| Community gardens have the potential to | | | | A community garden yields many benefits to a |
| improve the lives of people everywhere | | | | neighborhood. 2. While an abandoned lot |
| crossing all boundaries of age, race, gender | | | | suggests that nobody cares, a garden creates |
| and nationality. These group effort gardens | | | | hope through beauty. 3. Connection to nature |
| are making a positive difference one plant at | | | | inspires and soothes even those just passing |
| a time. Just Add Water and Watch it Grow Have | | | | by. 4. Bees, birds, and butterflies attracted |
| you ever helped a neighbor with a garden? | | | | to a garden are great companions, help with |
| Planted up a small container for an elderly | | | | pollination and bug control, and remind us |
| relative? Shared fresh herbs for cooking with | | | | that we still share our world with wildlife. |
| someone intimidated by gardening? Fixed up | | | | 5. Cultural gardening traditions are |
| planters of annuals in your town square? | | | | practiced and shared. 6. Pride in the |
| Spent a day working with a school group | | | | neighborhood increases. 7. Seasonal food |
| sowing quick-growing vegetable seeds? Joined | | | | production improves well-being, fosters |
| your coworkers as corporate volunteers | | | | healthy eating habits, and creates awareness |
| weeding, raking, and mulching in a public | | | | of how food is produced and why that matters. |
| space? Perhaps you have helped install a wall | | | | 8. Informal teaching engages active minds. 9. |
| water fountain or concrete fountain. Then you | | | | Social gathering spots increase neighborhood |
| are already a community gardener, part of a | | | | harmony. 10. Rainwater harvesting leads to |
| great social movement that has the power to | | | | environmental awareness. 11. Gardening |
| transform neighborhoods, unite people who are | | | | connects urban dwellers to their rural roots. |
| different in many ways, and invest in the | | | | How to Start a Community Garden Here's a |
| future of our children. If this sounds | | | | checklist: - Identify space that could be |
| sweeping, it is. Those of us who garden | | | | donated for a garden. Look at churchyards, |
| instinctively know why we are out there | | | | school or library lots, housing |
| digging in the dirt, installing water wall | | | | organizations, or abandoned property. - |
| fountains but perhaps the bigger picture has | | | | Identify resources to help you get started, |
| stayed in the background. For the community | | | | such as neighborhood institutions. - Enlist |
| gardeners, the movement is an investment in | | | | local politicians or organizations to help |
| the future of where they live and in the | | | | secure the land for long-term usage at a |
| futures of the children growing up under | | | | nominal fee and assist with insurance and |
| often difficult circumstances. Through Master | | | | other technicalities. - Create a core group |
| Gardener, university extension, and 4-H | | | | of at least a dozen volunteers to raise |
| programs, suburban gardeners come into town | | | | funds, work on design, organize volunteers, |
| and share, their passion with city folks. And | | | | and establish rules and regulations. - |
| much more is going on here. Many inner-city | | | | Organize meetings to identify the people and |
| youths have never left their neighborhoods, | | | | resources needed. Reach out to those with |
| and so barriers break down as people from | | | | special skills that might not be directly |
| different walks of life work at a common | | | | related to gardening, such as grant and flyer |
| task. Civic pride comes into play as gardens | | | | writing, light construction, site searching, |
| grow and become more beautiful--there is much | | | | and planning. - Determine what the community |
| value in the intense and tangible feeling of | | | | wants out of the space: quiet contemplation, |
| pride that a garden brings. Most important is | | | | a place for children to play, plots to raise |
| growing healthy food and addressing public | | | | food in? - Establish a core group to maintain |
| health issues such as diabetes and obesity. | | | | the land. - Appeal to local Master Gardener |
| Increased physical activity and access to | | | | programs for volunteer assistance. - Reach |
| fresh vegetables are proven to have a | | | | out to your local university Cooperative |
| positive effect on health, especially in our | | | | Extension for help securing supplies and |
| modern society, where food travels an average | | | | resolving bureaucratic issues, such as |
| of 1,300 miles from field to table. The | | | | cleaning up toxins. Develop a fund-raising |
| gardens may also be serene places to sit | | | | strategy that starts with the group and |
| since many have flowers, benches and cast | | | | reaches out to local individuals and |
| stone fountains. Community Assets Can be | | | | businesses. This kind of support highlights |
| Pulled Together to Help a Garden Flourish You | | | | the importance of the garden to the |
| will find many ways to participate in this | | | | neighborhood and includes something lovely |
| movement, and they can be as simple as | | | | with a cast stone water feature. Learn more |
| donating money or offering to fund resources, | | | | about wall water fountains for your next |
| or volunteering time to senior garden | | | | gardening project at For more ideas |
| programs to help with hard work such as | | | | regarding cast stone fountains for your |
| turning soil and spreading mulch. Hook up | | | | community garden project check out For cast |
| with a group of gardeners, whether it's once | | | | stone water feature ideas visit |
| a week or once a month, and you will get to | | | | |
| know and help people that are coaxing vacant | | | | Elizabeth Jean is the author of this article |
| lots to life. Very few activities have a | | | | written for Garden-Fountains.com, a premier |
| nurturing and healing quality that work on | | | | Internet resource for wall fountains and |
| our souls and hearts the way gardening does. | | | | garden fountains. |
| Building Community With Community Gardens 1. | | | | |