Community Gardens

In many places community gardens have had a tremendous positive impact. The rewards of a community garden are many:

• Beautifies a neighborhood and generates community pride and involvement.
• Helps people learn to work together in a positive way.
• Provides access to healthy food.
• Connects participants of all ages and abilities to nature.
• Improves the environment because it cuts down on air pollution.
• Makes a neighborhood safer by reducing the number of vacant lots and derelict property.

A popular type of community garden is one where a parcel of land is divided into small plots that individuals can use to grow their own mini vegetable garden. This allows the participants to do their own thing on their own schedule and at the same time meet new people and develop relationships with their neighbors.

Another approach is for a group to work together to grow one large garden. This is often done as a program for children to teach them about the environment and to introduce them to healthy foods by taking advantage of the idea that kids will be more willing to eat vegetables if they grow and/or cook the foods themselves.

http://www.ces.purdue.edu/CES/Marion/ccgp/girlsinc.htm

A community garden isn't always a vegetable garden. It can also be a flower garden or a small landscaped area that adds beauty to a neighborhood or offers a queit place for residents to sit or walk.

http://www.ces.purdue.edu/CES/Marion/ccgp/sturm.htm

There is a wealth of information available on the web about community gardens. The American Community Garden Association is a good starting place. Their website has links to many other community garden sites.

http://www.communitygarden.org/