Three reasons to get involved in your local community garden

The beautiful thing about being part of a community is the ability to contribute and share resources between you and reap the benefits together. Communal gardens or allotments are a perfect opportunity to build camaraderie amongst your neighbors as well as  share knowledge for gardening and landscape design.

Here are three reasons why getting involved in your local community garden will help you, your neighbors and the environment.

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1.  Save money and the Earth: One of the many advantages of being involved in this type of project is that a few of your own plants will make up a plentiful whole once combined with others. Donating your prized petunias will fill you with pride and save you from funding an entire garden by yourself.  The garden itself will help the environment by providing more fresh greenery to contribute to cleaner air that we will all benefit from.

2. Make it a social event: The very nature of working together for a common goal is energizing, rewarding, and puts everyone in a good mood. Shared gardens are an excellent way to meet people, exchange ideas for garden design, and relax in.  Before you know it, you may start making routine meet-ups with neighbors and other community members as you grow the garden together. Check your local community centers and online resources for times when planning, planting, and maintaining the garden will occur.

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3. Enjoy the amenities of rural life in an urban environment: When you live in a high-rise condominium, or an urban loft, getting your hands into soil and smelling fresh flowers may not be an option. Getting involved in your community gardening project will help you reunite with nature, and help you feel more in tuned with the Earth’s resources.  Sure, having plants inside your urban home helps to bring greenery to your interiors but nothing can replace walking through a garden under a clear blue sky! Sharing a community garden can give you an excuse to get out and moving.

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There are numerous advantages in getting involved in your local community garden. If you have children, there are often children’s gardens, or areas where they can use kid-sized garden tools and learn about growing vegetables and fruits and how the eco-system works.

If you live in an urban environment, your ability to get out and enjoy a fresh garden is only a short walk away.  You and your family can be part of a community garden that you and other neighbors will enjoy for years to come.