWO3Ke5RM7l060MC4V__p0FB7qRkMU1a2j-Qn4OpBV9Pt6xgzr2VoWreZMqbNY5ukAvRNAGRoegi2I9ijNP-Sq73txROwE2f-3rkNzX8YdYsVC47qy8Kp-gK/s1600/DSCF0173.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></div>
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A more likely scenario is that you might be greeted warmly but warily by a community gardener. You will have to prove yourself and gain the trust of others. You will be faced with a set of rules that usually contain the words don't and can't. You will have to do physical work that might leave you sore and achy for days afterward. You may face disappointment at being given a plot that is in the shade or is much smaller than you expected. You may also be told that you are joining as a provisional or apprentice member and you will have to spend a year or more working on common areas to prove yourself before being given a plot of one's own. You may have to sit through endless meetings to make simple decisions. Your garden may be threatened by the municipal government or a developer wishing to use the land for other purposes. You may have your plants, vegetables of flowers damaged or stolen by pests both by humans and other species.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsMxkzFZwvAnLDYNqM3XfMFf4QlmyaU-Syfszy4vqjNJAGxlzOMYrXtpCIG33AlahjU4XO2DHR48_u9KMQps9s1AyTAQgkQ8alT4-k5AidqVkNwNNf_IpRcAqzj5CVUOv9QsCp35LMcl5y/s1600/DSCF0084.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsMxkzFZwvAnLDYNqM3XfMFf4QlmyaU-Syfszy4vqjNJAGxlzOMYrXtpCIG33AlahjU4XO2DHR48_u9KMQps9s1AyTAQgkQ8alT4-k5AidqVkNwNNf_IpRcAqzj5CVUOv9QsCp35LMcl5y/s1600/DSCF0084.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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Why should I join a community garden? Is it worth it?<br />
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Of course you know I think it is.<br />
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What do you think?<br />
Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-90330529238970852712014-01-20T10:36:00.000-08:002014-01-20T10:36:33.383-08:00Community Gardening and the LawCommunity Gardeners do not own the land they garden. Community Gardens have always offered access to land to grow food and community on land that is owned by a municipal entity or a private landowner. The exception are Land Trust community gardens but they are a small percentage of the total of community gardens. Land tenure has always been an issue and many of the posts I have written have been about land issues. There is a movement to use urban lands for <a href="http://commmunitygardening.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-end-of-community-gardening-as-we.html">commercial urban agricultural projects</a> that threatens to monopolize land and funds that might otherwise be used for community gardens. Community Gardeners have to be <a href="http://commmunitygardening.blogspot.com/2013/01/continuing-threats-to-community-gardens.html">continually vigilant in monitoring city government</a> attempts to place limitations on community gardening efforts both on a citywide scale and in terms of individual projects. <a href="http://commmunitygardening.blogspot.com/2011/12/new-survey-of-municipal-urban.html">Many cities either have enacted laws or policies</a> concerning urban agriculture and community gardening. Some have given community gardening legitimacy and protections while some have placed limits on where community gardens can be and how they operate. The most supportive policies saw a great deal of lobbying and input from community gardeners.<br />
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A couple of events in New York City over the past 3 weeks have highlighted the ongoing struggle that community gardeners face to keep access to the land they do not own. At 5 am on Saturday, Dec 28, 2013 the <a href="http://nyccgc.org/2013/12/press-conference-123013-11am-boardwalk-community-garden-coney-island-bulldozed-community-outrage/">Boardwalk Community Garden</a> in Coney Island, Brooklyn was bulldozed by iStar Development who plans to develop a amphitheater on the site. The Boardwalk Garden had spent the past 14 months recovering from Superstorm Sandy. The Atlantic Ocean covered the garden with at least 6 feet of salt water destroying much of the garden.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Boardwalk Garden after Sandy </td></tr>
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This parcel covered by the garden is part of a larger redevelopment effort in the area which has progressed in fits and starts and has been a threat to this community garden and others for years. This project has been the darling of now former Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz and the timing of the bulldozers just 3 days before he was to leave office could not be coincidental. The developers may not receive the same support from new Brooklyn and NYC elected officials. The community gardeners and their advocates are in the process of planning and filing a lawsuit claiming that the community gardens land was mapped parkland. In New York State taking of parkland or "alienation of parkland" without the approval of the state legislature is not allowed. There is no record of this approval and the parkland designation will have to be verified but the courts will probably have to decide this case.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfa0iGF8SVICKSxRS3N9Jx4T_FG4YVpjCr39msqiX4MpcvEehJJDgb_XhDXEsUtxWSObjAruf5qyMK11WRgmekEUcrYYFGv9CvllepTkmZCJGLH8zdDBF84AeBwg8HFAm1V_HVAaeYVIlA/s1600/lpcg_summer_2007&page=2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfa0iGF8SVICKSxRS3N9Jx4T_FG4YVpjCr39msqiX4MpcvEehJJDgb_XhDXEsUtxWSObjAruf5qyMK11WRgmekEUcrYYFGv9CvllepTkmZCJGLH8zdDBF84AeBwg8HFAm1V_HVAaeYVIlA/s1600/lpcg_summer_2007&page=2.jpg" height="400" width="275" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">photo by Hubert J. Steed</td></tr>
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Coincidently just 10 days after the bulldozing on January 7, 2014, a judge ruled that NYU could not take land in Manhattan currently being used as small parks and a community garden for part of the university's expansion efforts. In this case the land was mapped as roadway as part of a failed effort by Robert Moses to develop an expressway through lower Manhattan that was first proposed in 1941, small parts were built but funds for the completion were never allocated and the project stopped for good in 1971. These parcels in question were assembled as approach roads but as the expressway project languished they became neighborhood parks and the community garden. One parcel became a living art installation called <a href="http://www.alansonfist.com/projects/project.html?time-landscape">'Time Landscape' by artist Alan Sonfist</a> which recreates the landscape on the site before European settlement. Adjacent to the 'Time Landscape', <a href="http://laguardiacornergardens.org/LaGuardia_Corner_Gardens/Welcome.html">The LaGuardia Corner Garden</a> has been on the site since 1981. It is a relatively small but vibrant community garden. The garden is right next to a supermarket which makes it a great location for those of us who like to photograph such juxtapositions. The community garden group along with other community groups have been fighting the NYU plan for many years. The timing of the judges ruling could not have been better for the Boardwalk Garden although both cases have well funded opponents and the appeals process may go on for years. Fortunately the Laguardia Corner Garden was not bulldozed. The Boardwalk Garden was not so fortunate.<br />
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The struggle that community gardeners face in dealing with laws and policies continues. It doesn't seem that there will be a time when no community gardens will face what the Boardwalk Garden and the LaGuardia Corner Garden have faced. There will always be some community garden in some city that is threatened by development. Community gardeners will have to remain vigilant and to know the laws of their city and state to insure that their community gardens will remain and flourish.<br />
<br />Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-30726948707252423382013-12-27T12:14:00.000-08:002013-12-27T12:14:22.653-08:00Edible Landscaping with a Permaculture TwistWhat do Community Gardening, Kickstarter and Permaculture have in common? In the case of a Kickstarter campaign by Michael Judd to self publish a book, <i><a href="http://ecologiadesign.com/2013/07/03/new-book-on-edible-landscaping-by-ecologia/">Edible Landscaping with a Permaculture Twist</a></i>, I was able to combine a few of my somewhat related interests. For those unfamiliar with the concept, Kickstarter, Indiegogo and <a href="http://ioby.org/about">IOBY (In Our Back Yard)</a> that started locally in New York and as of today has project funded in 61 cities, are crowdfunding websites to support anyone whose idea is accepted by these websites. Someone has an idea, creates a campaign by offering perks related to the idea, sets a dollar goal and hopes enough people will support the project to make it a reality. The campaigns can be in the arts, social or technological as well as other fields. I usually search the tech campaigns looking for the latest cool gadget that I may or may not need.<br />
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I was very intrigued by the title of this book and the chapters which included Rainwater Harvesting: Swales and Rain Gardens, Earthen Ovens and Uncommon Fruits. All of these techniques discussed within the concept of Permaculture made it seem like a book I would enjoy and use and a worthwhile project to support. </div>
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I was first introduced to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permaculture">Permaculture</a> about 35 years ago when I read Permaculture One and Permaculture Two by Bill Mollison and David Holmgren. These books gave practical ideas and advice how to design a space using nature as a guide, not wasting anything and utilizing energy and materials that are available on site. While the books focused on plots of land larger than most community gardens (5+ acres) many if not all of the ideas and concepts can be adapted to smaller scale. Back then the authors were giving us a roadmap to sustainable design and living. There are practitioners of Permaculture throughout the world and many are using the techniques on a small scale in Urban areas. Community Gardeners can use many techniques in their quest for sustainability.<br />
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<i>Edible Landscaping with a Permaculture Twist </i>is easy to read with clear photos and illustrations. Armed with this book and some ability at gardening and landscaping one could utilize the chapters in this book in your own community garden or backyard.<br />
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I especially enjoyed the chapter on Uncommon Fruits. I have planted <a href="http://www.fruit.cornell.edu/mfruit/kiwifruit.html">hardy kiwis</a> in my own backyard and am hopeful that this summer will bring our first fruit harvest. The fruits are small and delicious, very different from the supermarket fuzzy kiwis. It is also a species that has male and female plants and I was sure to order both when I planted mine. <a href="http://www.livescience.com/34669-what-is-a-paw-paw.html">Paw Paw</a> is another unusual fruit tree that is native to the US that I want to plant in community gardens. The fruit is not available commercially but is about the size of a small mango and has a flavor somewhat like bananas. Mulberries are also included in this chapter and while I enjoy eating them when they are ripe, the trees are very messy and unruly so I wouldn't recommend them as much for community gardens.<br />
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Now that my project to build a chicken cage in my backyard is completed, I can start planning the pizza oven that my wife has wanted for awhile. The chapter on Earthen Ovens will be very useful to us to decide how to build our backyard oven.<br />
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As we in the Northern Hemisphere spend the winter planning our gardens, ordering seeds and deciding on projects for spring and summer, this book would be a great addition to our bookshelves. It is a book that is fun to read as well as having useful how to information. Most community gardeners that are looking for ways to make their gardens sustainable will find at least one chapter in this book to help toward that goal.<br />
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Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3210333569212443783.post-75907772432021167232013-12-04T14:46:00.000-08:002013-12-04T14:51:15.433-08:00Things I've Seen<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It has been 5 months since my last post. I have been very busy community gardening which left little time or energy for blogging. To catch up I thought I would share photos and a little text to show you what I have seen and some of what I have been doing since my last post.<br />
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This was a banner year for community gardening in New York City. It was odd for community gardeners long used to little support from mayors and the powerful in the city to find that the city was now encouraging community gardening and putting city tax dollars into the effort.<br />
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This was done under the <a href="http://www.nyc.gov/html/om/pdf/2012/otf_report.pdf">Mayor's Obesity Task Force</a> and community gardening is one of many tactics being used to combat obesity and by extension try to lessen incidence of chronic illnesses like diabetes and heart disease.<br />
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Neighborhood groups are creating new community gardens with material and technical support from the city. Corporate groups are pitching in with volunteer labor and funds for materials.<br />
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Some existing community gardens were devastated by Superstorm Sandy. Many people stepped up to help. I was involved in several of these projects. The transformations were amazing and a tribute to the hard work of community gardeners and the tremendous support they received.<br />
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Many community gardens continue to be in the forefront of creating a sustainable city, from Rainwater Harvesting to designing and building their gardens to attract pollinators.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX6ONR11vfZf0wnjgNRnsbXw4P5kbmxBGEfGqKzAACtGFv1MXmU-g4Ovpa8oc_Fch5R1jg91hzk01wYn6ehC0ucshxXiMYHoUb_5vOFg3IuKeSxzjcKyR5qF83cne-1j-2OpuIT8m9hfJF/s1600/nesting+material.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX6ONR11vfZf0wnjgNRnsbXw4P5kbmxBGEfGqKzAACtGFv1MXmU-g4Ovpa8oc_Fch5R1jg91hzk01wYn6ehC0ucshxXiMYHoUb_5vOFg3IuKeSxzjcKyR5qF83cne-1j-2OpuIT8m9hfJF/s320/nesting+material.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Even after many years in community gardens I am still surprised at times at the things I see. Not just the interesting sculptures and the beauty of the gardens but how the community gardeners join together to transform unwanted or unused spaces into these amazing community gardens.</div>
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Lenny Librizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06653343548333464343noreply@blogger.com0