Introduction to
Community Gardening
Community Gardening ISE
July 14 and 15, 2009
Bill McKelvey - MU Extension - Healthy Lifestyle Initiative
Presentation Overview
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Definition
History of Community Gardening
Benefits
Types of Community Gardens
Challenges
Definition
A Community Garden is “any piece
of land gardened by a group of
people.” (American Community
Gardening Association)
The History of Community Gardening
Recent History
• Rebirth in the 1970s
– Response to urban abandonment, inflation,
environmental concerns
– Focus on networking and building community
Benefits
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Food production/access
Nutrition
Exercise
Mental health
Community
Education
Benefits
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Opportunities for youth
Income
Crime prevention
Increased property values
The Community Gardening
Movement
• Today
– In Missouri
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Gateway Greening (St. Louis)
Kansas City Community Gardens
Community Garden Coalition (Columbia)
Well-Fed Neighbor Alliance (Ozarks/Springfield)
Other towns/communities throughout the state
– Nationally
• American Community Gardening Association
• Many other local organizations
Why are people taking interest
today?
• Rediscovering the value of growing your own
• Social and community benefits
• Rising energy and food prices
Community Gardening in Context
• Part of larger Local/Community Food
movement
– Farmers’ Markets
– Community Supported Agriculture
– Farm to School
– Direct sales to Restaurants, Grocery Stores,
Corner Markets
– Urban Agriculture
– Front and Backyard Farming
Types of Community Gardens
Neighborhood Gardens
• Land subdivided into plots
• Plots assigned to individuals, families, small
groups
• Food grown for consumption, not market
• Garden managed by gardeners
• One or more Garden Leaders
• All, in theory, share in organization and upkeep
Types of Community Gardens
Neighborhood Gardens
• Land may be rented, borrowed or owned
• Located on vacant lots, church property,
agencies, other non-profits
• May incorporate educational, job training,
business development programming
Other types of community gardens
• Youth/School Gardens
Other types of community gardens
• Entrepreneurial/Job Training Gardens
Other types of community gardens
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Communal/Collective Gardens
Food Pantry or Sharing Gardens
Demonstration Gardens
Therapy Gardens
Yard Sharing
Rural Community Gardens
• Don’t assume traditional Neighborhood
Garden model will work
– Think about incorporating other elements –
demonstration, education, sharing, communal,
youth
– Involve existing agencies, work in partnerships
– “Community assisted” home gardens
– Plan but be flexible
Challenges
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Management
Maintenance
Participation
Theft and Vandalism
Gardening Skills
Leadership
Services and supplies
Water
Site permanency
Is this a growing movement in
your region?
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What are you hearing from the field?
What about Master Gardener enrollment?
What about canning classes?
What about the news?
The Garden Writer’s Association Trend Survey
reports that “almost half of American households
with a yard or garden plan to add or expand a
vegetable garden in their yard this spring or
summer.” This represents a 12% increase in the
past year.
Questions and Comments
• Community Gardening Toolkit (University of
Missouri Extension Publication MP906)