I just learned about a brand new initiative in our neighborhood, and I had to share. It’s called 500 Gardens. Here’s a little more about it from their website:
Madisonville is a neighborhood of Cincinnati that has a lot going for it, especially for a gardening project. There are large lots, generations of garden tradition, active community partners in the Madisonville Community Council, the Madisonville Community Urban Redevelopment Council, and local churches, and we have two years of partnership with Lighthouse Community School and success in building gardens on the school parking lot and nearby vacant lot with the students. The neighborhood has a vibrant mixture of ages, ethnicities, incomes, and family origins, and carries a USDA Food Desert designation.
In this project we plan to:
• Recruit, organize, and teach volunteers.
• Recruit, teach, and coach mentors.
• Organize, promote, and teach on- going classes and workshops.
• Develop and disseminate educational materials.
• Acquire and organize lumber and soil. Manage use and distribution.
• Schedule garden building, coordinate volunteers and homeowners.
• Host monthly Gardener Gatherings during the growing season.
I’m really excited about this and hope it is tremendously successful!
Our Urban Garden 