Yesterday's weed haul at the garden. I try to keep bouts of weeding to under 5 mins so that it doesn't become loathsome chore that I will then start avoiding. #CommunityGarden #GrowYourOwn #weeding #weeds #allotment #garden
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Here's a dumb joke to start off your weekend (I put this together for a flyer for a community garden).
(TLDR: Thoughts on trauma with a relevant open question at the end.)
I wanted to take a moment and talk about trauma responses and how we, as people, try to get our needs met in a state of trauma.
What happens when we try to create areas that are 1 ) not trauma inducing and 2 ) are trauma informed while still experiencing trauma?
Trauma, in general:
When we're in a traumatic situation, we learn a lot of maladaptive responses. By that I mean we learn things that help us push through and/or survive the situation, but that damage healthy relationships. This is one of the earlier things that people in trauma recovery learn: "Let go of what no longer serves you."
Examples of things like this: it is common an abusive relationship to be told to Document Everything. Paper trails, possible camera recordings, etc. to keep yourself safe. BUT! When you transition from "unsafe" to "safe", these same behaviors are typically really invasive to your new partner, even if they understand why you're doing what you're doing.
Multiple spaces:
One aspect of trauma recovery focuses on what happens when the traumatic event ends. You've left your abuser, you've started to having savings after a life of poverty, etc. The skills and processing that happens here is different from enduring the trauma while it is still happening.
I think about this a lot, and heavily, at Nivenly 
(and it's projects, like Hachyderm 
) and others. Because the world is currently very trauma inducing and it is very difficult to ask people to unlearn patterns that hurt them, when they've been reinforced that those are the only patterns that are successful.
I do have more things I'd like to say, but in the now I want to pivot to a public discourse to hear what you have to say.
* How do you recognize when you're in a trauma free, but trauma informed, environment?
* What do you do when you want to participate in, organize/run, or create these environments?
* Or what are any general thoughts you have?
Scope broad: not just online, not just "events" like conferences, just a very open discussion 
When I visit Europe I'm always the guy excitedly pointing out community gardens to fellow travelers on the bus. They never care. Some day I need to book a local guide to show me around and teach me some gardening slang in French or German. #allotment #garden #gardening #travel #europe #CommunityGarden
I helped a fellow gardener weed her plot for a few hours last year, and today she left me a bottle of wine as a thank you. Hidden in my weed pit, of course. #CommunityGarden #allotment #weeds #weeding #gardening #wine #alcohol
Foraging nettles to cook nettle and pea soup at the community garden. Delicious!!! 
Nettles are full of nutrients, especially the new top growth which is readily available at this time of the year.
NB. Just beware of harvesting too close to a road (pollution) or a public path (dog pee.)
#Foraging #Nettles #StingingNettles #NativeFoods #CommunityGarden
First steps in our community garden! Pallet collars in place, now the real work begins! #communitygarden #gardening #raisedbeds #allotmentgardening
#Ohio: #PerryVillage #CommunityGarden returning for fifth year
Story by Bill DeBus, March 17, 2025
"Perry Village is preparing for another season of planting at its community garden in Lee Lydic Park.
"Village Councilman Mike Glover provided a couple of updates on the garden during council’s March 13 meeting.
"Village resident Denny Shimko 'graciously volunteered to rototill the garden again this year,' Glover said.
"'He usually does it as early as he can, but definitely by May 1,' said Glover, who also serves as chairman of the village Parks Committee.
"This year, the garden will be divided into 12 plots for individual growers, Glover said. Some of the plots are 20 feet by 20 feet, and others measure 10 feet by 20 feet, he noted.
"In 2024, Perry Village decided to make eight 20-by-20-foot plots available in the garden. All of those tracts were claimed by gardeners, and three people had to be turned away, Glover said during a 2024 council meeting.
"By giving people the option to choose 20-by-20 or 10-by-20 plots, additional spaces were created in the garden to accommodate more growers, Glover said at a council meeting in January.
"This is the fifth year of the community garden at Lee Lydic Park, 3954 Call Road.
"In 2021, Perry Village decided to develop the garden on the site of a sand volleyball court that received little use."
Read more:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/society-culture-and-history/holidays-and-festivals/perry-village-community-garden-returning-for-fifth-year/ar-AA1Bhqs1
#BuildingCommunity #CommunityGardens #FoodSecurity #SolarPunkSunday #PerryVillageOhio
www.msn.comMSN
#KansasCity #CommunityGarden sale helps locals grow food amid rising grocery prices
Story by Alan Shope, March 21, 2025
"What started as a hobby has become a necessity for Aaliyah Mohammed.
"'I'm retired, so it means a lot to be able to grow my own food,' Mohammed said as she picked out starter plants during Kansas City Community Gardens’ (#KCCG) season-opening sale on Thursday."
Read more:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/kansas-city-community-garden-sale-helps-locals-grow-food-amid-rising-grocery-prices/ar-AA1BlDmP
#BuildingCommunity #FoodSecurity #SolarPunkSunday #Gardening #Missouri
www.msn.comMSN
#LowerPaxtonTownshipPA - New #CommunityGarden unveiled in Lower Paxton Township
WHTM Harrisburg
Thu, March 20, 2025
Watch:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/community-garden-unveiled-lower-paxton-211240094.html
#Pennsylvania #CommunityGardens #BuildingCommunity #FoodSecurity #Gardening #SolarPunkSunday
Yahoo News · New community garden unveiled in Lower Paxton Township
Work day at our community garden today 
sun, fika (Swedish coffee and cookies) and a lot of weeding and other work. We also harvested about 15 kg of Jerusalem artichokes.
#kaninängen #communitygarden #odlatillsammans #husie #odling
sun, fika (Swedish coffee and cookies) and a lot of weeding and other work. We also harvested about 15 kg of Jerusalem artichokes.#kaninängen #communitygarden #odlatillsammans #husie #odling
Third spaces are gathering spots that are not homes, or work. public parks. community rec centers. libraries. spaces that ask nothing of those who visit.
during the first civil rights movement (and all historical insurgencies), third spaces were critical for organizing and community building. ever since then, the colonial state and corporations have been cutting into those third spaces more explicitly.
I waited at least 7 years but I might get a patch of community garden near my house, with some space to store the tools. It's Christmas in March!
#MiddletownCT residents rally to save 25-year-old #CommunityGarden from becoming a development
Story by Cassandra Day, March 12, 2025
"About two dozen people are encouraging the city to purchase the North End Ferry Street community garden as an alternative to the property owner selling it for development.
The garden, first established in 1999, has not only been a place for people to learn to grow and maintain a plot, but offers educational opportunities for residents, including youth.
"A number of people spoke out during a recent Economic Development Committee meeting about its vital importance to this 'underserved' area of Middletown. Fifteen people emailed the city on the matter, all signing their names to the same letter appealing to the committee.
"The #FerryStreetGarden has 'undergone several periods of disinvestment in the last few years,' the letter said, and now faces the 'ultimate threat of impending development.'
"The Chrysalis Center Real Estate Corp., which owns the land, has received offers from entities to purchase the plot, but nothing in writing, according to CEO Sharon Castelli.
"She is willing to negotiate a price with the city so residents can use the property, Castelli added.
"'We are very community-minded and have housing in the area, so having a place for people to grow vegetables would be a great use,' she said.
"The city would need about $50,000 to buy the land, the letter said, and there is an opportunity to apply for a state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Urban Green and Community Garden grant for the project.
"Wesleyan University student Rowan Roudebush, who created a short video about the garden, has maintained a plot there for about a year.
"'Kids have been learning to grow food and have been building community through that garden for decades,' said Roudebush, who spoke about the North End being considered a '#FoodDesert.'"
"'It's in an area where, if you don't have access to a car, it's near impossible to get affordable groceries,' they added."
Read more:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/realestate/middletown-residents-rally-to-save-25-year-old-community-garden-from-becoming-a-development/ar-AA1AUgaf
#CommunityGardens #Development #FoodSecurity #FoodSovereignty #Connecticut
www.msn.comMSN
With less funding and more hunger, a #DentonTX #CommunityGarden still wants to grow and feed more
By Lucinda Breeding-Gonzales Staff Writer Mar 14, 2025
"Friends of Shiloh Field Community Garden always plans to harvest more crops for its local partner #FoodPantries and #HomelessShelters. This year, the community garden’s board chair said the volunteer-run farm expects more people to need the food they grow.
"'Every year we try to outdo ourselves,' said Christina Proctor, the chair of the board for Friends of Shiloh Garden, the nonprofit that operates the community garden. 'We always anticipate making more than we did the last year. Talking to the #FoodBanks and they tell us every year that we have increased the number of requests for food for us. Ever since 2020, it just keeps going up.'
"Food banks across the country saw both hunger and food insecurity spike when the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered businesses and closed offices, shedding workers and leaving families without paychecks. Inflation and rising costs have kept some families strapped and struggling to feed their families. And as North Texas has grown, problems such as hunger, homelessness and food insecurity have grown with it.
"The immediate future for hungry Texans of all ages looks grim. But recent cuts are affecting children greatly. The School Nutrition Association reported Monday that the U.S. Department of Agriculture [#USDA] announced it would cut the $660 million #LocalFoodForSchools program for 2025.
"Politico, citing a spokesperson for the USDA, reported that the department also cut the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program. The program would have funded about $500 million this year to support food banks.
"For the second year in a row, the Texas Health and Human Services Commission opted not to participate in the Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer [#EBT] program, which would have paid $120 per eligible child for families already receiving food benefits through the summer months.
"The program is meant to fill the gap left when public schools are on summer break, and children who qualify for free and reduced-price breakfast and lunch are vulnerable to greater food insecurity. The commission opted out of the program when the state Legislature didn’t move to allocate the money needed to get the program up and running on Monday.
"Denton residents learned this week that Lovepacs Denton, a nonprofit that gives food to Denton ISD students to get them through school breaks and long weekends, will close after the school year ends in May.
"#Austerity is impacting state and local assistance services all at once. Celia Cole, the CEO of Feeding Texas, said that cuts to programs like this not only put more Texans at risk for hunger, but they also reduce stimulus spending that benefits the state’s farms. Feeding Texas is a network of 20 food banks that feed hungry Texans and advocates for policies that prevent hunger. Cole said the Summer EBT funding could have fed Texas children and teenagers last year.
"'The first opportunity that Texas had to run the program would have been in summer of 2024, and we missed out on it because, I think really more than anything, was that Texas Health and Human Services Commission ... had so much else on their plate with #Medicaid unwinding,' Cole said. 'They were facing really serious backlogs and getting people enrolled in Medicaid.'
"Then, as the deadline for summer of 2025 got nearer, Cole said, it became clear that the commission would need money from the state to administer the program. Monday was the deadline for the Legislature to allocate the funds. Cole said programs like Feeding Texas will have to stretch their resources and be strategic with funding and food.
"For Denton nonprofits, leaders are preparing to do the same. The Friends of Shiloh Garden is keeping close tabs on costs. Proctor said seeds aren’t as costly as donors might think, but over the last two summers, water costs have soared.
"'Our biggest expense in production is water,' she said. 'We’ve been very blessed that Denton Bible Church has been helping us subsidize our water bill by giving us some money to help offset that cost.'
"In 2023, when Denton saw about 55 days of triple-digit heat, Proctor said water costs were almost too much.
"'That was the year we almost had too close because it was just so expensive,' Proctor said. 'Our water bills that year were just ridiculous.'
"The operation installed drip irrigation and weed cloth to cover the drip lines and saw savings. But the nonprofit is still looking to serve more people and give its partners more of what they want."
To support the community garden, www.shilohfield.com for donation and volunteer information.
Denton Record-ChronicleWith less funding and more hunger, a Denton community garden still wants to grow and feed moreFriends of Shiloh Field Community Garden always plans to harvest more crops for its local partner food pantries and homeless shelters. This year, the community garden’s board chair said the
How community gardens could help cut some costs amid looming tariffs
By Emily Schrad
Published: Mar. 10, 2025 at 6:17 PM EDT
#CedarRapidsIA (KCRG) - "And as the threat of tariffs looms, many are looking for ways to save money where they can.
"Many might think gardening is out of reach. But leaders at #CultivateHope’s #UrbanFarm in #CedarRapids said they’re seeing a growing interest in growing food. And a #CommunityGarden can be a cost-effective way to get started.
"From supply chain issues with the pandemic, to inflation and now tariff threats, Peggy Stover, Director of the Marketing Institute at the University of Iowa said there’s a variety of things that have caused grocery prices to soar over the past five years.
"'If tariffs were imposed, the average American family would expect to pay anywhere from $1600 to $2000 more a year out of their pocket because of high price increases,' said Stover.
"As many look for ways to cut costs, some are turning to gardening.
"While not everyone has the space for a large garden, Anyssa Ball, Cultivate Hope’s Urban Farm Program Manager says community gardens can be a great way to get your foot in the door of the gardening world."
Read more:
https://www.kcrg.com/2025/03/10/how-community-gardens-could-help-cut-some-costs-amid-looming-tariffs/
#Iowa #FoodSecurity #FoodSovereignty #CommunityGardening #CommunityGardens #SolarPunkSunday
KCRG · How community gardens could help cut some costs amid looming tariffs
#SpringfieldIL #CommunityGarden Seeks Applicants for 2025 Season
March 13, 2025 in Local News |
"The Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA) seeks individuals or families interested in starting their own garden to raise fruits, vegetables, herbs and flowers in a community setting. The IDOA’s Community Garden is located on the infield of the #IllinoisStateFair Grandstand racetrack and features 200 garden plots. Of those plots, 100 are designated for organic gardening, and the remaining 100 plots are assigned for non-organic gardening. Each plot costs $20 and can be tilled for you for an additional charge. The Department will supply water and #compost free of charge. Those interested in participating in the 2025 growing season are encouraged to fill out a garden application on the IDOA website: agr.illinois.gov/consumers/communitygarden.html Completed applications and payments can be returned by mail or to the front desk of the IDOA at the John R. Block Building, Attention: Community Garden, 801 E. Sangamon Ave., Springfield, IL 62794. If you would like more information about this year’s Community Garden, visit the IDOA website or contact the Department at (217) 785-8300."
http://www.lawndalenews.com/2025/03/community-garden-seeks-applicants-for-2025-season/
#FoodSovereignty #FoodSecurity #BuildingCommunity #CommunityGardens #SolarPunkSunday #Illinois
#DuarteCA #CommunityGarden to be developed at #TzeitelParasCaracciPark
March 12, 2025
"Duarte residents will soon have a new space to grow fresh produce, connect with neighbors, and enjoy the outdoors. Last month, the Duarte City Council approved the development of the Duarte Community Garden at Tzeitel Paras-Caracci Park (2701 Royal Oaks Drive).
"'This project exemplifies our dedication to creating #sustainable, #accessible spaces for our residents,' said Mayor Cesar A. Garcia. 'This garden will not only enhance the beauty of our park but also provide a space where our community can come together, learn, and share in the joy of nature. I am excited to see this project grow and look forward to it becoming a vibrant part of our community.'
"The goal of the Duarte Community Garden is to increase #FoodSovereignty by creating garden plots for community members to grow healthy food, cultivate agricultural literacy with educational programs, gather community by creating a welcoming and accessible garden space, and perform ecosystem services by removing grass, installing a sustainable #DripIrrigation system, building a #NativeHabitatGarden, and collecting #compost.
"The garden will feature 20 plots and two #ADAAccessible raised beds, available for rent at $5 per month. Community members can plant edible (excluding smokable) plants and flowers for personal, noncommercial use. It will include a storage shed with garden tools, an irrigation system promoting sustainable practices, and ADA-accessible decomposed granite pathways.
"The garden will be run in partnership with Food Exploration and Discovery (#FoodEd), a nonprofit organization that collaborates with San Gabriel Valley communities to create edible education sites and provide programs on #ecosystem #stewardship, healthy living, #environmental innovation, and entrepreneurship.
"Food Ed’s educational model will support gardeners of all skill levels, providing supplies and plants for beginners while experienced gardeners can use their own resources. The garden will also offer picnic benches for community #gatherings and host educational programs on topics like #VegetableGardening, #composting, #DroughtTolerant landscaping, and #SoilHealth.
"As the lead on this grant project, Food Ed will be responsible for building the #DuarteCommunityGarden. This includes overseeing site construction, collecting infrastructure bids, contractor management, program management, community engagement and workshops/events, processing plot holder applications, plant and soil replenishment, above ground irrigation repairs, developing the garden’s webpage and branding and overall garden management through October of 2026.
"For more information on the Duarte Community Garden, contact the Parks and Recreation Department at (626) 357-7931."
Source:
https://heysocal.com/2025/03/12/duarte-community-garden-to-be-developed-at-tzeitel-paras-caracci-park/
#ThirdSpaces #SolarPunkSunday #CommunityGardens #FoodSecurity #BuildingCommunity #California #SolarPunk #Composting
Hey SoCal. Change is our intention. · Duarte community garden to be developed at Tzeitel Paras-Caracci ParkDuarte residents will soon have a new space to grow fresh produce, connect with neighbors, and enjoy the outdoors. At its regular meeting...
Doing things!
Thank you so much to everyone helping to make this possible. We promise to save some tomatoes for ya.
