Tomorrow I will share a very interesting case study which shows that it can be a great idea to talk to your neighbours. One enterprising gardener decided to speak with his neighbours about using their grass front yards to grow food. Though this gardener does have his own garden, he was frustrated by lack of land. He wanted to do more. And came up with a great solution.
This gardener offered to tend his neighbours front yards – using these under-utilised spaces to grow food collaboratively. He will undertake the work in return for the use of the space. And everyone will share in the food he grows.
Expecting one of two of his neighbours to agree, he actually found that six neighbouring properties were happy with this arrangement. Many people would like to grow their own, but feel they don’t have the time. And this gardener found that people were more than willing to adopt this front yard farming idea. One neighbour even wanted to join him and help to grow the food in return for learning more about the process.
One or two of his neighbours already grew a little in their back yards. But had not done anything with the front of their properties. Some felt they just didn’t have the time – others just didn’t know where to begin. For many, this collaborative approach could be the perfect solution.
Tomorrow, I will share a few more details of this scheme. But for now, I just thought I would raise the issue, and point out that many other people may be able to adopt a similar approach where they live.
EWSP Consultancy 