SPOTLIGHT ON COMMUNITY GARDENS . . .  

PLANT NOW FOR WINTER BEAUTY

BY BRENDA BEUST SMITH

"It's a beautiful day in the agri hood . . . "  

"Farms are the new golf courses . . . "

    --  Bob Strassman, "HomeGrown," CBS Sunday Morning (11/22/2015)

Hope  you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!   

On CBS's most recent Sunday Morning show, Bob Strassman's "HomeGrown" cover story included the two great lines above as he profiled the growing trend toward "AGRI HOODS," spotlighting an upscale Atlanta neighborhood that, quite literally, is built around a farm from which residents can readily harvest fresh produce.

The program flashed me back to a conversation - several decades ago back in the '70s -  with a then young Dr. Bob Randall, before Houston had even one community garden. Bob's dream was to turn vacant, unused lots across Houston into vegetable gardens, manned and harvested by nearby neighbors. It was an idea that looked great on paper, but was new to this area.

Let's be clear, however. Bob's focus was on helping residents in low-income area overcome their lack of decent grocery stores to grow their own healthy food on unused, vacant lots.

But the idea quickly expanded into middle income neighborhoods, where an increasing number of folks wanted healthier food. And then into upper end 'hoods.

The "agri hoods" popping up across the nation (including "Harvest Green" in Fort Bend County usually feature higher end homes built around a professionally-maintained, resident-harvest-accessible organic farm - in much the same fashion so many high end neighborhoods have been built around golf courses.

Hence the quote: "Farms are the new golf courses."

Thanks to Bob's vision, and the literally thousands of folks now who are following his lead, the Greater Houston Area easily boasts 200+ community gardens in neighborhoods - including many individual-started/run gardens to the 100+ that are directly connected to Urban Harvest.  

Unlike the "agri hoods," these community gardens are started, maintained and shared by residents. Or they are organizational gardens, such as the Dominican Community Garden, above center, overseen by Sr. Heloise Cruzat.

And best of all?  And, thanks to the usually diverse ethnic make-up of most community garden volunteers, the edibles grown almost always reflect a global view of healthy living and an incredible introduction of vegetables, fruits & nuts reflecting planting delights from their own countries.

 

Dec. 1 is the start of the best seed planting time for, l to r, lettuce, mache, chervil,
red radish and spinach (. . . to name just a few)  --  Urban Harvest Winter Planting Guide   

Want a glimpse of what community gardens are planting?  Just check out  Year Round Vegetables, Fruits and Flowers for Metro-Houston: A Natural Organic Approach Using Ecology  - a great Chrismas gift for any Houston gardener but especially for new -or new-to-Houston gardeners).

The fascinating aspect today is that now community gardens and "agri hoods," when combined with the phenomenal increase in farmers markets, reflect an across-the-board increase in the number of folks throughout the economic spectrum interested in eating healthy food grown organically and close to home.  

Thanks to Bob's vision, and the literally thousands of folks now who are following his lead, the Greater Houston Area easily boasts 200+ community gardens in neighborhoods ranging from extremely low income to mansion-filled.  

Unlike the commercial "agri hoods," community gardens are usually started, maintained and shared by residents, churches, schools, organizations, etc. - and may range from a simple shared corner space with individual plantings to organized, landscaped plots.

Want to know more about these?  Visit these links to the Map of Urban Harvest-Connected Community Gardens,  Urban Harvest's Farmers Markets, and other Farmers Markets across the area. 

Bob Randall was one of the prime movers behind Urban Harvest, one of the best friends we gardeners, and community gardens in particular, have today. 

*  *  * 

For winter color, l to r, cyclamens, primroses, ornamental kale and pansies.
Note: ornamental kale is edible but usually not as tasty as those labeled "EDIBLE kale."

NOT THAT I EXPECT ANYONE WILL THINK ABOUT GARDENING IN THE HECTIC DAYS AHEAD . . 

But should you need to escape the hassle and breathe some oxygen (plants can provide a real fix), here are some thoughts from the Lazy Gardener's Guide on CD (see end of column).

We Lazy Gardeners divide monthly chores by our energy levels:

IF YOU'RE TRYING TO GET A HANDLE ON GARDENING . . .

...in our somewhat unique subtropical area (so different even from the rest of Texas!), Mercer Botanic Garden / The Mercer Society's Texas Gulf Coast Gardener course might help. It's divided into Tiers, but each one is a separate complete focus, and you don't need to attend them in order.  Jan.15 is registration ($155) deadline for Tier III, with classes set for 9am-3pm, Mondays Jan. 25-Feb. 29. Details: www.themercersociety.org.

 Brenda's "book" -- LAZY GARDENER'S GUIDE ON CD (a pdf book based on her 40+-years as the Houston Chronicle's Lazy Gardener) -- is available wholesale as a fundraising item. Details: lazygardener@sbcglobal.net. Individual books: $20. Make checks payable to LAZY GARDENER'S GUIDE ON CD and mail to LGG on CD, 14011 Greenranch Dr., Houston, TX 77039.