I spent this past weekend at Lichgate with the Damayan Garden Project to receive folks stopping by as part of the 2nd Annual New Leaf Farm Tour. Amidst guiding folks through the demo garden, talking about good soil and compost, encouraging folks to peruse the silent auction tables, pointing out the labyrinth, and providing snacks, we volunteers had a bit of time to brainstorm. One idea that came up was this: as an organization, Damayan could increase its notoriety and ability to encourage food gardening by attending neighborhood association meetings all over town with a standard presentation. Said presentation would highlight a) WHY we should garden; i.e. the reasons (economic, health, environmental, communal) for food gardening, b) HOW we can garden; i.e. models of home and community gardens, and lastly c) THE WAYS DAMAYAN CAN HELP get things rolling.
Thus, if you serve on a neighborhood board and would be interested in having Damayan present, please let me know-- or email Damayan directly: damayan at yourvillage dot com.
(Just in case you didn't know: The Damayan Garden Project is a Tallahassee non-profit that specializes in food gardening education and in helping to establish community gardens. As with most things these days, if you want to learn more, take a look at their website.)
A Little Note on the Weekend with Damayan