Forthcoming at: Agriculture in an Urbanizing Society – International Conference on Multifunctional Agriculture and Urban-Rural Relations The Netherlands 1 – 4 April 2012

By Nathali Lehmann Schumann and Michael Heasman
Global Nutrition and Health, Metropolitan University College
Copenhagen, Denmark

Abstract only:

This paper presents evidence on the policy challenges facing urban agriculture in the cities of Vancouver, New York, London and Copenhagen based on an analysis of relevant policy documents and in-depth interviews with experts in each city who are directly involved in the implementation of policy related to urban agriculture. Despite progress in each city, the research suggests the extent of the role of urban agriculture is not fully understood or defined and that it is rare to find stand-alone policy documents. Instead urban agricultural policies are usually embedded within wider policy initiatives such as on the environment, sustainability, planning or ‘green’ city policies.

Comparative analysis across the four cities, based on the key informant interviews and policy documentation, will be presented with respect to urban agriculture policy implementation, policy development, the role of stakeholders, and the challenges and barriers facing urban agriculture in each city. More than 20 ‘challenges’ were identified by the research related to the implementation and integration of urban agriculture, with five challenges seen as key: the need for evidence; political will; a lack of strategy; space and land issues; and perceptions about urban agriculture as an ‘alternative food system’. The identified challenges suggest that much more has to be done to encourage and promote local food production in cities. Finally the results are considered in the broader context of alternative food systems and it is suggested that policies related to urban agriculture tend to ‘romanticize’ the role of urban agriculture in relation to its potential benefits due to the absence of empirical data, evaluation, and a lack of monitoring procedures.

The full paper will be published at a later date.

Conference website here.

A brief glimpse of urban agriculture projects in Catalonia beginning at minute 18:25 of the film and ending at 20:40. Simply drag the slider button along to the chosen start time and press the play button.

From the film: Another Life Is Possible – Homage to Catalonia II
By Joana Conill, Manuel Castells and Àlex Ruiz

Catalonia, Spain comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona.

A documentary, a research project, a story of stories about the construction of a sustainable, solidary and decentralized economy. Weaving nets that overcome the individualization and the hierarchical division of work. Thousands of people every day all over the world. Here and now.

“Homage to Catalonia II” is a documentary that is part of an academic research project. We investigate new economic cultures, new forms of living and of understanding the economy. For the IN 3, the High School Institute of Research of the University Open to Catalonia.

We study the social impact of the economics|economies that do not follow the patterns of the market, where profits are the priority, and that have the satisfaction of the needs and the desires for the persons as a goal.

The couple are joining with an exodus of Greeks who are fleeing to the countryside and looking to the nation’s rich rural past as a guide to the future.

By Rachel Donadio
New York Times
January 8, 2012

Excerpt:

At a troubled moment when the debt crisis has eroded the country’s recent economic gains — perhaps irrevocably — there is much debate about whether a return to the land or the sea is a step forward or backward.

Ms. Tricha knows where she stands. “My parents were from the countryside. They were farmers when they were young. I studied to avoid becoming a farmer. They were teachers. And then their daughter studied and then went back to being a farmer,” she said. Nevertheless, she added, “for me it’s like going forward, because I think we neglected the land.”

Yiannis Makridakis, 40, a Greek novelist whose work touches on themes of tradition and regionalism, represents a different strain of refugee, with a more political tinge. He said he moved from Athens to Chios in 2010 as an act of defiance against a global financial system he found unsustainable. He bought property with a well and grows his own vegetables.

“I came to the conclusion that I want to live this insignificant life of mine as one human being among others,” Mr. Makridakis said on a sunny afternoon, looking down from his balcony on the rooftops of his village, Volissos, and the blue sea below. “According to the old ways, where people work to secure their basic needs.”

Read the complete article here.

Using Social Practice Theory To Assess How Transition Norwich Can Upscale Household Food Gardening In The City Of Norwich

By Dionysios Touliatos
Thesis – Master of Science
School of Environmental Sciences University of East Anglia University Plain Norwich
© 2011 Dionysios Touliatos
August 2011

Excerpt:

The choice of household gardens

According to Jeffcote (1993) urban household gardens in the UK represent a significant percentage of the total surface of a city, occupying more than ten times the area of protected nature reserves (Loram et al., 2005). The UK is the country with the highest number in private gardens per capita of any nation in Europe (Alfrey et al., 2004: 9) but only 20% of garden owners grew food in 1996 compared to 35% ten years earlier, with lawn and flowers being the dominant theme (MINTEL, 1999). Thus, it can be argued that a significant potential of food production in terms of quantity lies in household gardens.

Considering that the area occupied by gardens could be utilised for growing food instead of lawn and flowers. Household garden food production has the potential to shift both perceptions and practices about food, home and the urban environment (Kortright & Wakefield, 2010) as it provides direct access to fresh and nutritious food, within the household environment, that can be harvested, prepared and fed to family members, often on a daily basis (Marsh, 1998).

The distinct infrastructural advantages of household gardens

Household gardens as the medium for upscaling self provisioned local food production in Norwich present various advantages in comparison to the aforementioned urban agriculture infrastructure types. For example, 100,000 people in the UK are estimated to be on waiting lists for allotments (Hope & Ellis, 2009). In Norwich the waiting list for a plot at the allotments numbers around 700 people (Evening news 24, 2011) indicating the increasing demand for growing food as well as the inability of current allotment arrangements to satisfy it. Additionally, the allotments face the risk of being sold for development purposes (Independent, 2011). While challenges associated with the ownership of the land appear as a barrier for scaling-up urban agriculture through allotments and community gardens (Borrelli, 2008) with private household gardens this is not an issue. Being the ultimate controller of their land; private landowners (Lepczyk, 2004) view their garden as a personal space where they can alter the environment according to their will (Cammack et al., 2011). Garden share schemes offer the potential to overcome barriers arising around rented property (Public engagement, 2010), land scarcity (Blake & Cloutier-Fisher, 2009) and underutilized gardens (Peters et al., 2010: 201).

Read the complete paper here.

Black and white truffles are the world’s most expensive foods, and they are coveted by chefs and criminals alike.

By John Platt
Mother Nature Network
Jan 09 2012

Excerpt:

Truffles are “being trafficked like drugs, stolen by thugs, and threatened by inferior imports from China,” said correspondent Lesley Stahl on the program that aired Jan. 8.

Black truffles from France cost more than $1,000 a pound. Italian white truffles are even more valuable, bringing in around $3,600 a pound. The price represents not only their rarity but how difficult they are to find, as well as how much haute cuisine diners are willing to pay for just a few truffle shavings on their pasta or burgers.

Truffles grow underground and are usually discovered by the finely tuned noses of trained dogs. (Truffle hunters used to employ pigs for the same task, but the pigs tended to eat their finds, cutting down on profits.) Attempts to cultivate them have not been successful, as the truffles’ taste comes from the unique soil and climate of France and Italy.

Read the complete article here.

See the video here.

See the CBS News story here.

The conference will be held in Dutch

From Guido van Rijkom:

We have attracted a large number of good speakers to the conference, both from city governments, entrepreneurs, housing agencies, etc. I am also very happy to announce that Wayne Roberts (Toronto Food Policy Council) will be our keynote speaker that day.

The conference will be held in Dutch and it is mainly for a Dutch audience (some from Belgium, maybe some from Germany).

Press Release (in Dutch)

Dag van de Stadslandbouw – 8 maart 2012 Almere
Op donderdag 8 maart 2012 vindt in Almere de Dag van de Stadslandbouw plaats. Dit landelijke congres wordt georganiseerd in samenwerking met o.a. het Ministerie van Economische Zaken, Landbouw en Innovatie, Wageningen Universiteit, Netwerk Platteland, het Nicis Institute en het Ontwikkelcentrum Stadslandbouw Almere.

Doelstelling en doelgroep
De Dag van de Stadslandbouw is het eerste nationale platform waar in breed perspectief de kansen en knelpunten van stadslandbouw in Nederland uiteen worden gezet. De dag gaat in op de vraag of en hoe stadslandbouw kan inspelen op de behoeften van Nederlandse steden (op het gebied van o.a. groen, gezondheid, stedelijke ontwikkeling en economie). De dag is bestemd voor gemeenten en provincies, ondernemers, de food- en agro sector, retailbedrijven, groenvoorzien-ers, cateraars, woningcorporaties, projectontwikkelaars en overige partijen die professioneel bij het thema betrokken zijn.

Keynote spreker Wayne Roberts
De Canadese auteur Wayne Roberts is wereldwijd befaamd als voedselstrategie analist en staat bekend als de drijvende kracht achter de Toronto Food Policy Council. Speciaal voor de Dag van de Stadslandbouw komt hij naar Nederland. Hij zal adviseren over de rol van overheden bij stadslandbouw en inzicht geven hoe stadslandbouw in breder kader in gemeentelijk beleid ingebed kan worden.

Exclusieve bestuurdersbijeenkomst
Voor bestuurders van gemeenten en provincies vindt er in de ochtend een speciale bestuurdersbijeenkomst plaats. Bestuurders van gemeenten en provincies gaan hier, met inbreng van deskundigen, dieper in op een aantal vraagstellingen rondom Stadslandbouw.

Stadslandbouw Innovatie Award 2012
Ondernemers worden deze dag bijzonder uitgedaagd om mee te dingen naar de eerste Stadslandbouw Innovatie Award. Deze stimuleringsprijs is bedoeld voor ondernemers en andere initiatiefnemers die een creatief, innoverend en inspirerend idee hebben voor een stadslandbouw project in Nederland.

Naast een plenair deel bestaat het programma uit praktijk- en inspiratiesessies en een streekmarkt.

Enkele thema’s die aan bod komen zijn:
• Biedt stadslandbouw kansen of is het niet meer dan een hype?
• Waarom is stadslandbouw interessant voor de stad en haar bewoners?
• Welke beleidsdoelen kan het helpen realiseren?
• Wat is de rol van de overheid om ontwikkelingen van de grond te krijgen?
• Ideeën genoeg, maar hoe komt een economisch duurzame financiering tot stand?
• Wat voor soort ondernemer wordt er gevraagd en welke rol heeft deze?

Sprekers tijdens de dag zijn o.a.:
• Annemarie Jorritsma-Lebbink, burgemeester van Almere
• Jan Ferwerda, algemeen directeur PLUS Retail
• Carlos Faes, oprichter/eigenaar Philips Fruittuin
• Annemieke Fontein, hoofd landschapsarchitectuur gemeente Rotterdam
• Riek Bakker, stedenbouwkundige
• Lenie Dwarshuis-Van de Beek, lid PeriUrban Platform Europe
• Anneke Ammerlaan, voedseldeskundige
• Frank Bijdendijk, voorzitter Voedselbank Amsterdam; vm. directeur Stadgenoot

Kijk voor meer informatie op: www.dagvandestadslandbouw.nl

Visit their website here.

“This is a gap in the market and we want to close it.”

By Jess Smee
Spiegel Online
Dec 5, 2011

Excerpt:

It is hardly a logical spot for a farm, but three Berliners have earmarked a massive former factory roof for an unusual urban agriculture venture. The sustainable set-up will produce both vegetables and fish for local residents and could be a model for future city farms as the world continues to urbanize.

The Frisch vom Dach, or Fresh from the Roof project, plans to create a 7,000-square-meter roof garden, complete with a fish farm, to provide Berliners with sustainable, locally-grown food. They hope to sow the seeds of a new form of urban agriculture, arguing that traditional farming needs to evolve — and soon.
“Humankind is driving fast into a wall,” said Nicolas Leschke, a co-founder of Frisch vom Dach. “Global resources are running out. With so many people living in cities, we need to think locally.”

Currently, the expansive roof of the former malt factory in Berlin’s Schöneberg district is more grey than green. But in 2013 they plan to harvest lettuce, herbs and tomatoes, as well as raising different species of fish. Once their unorthodox farm is established, they expect to produce tons of vegetables and fish each month.

Read the complete article here.

“Orto Errante” in Italian means wandering garden

By Silvia Cioli
Zappata Romana
Nov 16, 2011

The event on October 15th was organized in less than a week. Zappata Romana was asked by the Rome Occupy to put up an edible garden in the square near the tents next to the Basilica of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme.

Zappata Romana called the people who take care of the many shared gardens in the city and the response was surprising – more than 20 groups joined and came to the appointment.

The idea was that Zappata Romana would build containers (painted recycled market wooden boxes with hemp bags and coloured garden markers) for the different contributors. The gardeners would bring earth and plants.
In one afternoon the garden was built with the enthusiastic help of everyone, passing by citizens included.

After about a month, the edible garden moved (“Orto Errante” in Italian means wandering garden) near to the ancient Caracalla Baths where the Occupy tents have recently moved to.
 

You ask about the purpose. It is not only for it’s nutritional value, it has a symbolic value for the urban community, the encounter of people, the importance of land and nature and last but not least, help the Occupy group that does not always get a positive image in the media.
 
The people who took part are simple citizens fighting urban sprawl with their garden, others are from a social centre and work with disabled people in the garden, others are guerrilla gardeners, others do gardening in an abandoned public area in their neighbourhood, others are unemployed who have lost their job and work on a garden project together, and much much more.

Zappata romana! is a project about public space by studioUAP. The objective is to promote community gardens in Rome as a collective action of urban public space appropriation to encourage environmental, economic and social practices. Hopefully a network of community gardens and public support policies will get started, as in most other European countries.

See more photos here.

Sweden, which is the the home of garden schools, takes the lead and has 2,000 of them.

Scientific American Magazine
Oct 27, 1900
Scientific American, the oldest continuously published magazine in America, began life on August 28, 1845.

From a Department of State pamphlet:

In France school farms increased rapidly, and in 1852 there were seventy, the number allowed by law.

The following are some of the advantages of the system: The children obtain an intimate knowledge and intercourse with nature, they learn about the cultivation of fruits and vegetables. It educates boys beyond the tendency to pilfer fruits and flowers in orchards, and instills in children a fondness of rural life.

Roman Gaus is founder and CEO of UrbanFarmers AG, a pioneering Spin-off from the University of Applied Sciences(ZHAW) in Wädenswil

Urban agriculture has been real for decades, starting with the industrialization of Western Europe in the 20th century. Urban agriculture has been also well practiced in poor economies such as Cuba, where it serves as an important way of self-reliance. Today, with conventional agriculture “Big Ag” being at a cross-road in terms of its ecological impact on the environment and the increased food demand of a population growing to 9bn people by 2050, urban agriculture may very well be one key of a solution for the 21st century.

As Roman explains, urban agriculture offers the solution to grow potentially enough food in the city to feed its entire population. What’s more, it also creates healthier, wealthier and happier cities, offering consumers with fresh & quality food choices and access to better quality of life.

Roman Gaus, Founder of UrbanFarmers
Roman Gaus (32)- from corporate career to social entrepreneur & urban farmer. Roman’s story is both fascinating and inspiring. When Roman returned from the States to Switzerland, he left a short but steep career with companies such as Procter & Gamble, Novartis and Franke Group. Yet, he brought with him an emerging concept about inner-city farming, which he had seen take a grass roots approach in US cities. Back in Switzerland, Roman was surprised by the proven, Swiss-engineered technology know-how of Aquaponic; a combination of fish and vegetable farming, ideally suited to grow locally grown & organic food without soil in the city — the idea behind UrbanFarmers was born. Determined to drive economic, social and ecological impact, Roman is now founder & CEO of UrbanFarmers AG, a pioneering Spin-off from the University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) in Wädenswil that aims to bring sustainable urban agricultural practices into cities of the 21st century.

UrbanFarmers Zurich on Facebook here.

Park Supermarket Park is a spatial development model for a Landscape Supermarket situated in the Metropolitan parks of the Randstad.

By Beth Carter
Smart Planet
September 28, 2011

Excerpt:

Dutch design firm, van Bergen Kolpa Architecten, has plans to build a 4,000 acre park in the middle of Holland’s most populous area, the Randstad, that includes Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht.

This mega-park will also be a fully functioning farm.

The project, entitled Park Supermarket, aims to make urban food production an attainable reality. The goal, as the title so clearly states, is to be able to provide residents with everything one could find in a grocery store. There is one obvious difference: you’ll now be getting it from the source.

Van Bergen Kolpa’s Jago van Bergen told SmartPlanet that his office specializes in architecture and urban planning that offers “sustainable solutions for the cities of today and tomorrow.” Or, as he calls it, the “Architecture of Consequence.” The idea that food cultivation should be brought to cities is not new, though in most cases it is largely fantasy. Designs like Park Supermarket offer hope.

Read the complete article here.

Calls on Government to put food growing on the curriculum and make land available for allotments

Excerpt:

In his acceptance speech Kelly told the story of how an incident in a supermarket 5 years ago opened his mind to the problems in the food chain – discovering that the garlic he was about to toss in to his trolley was imported from China. “In Ireland we produce enough food each year to feed 34 million people and yet we still import €5 billion worth of food each year,” he said. “It just doesn’t make any sense, and it has a direct impact on people’s health, communities, Irish jobs and the environment.”

Spurred on by his “garlic incident” to grow his own food he then set about trying to convince other people to do the same, establishing GIY to inspire people to grow and give them the skills to grow successfully. “The beauty of it is that we don’t have to get everyone to grow all their own food. Once we can get people to grow anything, say some salad leaves on a balcony, then their whole relationship with food starts to change. When they do go to the supermarket, they buy more local and seasonal food which is good for their health, community, jobs and the environment.”

Kelly also talked about the impact that GIYing has on the individual. “More and more research shows that growing your own food is fantastic for your physical, mental and emotional health. You’re eating the healthiest food, getting exercise, out in the fresh air, and when you grow as part of a GIY group there is the added advantage of the incredible camaraderie you get from being part of a community group.”

Read the complete article here.

You Local Guradian
26th September 2011

Excerpt:

A farm in Colliers Wood has scooped the title of best in London for the second year running at a festival of city farming and community gardening.

Volunteers from Deen City Farm beat their nearest rivals Surrey Docks and attributed their victory to great teamwork and animal handling skills.

City Harvest Festival, London. See more photos from the event here.

The annual event was held at Capel Manor in Kent on September 17. Deen City’s 14 representatives, one just 10-years-old, were awarded seven 1st places, four 2nd places and two 3rd places giving them 32 points overall – four points more than their own winning total last year.

Read the complete article here.

London’s Harvest Festival

Excerpt from The Smallholder, Sept 1, 2011

A unique UK festival, with all the fun and atmosphere of a traditional rural county show, but featuring animals and producer from inner city London takes place on September 17.

Now in its 13th year, the City Harvest Festival is the one time in the year when the hard work and dedication of talented farmers and gardeners from across London are celebrated.

City Harvest Festival, London. See more photos from the event here.

This year, animals and produce from a wide range of London’s 16 city farms and more than 100 community gardens will be showcased at the event. Visitors to the festival can see Golden Guernsey goats from Newham, honey from Walworth, pumpkins from Kentish Town, Indian runner ducks from Vauxhall, Bengali kerala from Shoreditch, and blackcurrants from White City. The festival takes place in 30 acres of gorgeous grounds at Capel Manor in Enfield and is a great family day out. Ducks, geese, rabbits, ponies and livestock compete for the Best in Show, while there is a dazzling array of both familiar and exotic fruit and vegetables in a variety of produce competitions, all sourced from London farms and gardens.

Read the complete article here.

Shantalla scheme will make up to 30 garden plots available

By Dara Bradley
The Connacht Sentinel
September 13, 2011

Excerpts:

Plans for city garden allotments are beginning to bear fruit.

For years garden allotments were an aspiration for Galway City Council but at last concrete proposals have emerged that could see between 25 and 30 plots available for public use later this year.

The site earmarked is less than an acre and has been idle for years. At the most recent meeting, members of the development company presented a site layout and detailed design for the proposal.

The drawings show the proposed four metres wides gate access to the gardens, with gravel access paths around the individual garden plots. Fencing will be erected around the site; and timber fencing may also separate the individual gardens.

Read the complete article here.

An urban garden located on the site of a demolished building with an array of graffiti as a backdrop.

Stadsboeren maken gemeenschappelijke, mobiele moes-, fruit- en bloementuinen in een stedelijke omgeving. Deze paradijstuinen voldoen allemaal aan de volgende voorwaarden:

• De tuinen worden gebouwd op braakliggende binnenstedelijke bouwterreinen (woonbuurten).

• De tuinen hebben een mobiele constructie en zijn verplaatsbaar naar andere locaties.

• De paradijstuinen zijn open voor het publiek om te bezoeken en te tuinieren.

• Bezoekers kunnen bloemen, groente en fruit plukken om dit daarna af te rekenen in de winkel.

• De tuinen zijn zoveel mogelijk ecologisch verantwoord.

• De paradijstuinen vervullen een sociale, educatieve en bindende functie in de stad

Their website here.

And their Facebook site here.

Understanding the recent trend in food production activities within the limits of a developed nation’s capital

By Peter de Lange
Master thesis in the program Environment and Resource Management
University Amsterdam
Aug. 21, 2011
69 pages

Abstract

Urban agriculture, the practice of growing food inside a city, can play a significant role in a cities food system, especially in feeding the urban poor. Its presence varies greatly across regions, however, and it is predominantly seen in Asia and Africa, where it is often practiced out of necessity, in order to feed families or gain much needed additional income.

Urban agriculture is not confined to developing countries, however, and, in recent years, is becoming increasingly popular in cities across the United States and Europe. One such city is Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, where especially community gardens have sprouted up in the last three years.

This trend cannot be expected to be driven by the same motives that drive urban agriculture elsewhere, as food is readily, and for most citizens affordably, available in supermarkets. As such, the current research was conducted to understand the current developments, and based on these findings give implications of what can be expected of food production in Amsterdam in the future.

In order to do this, interviews were conducted with urban farmers and allotment gardeners, policy documents were studied and literature on urban agriculture was read. This research revealed that the food production activities found in Amsterdam can be divided in six categories: allotment gardens, beekeeping, community gardens, restaurant gardens, school gardens and water gardens.

The interviews revealed that food production is often not the main purpose of the activity. Instead, improving social cohesion in a neighbourhood and educating others (children and adults) about growing food are the main motives for practicing urban agriculture. When growing food is the main aim, it is done with the intention to practice sustainable food production. In several cases, gardeners tried to adhere to the principles of permaculture in order to achieve this. Economic necessity was never mentioned as a motive. Quite to the contrary, several gardeners mentioned that buying vegetables in the supermarket is cheaper than growing them.

As a result of these motives, and maybe also because most urban farmers in Amsterdam have little experience with growing food, hardly any intensive production systems were found. Most food is simply grown in the soil, or in raised beds where the soil is too polluted, and methods to increase use of the vertical space, which are typical of urban agriculture elsewhere, were hardly encountered.

The municipality was found to be an active supporter of urban agriculture. Most initiatives had some form of help from either the central municipality or one of the city districts when starting up or with maintenance. The municipality does this mainly to stimulate citizen initiatives that improve local neighbourhoods, but also to promote local, sustainable, food production and to strengthen the ties between the city and its rural hinterlands.

The economic crisis played a role as well, as it creates space (particularly vacant lots) and causes people to reassess the sustainability of our current food production system.

All things considered, the recent trend appears to be the result of a combination of increased initiative from concerned citizens and a supportive municipality. Because food production in Amsterdam is economically unattractive, it cannot be expected to make a large contribution to the local food system unless economic circumstances change. It can, however, contribute to social cohesion in neighbourhoods and stimulate people to think about the food they eat, which might result in healthier, and perhaps even more sustainable, food consumption.

Read the complete paper here.

The Tempelhof project stands in contrast to Germany’s strictly regulated traditional allotments

Deborah Cole
Jakarta Globe
September 02, 2011

Excerpt:

It’s sunflowers instead of planes and kale instead of kerosene at legendary Tempelhof Airport, site of the Berlin Airlift and now home to one of Europe’s biggest and most unusual urban gardens.

Launched by a dozen “pioneers” in April, the Allmende Kontor plot now has about 300 people growing fruit, vegetables and flowers between the former runways of the airport, which closed nearly three years ago.

Hot peppers, chestnut saplings, cosmos and millet now reach for skies once filled with Allied jets ferrying essential supplies to West Berlin during the 1948-49 Soviet blockade at the start of the Cold War.

Read the complete article here.

Urban agriculture blossoms in Berlin

A strange phenomenon is occurring behind the scenes of Berlin’s urban jungle. Berliners are trying their hand at planting blue potatoes, purple carrots or black beans, and finding out how satisfying gardening can be.

By Anne Thomas
Deutsche Welle
Sept 2, 2011

Excerpt:

For Berliners with particularly green fingers, however, three days of gardening a year is not enough. Allotments are their passion. These are an institution here – after the war they were a necessity for hundreds of thousands of hungry Berliners. In pre-reunification days, they were sometimes the closest West Berliners got to the countryside and for the Easterners they were a good means of supplementing the meager supplies on offer in the state-run stores.

Now, there are an estimated 80,000 allotments dotted around the reunited city. Some acquaintances have rented one along the former border where they’ve planted a variety of vegetables. “It must be in my genes,” Nick mused. “I just wanted to grow my own stuff and have the satisfaction of eating my own salad, picked straight away and eaten with the evening meal. It’s so fresh.”

Read the complete article here.

Sylvie Laurent-Begin is in charge of 60 Paris Community Gardens. We spoke to her in Vancouver.

Just by chance, we met Sylvie Laurent-Begin and her husband Christophe at “Grow”, a small garden on False Creek. Sylvie is Deputy to the Paris Vice-Mayor in charge of Parks and Gardens. Christophe her husband is president of Potager des Oiseaux in le Marais neighborhood.

See Paris Jardins Partagés here.

See also: Les “Jardins Partagés” in Paris: cultivating visions and symbols Monica Caggiano, here.

See also: Paris Community Gardens Cultivate Biodiversity and Social Connection, here.

Potogreen

Excerpt from Gavroche, June 22, 2011

Ces derniers temps les poteaux anti-stationnement sont au centre de toutes les attentions, en effet après les « potobos », les « poteaux cyclopes » et les poteaux végétalisés de la rue Dénoyez à Belleville, voici que débarquent dans les rues du 2ème arrondissement les « potogreen », bientôt peut-être des « poteaux roses » rue Sainte-Croix de la Bretonnerie?

Paradoxalement le 2ème arrondissement qui est le seul à avoir un maire Vert à sa tête, est également le plus mal loti de Paris en espaces verts, c’est sûrement en partant de ce constat que l’artiste Paule Kingleur et l’association Paris Label eurent l’idée de l’opération Potogreen. L’initiative aura mobilisé pas mal de monde puisque pendant 2 mois les élèves des écoles de l’arrondissement ont collecté des briques de lait à partir desquels l’association Emmaüs s’est chargée de confectionner les récipients pour les plantes. La Mairie de Paris a fourni la terre, la Ferme de Sainte-Marthe les semences bio, les commerçants, la mairie du 2ème, les associations et bien sûr les habitants ont soutenu et participer à la pose des œuvres végétales.

L’idée de cette végétalisation participative de la rue est excellente, surtout dans cet arrondissement très minérale, mais par sûr qu’elle résiste longtemps à l’incivilité, rue Poissonnière ces micro-espaces verts suspendus ont malheureusement déjà disparu.

More here.

And see Potogreen here.

From Paule Kingleur:

“We have planted some food plant seeds with 600 school children, … Tétragone (like spinash), poirée, radish, cherry tomatoes, maïs (for the fun !), aromatics, some salads… The school has its own Potogreen containers, which students put on poles in front of the school. When the parents come for their children, they can see the little gardens on the street and discuss them with the kids.”

Paris compte près de 70 jardins partagés

Ces parcelles de terrain gracieusement mises à disposition par la Ville de Paris sont devenues en quelques années les lieux de rendez-vous et de détente préférés des jardiniers amateurs de Paris. Gagnés sur des friches urbaines (jardin de l’Aqueduc ), aménagés sur des toits de gymnase(le Jardin sur le Toit ) …des jardins fleurissent au sein de la capitale.

Dès qu’un petit espace est inexploité, des jardiniers amateurs et des amoureux de la nature ne manquent pas d’imagination pour l’aménager etle végétaliser. On y fait des expériences, on y mélange fruitiers, légumes et fleurs, on y aménage des abris à insectes, des mangeoires pour les oiseaux…on y passe du bon temps. Les ahérents partagent leurs récoltes de tomates, courgettes, carottes, on fait des confitures ou des tartes quand les framboises sont mûres et ainsi on a un peu l’impressions d’être à la campagne. Actuellement Paris compte pas loin de 70 jardins partagés disséminés dans les quartiers. Pour participer et gratouiller le sol il suffit de contacter l’association responsable du jardin.

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