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ARTS & CULTURE
Community gardens provide space for those with green thumb
DANI MAL AKOFF/KANSAN
Volunteers take care of the Garden Incubator community garden, a part of the city's Common Ground program, at Seventh and Walnut Streets. Started in 2012, the Common Ground program takes advantage of free space around Lawrence for people to grow their own healthy food.
MADI SCHULZ
@Mad_Dawgg
Someone new to Lawrence would immediately notice the University of Kansas' influence, Massachusetts Street's charm and the man who stands on the street corner with the "Honk for Hemp" sign.
What they might not learn from driving around is the value the community holds for many individuals in Lawrence, an aspect that's increasing community gardens' popularity
"It's kind of getting out and helping plant yourself in the community, as much as planting a plant in your garden," said Aimee Polson, project coordinator for the Garden Incubator at Seventh and Walnut Streets.
Polson said she sees the various benefits of community gardens.
"I think it's just getting out and partnering up with other people, [...] getting your frustrations out by digging, or just sharing experiences and seeing what other people do," said Polson, who received her master's degree in urban planning from Kansas State University. "[The garden] is kind of a nice escape from your own house or your family in some instances."
Since 2012 when the city of Lawrence introduced the Common Ground program — with the goal of turning unutilized spaces into sites where citizens could grow their own healthy food — community gardens have popped up all over the city.
On July 11 and 12, the Kansas Permaculture collaborative included a permaculture community garden in its sixth annual Permaculture Urban Garden and Farm tour.
The Garden Incubator offers various plots that can be rented for $20 to $70 for one year but also has areas that volunteers can garden, as well as a children's garden. It also features a micro-farm with three different farming groups: hops, traditional vegetables and various types of flowers.
Once someone is in charge of a plot, it is solely up to them to take care of their crops for the remainder of their time.
Polson said she sees the wide variety of benefits in a community garden, aside from the obvious need for gardening space.
One of the main issues Polson sees in the garden — aside from the standard weeds — is theft, but she said she has plans to keep the garden open, gate- and lock-free.
"I think [putting locks and gates up] kind of sets the wrong tone, especially since we're on city-owned land," Polson said.
Polson has seen vegetables and
fruits stolen from the various plots. In one recent incident she found flowers from the garden in zip-close bags nearby. Polson said one solution to this problem is more signage throughout the garden, which will deter those who accidentally pick in the wrong areas.
Lawrence also offers a community orchard — the Lawrence Fruit Tree Orchard — located on a third of an acre on the 800 block of Garfield Street.
The orchard, which volunteers began planting in March 2012, offers a wide variety of fruits that might not be familiar to the average Kansas gardener. Some of these include ju-
jube, goumi, American persimmon, paw paw and hybrid hazelnuts, said Project Coordinator Skyler Adamson. The orchard is also home to familiar fruit trees such as apple, European pear and tart cherries.
"Anyone can come pick samplesize portions of the fruit," Adamson said. "We also have volunteer work days at least once a month. Anyone is welcome — people of all different ages and skill levels."
The community garden located at 1304 Pennsylvania St. charges a $25 membership fee, but instead of individual plots, it is more focused on keeping up the garden as a community.
Cody Wingfield, project coordinator in his second year of membership at the Pennsylvania Street garden, lives in an apartment and was looking for a way to get outdoors when he discovered the community garden.
"Before I found out about the program I was just doing the random search online and I stumbled upon the city's program, and when I found it it was basically love at first sight," he said.
The goal of the garden is to teach its members permaculture principles, which use natural features of
SEE GARDENS PAGE 16