The internet is a great resource for finding local community garden plots, but the best way to find one is to explore your neighbourhood with a friend!
Now that I’m a community gardener, I somehow see community gardens in places I never noticed before. It’d odd, as though there were complete gaps in my visual consciousness before. It makes me wonder what other things I’m not seeing!
A couple of summers ago, my husband and I were out on a bike ride in our neighbourhood and I was pleasantly shocked to find that there was a community garden within a five minute bike ride from our house. We had lived in our home for a couple of years before coming across the garden, and I wondered how this was possible? Fortunately one of the garden’s organizers was there, tending her plot, and we were able to secure ourselves a plot for the following season.
Obviously, finding a community plot isn’t so easy for some would-be gardeners. Indeed, in some cities there are extensive waiting lists for community garden plots. I’d like to present a few tips for finding a community garden in your area.
- Search the web. For example, the City of Toronto features the Toronto Community Garden Network, and the city’s official website also devotes a section to community gardening. A simple Google search string containing the city or town and the phrase “community garden” should yield some results.
- Head out! Explore your neighbourhood on foot or by bicycle. Like my husband and I, you might just stumble across a community garden project nearby.
- Start a community garden in your neighbourhood. If there just isn’t a community garden in your area, consider banding together with some fellow citizens to start a new garden. A list of frequently asked questions for starting a community garden is also found on the City of Toronto website.
Use your imagination...a community garden plot might be in your future!
