Words of widsom

Organisers and members of existing community gardens are such rich sources of advice so do not hesitate to get in touch with them (many are listed in our resource page in APPENDIX K). Here are some words of wisdom from some of the garden coordinators.

"[Community] garden seeds take a lot longer to germinate than plant seeds" - Neville West, WPG Gardens

"It is hard work initially, but once you get started it gets easy" - Mark Sobers, Frog Hollow Neighborhood House and Strathcona Gardens

"Communication is everything... If you're not talking to people, you're out of the loop" - Jason O'Brien, My Own Back Yard (MOBY)

"It is important that the surrounding community is happy with the community garden" - Terry Dixon, General Manager of Engineering Services

"You definitely need a handyperson if you're going to build a community garden from scratch" - Niki Westman, Tea Swamp Community Gardens

"In regards to applying for grants and funding apply often, with as many letters of support as possible especially from organizations" - Mardel Greenough, Molehill Community Gardens

"Scout out the neighbourhood for materials you can recycle for free … A community garden doesn't need to cost thousands of dollars, as long as the coordinator is resourceful and is or knows a couple of handy people" - Niki Westman, Tea Swamp Community Gardens

"Make sure that you set up good and strong guidelines and have a democratic executive structure to keep the garden well maintained and smoothly run" - Cathy Gole, Maple Community Gardens

"Keep all PR and press information on the garden – you can use it to show public support" - Maureen Ryan, Cypress Community Gardens