Burnside Arts Trust partnered with Portland’s Urban Farm Collective to sow good seeds in the Grand Dekum Garden. Local Portland artists Circleface, N.O. Bonzo, and Dhestoe painted the garden’s garage to celebrate the joyous growth of this garden and infuse the space with lovely art and excitement. These artists dedicated their time to this project because they want to actively promote shared green spaces within our city. “We believe in the power of community gardens to build relationships, beautify urban spaces, and promote positive interactions with nature inside the city,” said a Burnside Arts Trust representative.
The Urban Farm Collective (UFC) maintains 17 community gardens in Portland. UFC is made up of a progressive group of volunteers who use vacant urban land to enrich and support communities, helping people re-imagine the possibilities of these spaces. They aim to educate, build communities, and improve food security. Their gardens are fully supported by local volunteers who care for and maintain them throughout the year. The collective hosts a non-monetized market that trades volunteer hours for garden produce. Surplus crops are donated to the St. Andrews Church food bank.
Please visit the UFC’s website at urbanfarmcollective.com to see the amazing work they do and to get involved with one of their gardens. For more information on the benefits of urban community farming visit communitygarden.org.
Urban residents around the world are reclaiming vacant land; transforming void spaces into fertile places to grow food, relationships, and community. Community gardens re-introduce nature into the city, helping to cultivate a re-enchantment with the natural world and support the psychological well-being of residents. Gardens also promote more sustainable urban development, community resilience and networking, organic food production, environmental protection and awareness. It is not just the physical creation of gardens that is transformative; they also spur new ways of thinking about cities and our right to directly create places around us that nourish our basic human needs – to grow, love, play, sense, connect, and live.