How to Start a Community Garden
Congratulations! You are about to embark on an amazing journey by bringing the magic
of growing food into your community. Can all this come from growing lettuce or a
tomato plant? You bet! Use this practical guide to help you start a community garden.
A. What is a community garden?
Community gardens are places where people come together to grow vegetables,
herbs, fruits, and flowers. In London, we have 17 community gardens located on
green space throughout the municipality that are owned privately, or publicly. In
other communities, they are run by churches, schools, neighbourhood
associations, non-profit organizations, community agencies, clubs, private
landowners, and municipalities…just about everyone!
B. Benefits of Community Gardening…
Community gardens offer people and the community many benefits. They provide
collective opportunities for both recreational gardening and food production,
which can take place in vacant lots, yards of housing complexes and apartment
buildings, or spaces donated by places of worship and private owners.
Community Gardens:
 Provide fresh, safe, affordable herbs, fruits and vegetables
 Help build a strong sense of community
 Make a piece of land more beautiful creating a positive image for a neighbourhood
 Help reduce environmental pollution
 Empower people of all ages
 Create a welcome relief to the stress of everyday life
 Can be part of a healthy lifestyle
 Provide an opportunity for ethno-diverse communities to grow traditional foods
 Connect people to their environment
 Are an excellent way to exercise
 Provide opportunities for hands-on learning about growing, harvesting, and preparing
fresh produce
 Offer opportunities for environmental education
 Get people out of the house for fun
 Help people make friends and get to know their neighbours
 Bring people to a common, safe place to share information and to learn from each
other
1-Guideline #1304 – New Community Gardens from City of London
Community Gardens 2013 Guidelines.
C. The steps of starting a community garden1
“London residents, neighbourhood associations and groups (referred to as ‘interested
parties’) must have the support of at least 10 (ten) Gardeners in order to submit a
Statement of Interest to the City of London and the Coordinating Agency for the
development of a new Community Garden in an identified location, located on City
property. If the proposed garden site passes the due diligence process and has the support
of the local community (within a 250 metre radius of the proposed site), the Community
Garden will be considered for further development.
The City reserves the right to deny a site for any reason at its sole discretion.
Procedures
i.
Submitting an Application for the Development of a New Community Garden
London residents, neighbourhood associations and groups (‘interested parties’) contact
the Coordinating Agency and complete a Statement of Interest form (electronic or hard
copy) to outline their interest in developing a new Community Garden on municipally
owned lands.At this initial stage of interest, the interested parties must demonstrate that
they have 10 (ten) Gardeners interested in undertaking the development of a new
Community Garden.
Pursuant to receiving the Statement of Interest, the Coordinating Agency will work with
the City of London to conduct the necessary due diligence regarding the potential site to
ensure it is an appropriate site. Priority will be given to those sites on municipally owned
lands that meet the following criteria:
•
The proposed site is available and properly zoned.
•
There is ease of access to the site during the gardening season.
•
The quality and drainage effectiveness of the soil is satisfactory.
•
Suitable sun exposure.
•
Good access to water sources.
•
Close proximity to neighbourhoods and areas of population density.
•
Demonstrated willingness of volunteers to work with the Coordinating Agency
and City of London to develop, operate and maintain the garden.
•
Potential site complies with Ontario Regulation 153/04, whereby only municipal
lands where the current or last known use was residential, parkland, or agricultural will
be considered during site selection.
If the proposed site passes the due diligence stage, the Coordinating Agency will send an
information letter to all homes in a 250 metre radius of the proposed site, advising them
of the proposal to develop a Community Garden and asking them to provide written
feedback to the City. If feedback is primarily disapproving, the City may undertake a
neighbourhood consultation process to provide further information in order to gain
support.
1-Guideline #1304 – New Community Gardens from City of London
Community Gardens 2013 Guidelines.
If it is determined that there is demonstrated supportfor the proposed Community Garden,
a site plan will be prepared with support of the Coordinating Agency. New Community
Garden site plans will:
•
Include plot layouts and dimensions.
•
Identify access points for water.
•
Identify locations of composting bins that are required for the site.
•
Comply with applicable provincial accessibility standards, City Facility
Accessibility Design Standards (FADS) and/or municipal by-laws.
ii.
Constructing a New Community Garden
•
Gardeners must work with City of London to construct the garden beds.
•
The City will provide clean fill.
•
Features such as dirt or crushed gravel pathways to plots, raised beds and other
accessibility attributes are supported within the Community Garden
•
Gardeners must work with the City of London to install any approved structures
such as compost bins or storage containers•
•
There must be minimum setbacks of 6(six) meters from edges of Community
Gardens to surrounding amenities, property lines, hedgerows and trees to allow for
regular park maintenance equipment to move through the area.”
D. What do you need to start a community garden? A check list of course!
Resources
 Land
 Water
 Seeds, seedlings, bulbs, bedding plants, and materials to cover young crops from
frost such as plastic or burlap
 Topsoil, compost, and manure
 Soil testing – a kit or a lab to send samples to
 Mulching materials such as shredded leaves, cocoa bean or coconut hulls, straw,
shredded bark, pine needles/cones, wood chips, black plastic, newspapers, or
corrugated cardboard
 Insecticidal soaps and hand held sprayers
 Perennial and/or annual flowers, shrubs, and fruit trees (optional)
Equipment and Supplies
 A wheelbarrow and garden cart
 Shovels, spades, forks, trowlers
 A garden and soaker hose, drip irrigation system, spray nozzles, hose reels, rain
barrels, watering cans
 Rototiller
 Gardening gloves- leather gloves hold up best
 Gates and fencing: wood, plastic, chain link fence, post and wire, snow fences
 Bulletin board for garden messages, signs to mark plots and common areas
1-Guideline #1304 – New Community Gardens from City of London
Community Gardens 2013 Guidelines.








Tool and storage shed
Compost bins
Benches and picnic tables
Locks
4’x4’ and 6’x6’ wood beams for constructing raised beds
Rain barrels
Water tank
Keep a current first aid kit in the garden for cuts and scrapes
…..And the most important…..Gardeners!
E. Looking for a place to start a community garden?
Things to think about……..
Site Location

Community garden sites that are closely located to gardeners’
homes help gardeners access and maintain their plot regularly.
 The site should have good sun exposure, good drainage and good
soil quality.
 You can start your garden with a few gardeners, but the site should
have room for expansion
 The site should be close to a source of water
You can also check current community gardens in the city for available plots:
 Go to the LCRC website http://www.lcrc.on.ca/garden_locations.html and
select a garden site.
 Contact us to register. Call the LCRC at 519-432-1801 or email
lcrc@lcrc.on.ca
PLEASE NOTE: The cost is a one-time seasonal fee geared to income
Up to $15.000,
$15
$16.000 - $20.000,
$25
$21.000 - $24.000,
$35
Over $24.000,
$40
Components of a garden

The garden plots:
-Some community gardens have a collective plot, plus individual plots; while
some only have individual plots.
-Some community gardens make space for a children’s garden.
1-Guideline #1304 – New Community Gardens from City of London
Community Gardens 2013 Guidelines.
-Suggested dimensions for individual plots are: 10’x10’ or 10’x20’ or 20’x20’
depending on the needs of the gardeners.



3’wide pathways are ideal and can be covered with mulch for weed control and to
prevent land erosion.
Additional space is needed for a composting area and for storing tools and supplies
An area will be needed to hold community events, meetings and workshops.
F. Tips for a successful community gardening experience
 Choose a place in a sunny location with good soil and drainage. The place should
be within walking distance from where gardeners live. The place should be
accessible by foot and wheelchair.
 Organization is important. You will need a garden facilitator, and one or two
committees to run the garden smoothly.
 Mom, dads, children, and everybody else are welcome at the community garden.
 Meetings are important. Set up a schedule of meetings where you can discuss
mutual concerns as a group.
 Use the garden for community events such as displaying the work of young
artists, teaching children about nature and the environment, and to celebrate
diversity.
 New gardeners need to be informed about rules that relate to garden use,
participation at events, meetings, use of resources, disposal of garbage, cleaning,
insurance, etc.
 Innovation pays off – be creative! Raise garden plots for seniors and people with
physical disabilities, have garden plots for children, include a picnic table for
seating, and post a bulletin board to provide garden updates.
 Try to include everybody! Your community will benefit if you plan fun activities
for the whole family such as picnics, family days, recipe contests, etc.
 Your gardeners should know all the tasks that need to be shared collectively –
keep a schedule!
 Generate good communication between all participants. Discuss the best way to
keep everyone informed.
 Ask gardeners how to improve their gardening experience. Be open and listen.
Keep a suggestion box in the garden.
 Post signs and put up a fence as extra precautionary measures for vandalism or
theft. The signage helps to keep people informed and aware of what is happening
in their community. A fence lets people know that there is a boundary and it will
be greatly appreciated if those boundaries are respected
 Developing partnerships within the Region – get your garden listed on the
Community Garden Network
 Neighbourhoods benefit from community gardens! They are safe places to meet
people and talk about many things!
 Start small – you can always expand later.
1-Guideline #1304 – New Community Gardens from City of London
Community Gardens 2013 Guidelines.
G. Harvest Time2
The best part of gardening is when you finally get to pick the fruits and vegetables you
have been working so hard to grow. But what do you do when you have too many to eat
while they are still fresh?
Visit http://www.lcrc.on.ca/Preserving.html to learn about preserving you produce.
There are lots of things you can do with your vegetables to keep them good through the
winter.
 Vegetables can be blanched quickly in boiling water, then put in bags or
containers in your freezer.
 Vegetables can be dried, by slicing them thinly, laying them on a baking sheet,
then placed in your oven, on very low heat, for an hour or two. Then you can store
them in a jar or bag in your cupboard.
 Many people preserve their fruits and vegetables in cans or jars. You can make
jam, salsa, relish or pickles with many of the plants you grow in your garden. If
they are done properly, the jars of preserves will keep well over the winter in your
cupboard. If not done properly, preserves can cause food poisoning.
 Many kinds of vegetables will keep well in a cool, dark place, such as a basement,
over the winter. Potatoes, turnips, beets, carrots, onions, garlic, pumpkin and
winter squash are the best. Make sure they are kept cool, and not too damp. Check
regularly to watch for possible decay. Store vegetables where they do not have to
be piled on top of each other, and lightly cover them to shield them from light and
extreme temperature changes.
2
Adapted from Garden Guide. A product of the community gardening network of
Ottawa. www.justfoods.ca
Celebrate!
All your hard work and ideas have resulted in a beautiful community garden! Be sure to
take the time to celebrate. Have a grand opening, a barbecue or potluck to thank everyone
who helped make this happen and don’t forget those who donated materials or made any
other contributions to your community garden.
If you have any questions, please contact the London
Community Resource Centre at 519-432-1801 or email lcrc@lcrc.on.ca
Please visit our website to learn more about Community Gardens located throughout the
City. www.lcrc.on.ca
1-Guideline #1304 – New Community Gardens from City of London
Community Gardens 2013 Guidelines.