People who want to garden don't always have the
space to do so. People who have space don't
always have the time or know-how to plant it and
make good use of it. And gardening is likely to
be easier, more fun, and more productive with
help. One answer to all of these problems is to
set up a yard share.
!! Steps !!
_ Start finding partners as soon as you decide to
start yard sharing. It can take a while to work out agreements and
plan for a substantial garden. The sooner you start, the more
successful you'll be at finding the right folks and planning for your
yard share.
* Call your friends who live in apartments or your grandmother who
knows a thing or two about growing food in your area. Make it a
family affair, or a way to gather some folks you don't get to
see often enough. Or bring up a yard sharing project at your house
of worship. Perhaps your faith community would be interested in
growing fresh food for the hungry each spring.
* It pays to start now. Healthy groups and good agreements take time
to develop.
* Start it off with a party. Once you've found
some people you would like to garden with, have a potluck party
and celebrate your new community. Getting to know people over a
shared meal and music sets the proper tone for real community.
Above all, it should be fun and light. Save the substantial
discussions for another day. Light candles, play some good music,
talk about your dreams for the garden or gardens and break bread
together because this is the beginning of something wonderful.
Read up. Make a list of books that are useful
to your yard share group. Will you use
permaculture methods, bio-intensive or no till?
Bring everyone up to speed. Visit your local
library, or begin collecting your own
resources.
* For those who are more risk averse and have some anxieties about
how to share without encountering legal bumps, start with a copy
of Janelle Orsi and Emily Doskow's book The Sharing Solution_.[1]
_ Have an expectations discussion early. Talk
about your worries and how you will address them. Do this online
(such as in a wiki space) so that people can flesh out their
concerns, respond, and agreements can be recorded permanently. If
things get tense, have another potluck and work it out over
something yummy. Online tools can support the collaboration but
don't substitute for it; keep in mind that face-to-face encounters
build real community. Start asking these sorts of questions:
* When is it OK to be at the home or yard of the host yard, and when
is it not_ OK?
* Will you compost collectively?
* Is it a strictly organic garden?
* Create your online home. You'll find that sharing your experience
online helps both you and others to learn from it. Share planning,
documents, videos, pictures, links and jokes. Teach each other
what you know about how to grow in your zone and create a place
where new members down the line can catch up on all the ideas and
wisdom you've gathered. Documenting things will help you
evaluate what worked and what didn't, not only in terms of what
you tried to grow but also in how you chose to organize the
project. Imagine the yard share going on for many seasons, and
plan for success by sharing knowledge from the start.
* Involve the kids. If kids are going to be
part of the garden share, make sure they participate in the
planning and expectation setting. If they're involved at the
start, they're more likely to enjoy participating. Work some
kid-centered fun into your plan.[2] A garden is one of the best
hands-on learning experiences a kid can have. If you have any
biology or nature geeks in your group, ask if they can hold a
lesson now and then.
Gather resources together. As a group, make a
list of all the things you hope to grow.
* Research what works for your zone and pull a kitty together. Order
your seeds and starts. Some heirloom and specialty seed houses run
out of stuff before spring. Some things like garlic starts go
quickly.
* Take an inventory of who has what tools, seeds, transplants,
cuttings, and a list of the items you will perhaps need to buy.
* Plan for storage of tools and make sure people know where
everything goes at the end of the day.
* Make sure people's time, knowledge, and commitment are all
valued. Money shouldn't be the only currency you acknowledge. Be
aware that many people are coming to the yard share project with a
need to save, not spend heavily. Get ready to bargain hunt and
browse all those spring garage sales. A garden does not need to be
an expensive project.
* Talk to your neighbors about what you're
doing. Introduce them to your new friends. Let them know about
yard sharing. Maybe they want to start their own yard share. Think
about how this sort of project can revive the neighborhood.
* Ask questions online of folks who are already
yard sharing. Share your ideas and concerns. Maybe someone has
already worked through it. Gardening forums cover both yard
sharing and gardening concerns in general.
Plan for harvest and storage; success and
failure. Some plants you try will have fantastic
results. Other plants you try to grow will fail.
Set your expectations with this in mind.
* Will you can or dehydrate the excess? Will you need to plan to
purchase some tools for this as well? Will you save seed for
swapping next year?
!! Video !!
!! Tips !!
* Winter is a great time for gathering partners and planning, but
you can start the process at any time of year.
!! Things You\'ll Need !!
* Yard space for sharing
* Garden tools
* Plant seeds and seedlings
* Planning and collaborating space online
!! Related WikiHows !!
* How to Start a Community Garden
* How to Grow Herb Gardens from Seed
* How to Collaborate
* How to Bring Food to a Potluck Dinner
* How to Fertilize a Garden Cheaply
!! Sources And Citations !!
* Adapted from 10 Ways to Prepare for the Success of Your Yardshare
Garden this Winter,
http://hyperlocavore.wordpress.com/2009/12/21/winterplanning/ by
Liz McLellan, of Hyperlocavore, http://hyperlocavore.com/. Shared
under a cc-by-nd license and with permission of the author.
!! Article Tools !!
* Read on wikiHow
*
0 comments:
Post a Comment