Community building is not simple. I see many gardens having problems with it. Over the past few years, I have realized that the best way to develop a community is to work together on projects, such as building something. A culture of collaboration develops through completing tasks together. For example, we built a pergola in the Toldy garden.

We should build a shading system over the community space because the summers are too hot. We first considered sun sails, but then we decided on pergolas. Organizing and building it was a real community effort, and not only that. It was a family project: the girls cooked pepperpot and tended to the flower and herb gardens. It ended up being a very productive day.

I find that one of the best ways to build a community is to build something together, organize an activity, and do it together. This could be building a pergola, cooking together, or tidying up the land we share.

Yesterday was a very good experience for everyone who was there. For example, we learned each other’s names.

I photographed the whole day. Here is the process:

Yesterday we were very lucky with the weather, Saturday was rain-free and we could plant. On Thursday evening the seedlings were delivered, this was organised by the community itself, very good, there will be many more in the coming months. The home-grown seedlings were strong enough for planting, everything was in place to get the plants in the ground on the agreed day. Many had already prepared their planting plans for their beds, and Zsuzsa came to give advice to all the garden members on planting and positioning the plants. With 34 beds, Zsuzsa had a lot to do, she went to each bed and with the gardener she put the seedlings in the right place, it was like a kind of weird chess where the seedlings are the pieces and the bed is the horseshoe shaped board. Although it’s not chess, it’s more suited to the game of Go.

On the side of the garden around this strip will be the common cultivated areas that we tend to divide up, so the very spreading plants like zucchini or squashes will go here, and then we’ll try to get them to spread up the strip. You can see the pallets in the background, we’ll be using them to build more garden furniture in the near future.

In parallel with the planting, the garden keys were distributed, so now each garden member has their own key and can go to the garden whenever they want.  We have also divided up the common cultivated areas, although this is still a bit ad-hoc, it will be finalised at the next garden meeting. We have also put together the compost bins, but compost education is still to be done, this will be done soon.

Now it’s going to be a week of lousy weather, with rain and overcast skies, I’m a bit worried about how the plants will cope.

The more important tasks for the coming period will be to build pallet furniture, figure out the garden sign, the sponsor sign and the garden visitor’s garden sign. Now at the planting day many people came in and looked around asking questions, we need a Visitors Rules sign. Soon the sun sails will be put up in the garden, we need them very much because in summer we need shade over the sandpit and the community area, the garden is very wet, it gets hot as hell in the summer heat.

We still need to buy some hoses for the garden, maybe some basins under the taps, and one of the garden members promised a tarpaulin for the sandpit, so the local cats have already found the garden.

We will be planting a lot more: there will be a flower area by the entrance and other places. What we need to work on a lot is the grating, where we plan to put a flower meadow to cover the sloping walls reinforced with jute netting. In any case I have sprinkled sunflower and ornamental sunflower seeds, if they survive and sprout they will make a pretty picture.

It was the first real gardening day, we’ve made a lot of progress, but it’s still the beginning, there’s a lot to do.

In the coming month and for much of this year, and most likely for the next years, we will be dealing with the Covid19 pandemic. Sadly long periods of quarantines, economic downturn, decline of world trade, and mass unemployment around the world, leading to cases of extreme poverty will become the norm. Whilst there is little that can be done to immediately reverse the effects of Covid19, proactivity and resoluteness is essential. Local crisis management needs to be prepared, carefully planned and proactive.

In times of world wars, or extreme economic crises, governments of the time did everything they could to promote individual self-sufficiency. They created urban gardens, urban farms, and made it possible for their citizens to produce a lot of the foods they needed to survive. The crisis we face today again necessitates these actions, but this time on an even grander scale.

What can governmental and municipal bodies do?

• Areas suitable for small-scale agricultural production should be surveyed immediately and conditions for access should be created without delay both in the cities and in the countryside.
• Revitalize old disused backyards for small agricultural purposes. This has proved to very successful in the past. Subsistence agriculture is a way of life for millions of people around the world, and at times of crisis has also provided for thousands of families in the developed world, whilst freeing up state resources during these critical times.
• Encourage people who have gardens, to utilize that for agriculture. Those who have uncultivated areas in their gardens should invite others to cultivate those areas.
• Public workers and the unemployed should be redirected to local food production.
• The issue of cultivation, preservation, storage and distribution needs to be addressed locally.
• Resources are needed to expand public catering. Much more resources will be needed by the state or local governments to provide for a single hot meal a day than any time during the past 75 years.
• Laws must be strictly enforced to prevent crop theft, vandalism.
• Provide adequate quantities of seeds and seedlings, even free distribution to those willing to produce locally. Effective backyard management, plant protection and preservation needs to be taught again, as the knowledge of these have disappeared over the past generations.
• Covid19 has bought about an unprecedented change to the world we lived in just a few month ago. The long-term effect of it will be profound. It is fair to say that life for millions of people around the world will be changed forever. Every aspect of a garden, from subsistence agriculture to beauty and tranquility can and will provide an essential part of surviving these difficult times for many people around the world.

It’s spring, it’s time to plant!

Gabor Rosta – Urban Garden Association, Hungary

 

Soupline – The Great Depression 1929-32

World’s highest standard of living, USA 1929-32

Soupline – The Great Depression 1929-32

Soupline – The Great Depression 1929-32

WW 2 – Victory Garden Poster

WW 2 – Victory Garden Poster

WW 2 – Victory Garden Poster

WW 2 – Victory Garden Poster

England, WW2 – Seed stock, free from the state

Passon Field Victory Gardens 1943, USA

WW 2 – Bomb Crater Garden, England

WW 2, School garden on the roof. New York City, USA

WW2 – Victory garden, New York City, USA

WW2 – Victory Garden Chicago, USA

01 Jun 1946, Berlin, Germany — Ploughed up by British engineers and turned over to Berliners to raise vegetables, this area in front of the Reichstag in Berlin is shared by many families who hope to raise enough food to fend off starvation. One of the problems after potato planting is to keep thieves from stealing the seed potatoes out of the ground. — Image by © Bettmann/CORBIS

Yes, I can! WW2 poster

WW 2 – Jefferson County Community Cannery, USA

WW 2 – Döbrentei squeer, war garden in Budapest, Hungary 1942

See also: Operational suggestions for community gardens for the duration of the epidemic

 

Under no circumstances should anyone who feels sick, or has sick people around them, enter the garden.

Do not organize any community event in the garden until the epidemic is officially considered to be over.

All gardens should provide soap, water and sponges. Everyone entering AND leaving the garden should thoroughly wash their hands. Everyone should wipe the garden door handle with a disposable wipe or soapy water before touching it.

Everyone should wear gardening gloves and wash them regularly with soapy water.

There should be as few people as possible in the gardens at any one time, preferably only one family at a time. Make a schedule of who goes to the garden. Consult internal communication channels as to who will go, and when.

If more people are in the garden, a minimum of six steps should be kept from each other. Children are also subject to this rule.

Those who live far should avoid travel to the garden at this time, especially if that travel involves public transport.

If you used a common tool, after use wash thoroughly with soap and water before returning it to the garden storage.

If anyone can not go to the garden at this time for the above mentioned or other reasons, an agreement should be made with other members for attending (watering etc.) to their part of the garden.

Shared cultivation becomes more important at this time, and anyone going to the garden should take part in the communal maintenance of the garden.

It is important to consider uncultivated areas of the garden for planting crops. It will matter a lot in the fall!

You can plant seeds at home. Every garden has plastic hatching pots, and the tool storage area has seeds. Take soil home and plant seedlings at home. When the epidemic is over, you will have the plants to plant out in the garden. Plant more seedlings than usual, as crop plants will be a valuable asset.

The garden will be a very important part of life for every gardener during the coming months, so take care of it.

Sunbathe in the garden a lot and exercise because your body needs vitamin D.

The garden will be basically sterile when exposed to a lot of sunlight, but follow these protocols.