Coral tree and drought tolerant yard
We live in a historic neighborhood in Southern California. Owners take great pride and time in maintaining and beautifying their homes and yards. I have lived in many houses, in many neighborhoods, in many cities, yet this truly feels like home. During this pandemic, it has become my sanctuary and I’m grateful.
The first house I lived in in the same neighborhood had four prolific orange trees and two lemon trees. Each year for the 8 years I lived there, a non-profit organization would come and pick them to deliver to food banks in our county. Anywhere from 10 to 20 volunteers would arrive, equipped with long handled fruit pickers, bushel baskets and joy. The would spend the entire day and sometimes into a second day and pick well over 1,000 lbs of oranges and lemons. It was a wonderful sight and I was always amazed at their enthusiasm. I moved a year ago and sadly, have no fruit to offer up, but it has given me another purpose which I describe below.
Garden Seeds
I repurposed an existing raised planter for an organic vegetable garden. When we moved here, the planter was pretty empty except for a dwarf maple tree. I partitioned the tree from the veggie area, set up irrigation and just planted my first vegetable – walla walla sweet onions. I will be drawing out the plan for placement of the seeds,
Garden Seeds
I will begin the tomato seedlings in dirt and an egg carton, plant the other seeds in the planter and tend my garden until it hopefully grows enough salad fixings to sustain us over the spring and summer. The last time I tried to do this, I forgot to water it. Now I have automatic watering so that should take care of my forgetfulness!
I, along with many other households I would imagine, throw away more green leafy veggies than I’d like to admit. So the second part of my “veggie practice” will be to start a neighborhood garden swap. We have a neighborhood websit
e that I will be posting the suggestion of sharing abundant crops and gathering a consensus on when and how often to meet. Our neighborhood has bountiful orange, grapefruit, lemon and lime trees along with avocado trees. We have two avocado trees that produce continual, enormous, copious avocados. I have been sharing them with neighbors and friends, but will be able to include them in our veggie swap gatherings.
Today I will draw my plan and plant the seeds in the garden as well as start the tomato seeds in the egg carton. This entire process will take much longer than the remaining time of the course, but it has motivated me to continue and create an environment where I grow my own food and share with others.
Walla Walla Onions
The third part of my “veggie practice” is this – I will donate our crop and that of others to the local food bank. They feed thousands of people each week and help so many who cannot afford to feed themselves. Since about half the year I am alone, there will be plenty to share. Right now I have two 30 year olds quarantining and cooking and dancing and singing and laughing with me! I will also volunteer my time with the hundreds of volunteers in whatever capacity they need. My hope in sharing homegrown veggies, sharing and creating friendships in the community and branching out to the homeless and needy is that it will help to create a bond between those communities. And now with the Covid19 pandemic, we need connection more than ever.
Update:
I planted the garden. It’s been raining incessantly until yesterday, so I jumped at the opportunity to put those seeds in the ground. The next week should be warm and sunny and give them a chance to take root. I also planted some herbs in a separate planter and will add those to the garden once I read up on whether they like living with vegetables. I know that mint is incredibly invasive and will keep that separate but I’m not sure about the rest.
So far, about a dozen people have responded on our neighborhood website with a definite ‘affirmative’ for creating a garden swap, with drinks, of course. Someone came up with making it a potluck and rotate houses as well. That way we can get to know everyone and spend more time together. It will be awhile until I can share but I will look forward to meeting new people and bringing a dish to pass.
It will take some time to see the results. I have people around me who have and have had gardens, both large and small and they have been my teachers. I love the idea that the future will hold new friendships and relationships with neighbors and people who will enjoy my veggies!
Hi Tari
I love your idea to grow your own veggies and to share the things you wont be able to eat yourselves with others in your community! I’m curious how you set up your irrigation? Did you use a drip house or something like a rain barrel (that might help you conserve water?)? I really admire your choice for this considering many people eat fruits and vegetables full of pesticides that create health and ecosystem issues. Its wonderful that you live in a climate were growing fruits and veggies is somewhat manageable. I wonder, do you plan on gathering seeds from your other fruits and veggies (I’ve you can root some veggies like romaine in water and have them grow that way) instead of buying them? Is that something you can do? Your choice of activism reminds me of our section on “Place”. Barbara Kingsolver said, “I wonder what it will mean for people to forget that food, like rain, is not a product but a process…” (Kingsolver). I feel what you’re trying to do is to remind people this is what nature can produce us if we can learn to nurture it again. Kingsolver suggests some people are displaced and have been alienated from nature. What you are trying to accomplish can reconnect people with nature and help them to appreciate what the earth provides when we nurture it. Good Luck with your choice of activism. I hope your garden grows with an abundance of veggies and your neighborhood swap reminds everyone that when you nurture nature, you regain a relationship with it!
Thank you, Holly. Your enthusiasm is appreciated. I love Kingsolver’s quote too. I have always been hesitant to start a garden because I tend to lose touch with plants that need nurturing and watering, but this course has given me courage to attempt it. My idea is that if my small patch does well, I will move it to a larger area and cultivate it with herbs and flowers and beautiful plants that blossom throughout the year as well as veggies and fruit.
I put in drip lines that are on our irrigation controller so I can control how much water everything gets. We shall see, but I’m hopeful!
Hi Tari,
I think this is a really good idea. This is a form of activism that will impact a small community and also help thousands of people in need. This is something that could be very powerful at anytime or any day but during this pandemic it is going to make a huge change for a lot of people. During this COVID-19 pandemic people are limited to what they have access to, many people have lost their jobs, and grocery stores are not a place people want to be at. This will definitely help out your neighbors and your neighbors will be helping you also. I have never heard of something like this but it is a really good idea and a great example of helping out your community. One suggestion I have for you is that I think your neighborhood should spread the word to your surrounding town so people can come and grab fruits and vegetables that you are growing as needed. This pandemic has made food shopping a nightmare and also taken the jobs of many so money is definitely a factor for a lot of people right now. During this pandemic it will not only help people who are going to shelters but also anyone else. Most importantly it could help high risk people who should not even consider going into grocery stores. I think you have a really great plan for activism and hope it works out well for you!
I think a garden swap is such a great idea! I haven’t started planting anything but definitely would like to grow a number of vegetables and potatoes for the spring and summer. I’ve noticed that this pandemic has a lot of people thinking and starting their own backyard gardens. Even friends I have in the city, or live in apartments are working on getting mini gardens set up on their porch or patios. It’s definitely a great practice that a lot of people are turning toward during this time.