Community Gardens for Our Future

When we think about food, we know it's no farther than the local grocery store. For most of us, we have known nothing but a safe, secure and plentiful food supply for our whole lives, but recently things have begun to change. Each week there seems to be a new warning about unsafe products coming from overseas or from right here in our own state. The question is, how can we fix it? This question is especially perplexing for residents of urban areas that may not have the option of growing it themselves. With little debate the only way to do something about it locally is to develop a system of community gardens.

Community gardens have been used with much success in large cities for years. Only recently have they become a hit in smaller urban areas. Small urban areas generally have an advantage that large cities do not, land. Land is normally the biggest issue in starting a community garden. In our larger cities such as Lexington, and Thomasville there are many vacant lots that would make perfect places for well maintained community gardens. The key is to enter into contacts with the owners of these parcels that will limit or eliminate the liability factors involved. Once this is done the rest is downhill.

Generally, once land has been secured, the process of getting people involved is fairly easy. There are many people that love growing vegetables and would love to be able to do it in a social way. Community gardens are extremely effect venues for bringing communities together. This has tremendous effects on the community as a whole and has been known to change the whole dimension of a neighborhood from distant to extremely close.

Community gardens should be in the planning of any urban area and ours is no different. Community gardens bring people together and allow for an additional source of food for those growing and those in need. Giving people a reason to enjoy their community is simply rational thinking and when people create/grow things together, the rewards and benefits are exponential. Davidson County's urban areas have a lot to offer those looking to begin a community garden. Begin with a dream and change a community in the process.