+ Guerrillas, Radicals and Eccentrics: Volunteer Gardening Activists Pamela Whitaker A Fling with Volunteers: Casual, Short, Impulsive A Gathering A Celebration “One for the Road” Guerrilla Gardening Volunteers who create decorative and edible gardens within neglected areas of local communities, without permission. Green Streets Community Gardens, Vancouver Local people growing personal and creative gardens within public spaces. Common Ground: Circles of Community Gardens, Co. Louth Interactive nature- friendly planting with local people and children.

+ Guerrilla Gardening “Lets fight the filth with forks and flowers” “Guerrilla Gardening is for anyone against the neglect and scarcity of public spaces as places to grow things, be they beautiful, tasty (or both!)” Guerrilla gardeners are skilled gardeners that enrich public spaces with beauty and productivity. They often work very quickly, organising through texts, s and code names. Besides traditional gardening methods they are famous for using seed bombs – a combination of clay, potting soil, and wildflower seeds – a seed bomb looks like a ball of clay and it is used for throwing into fenced off derelict areas. “A guerrilla gardener’s work inevitably has an impact on countless people and becomes a powerful form of communication, an expression of the gardener’s vision, and sometimes a specific message. The guerrilla gardener in public space reaches out to others and uses plants to draw people in.” Books: On Guerrilla Gardening by Richard Reynolds and Guerrilla Gardening by David Tracey

+ Green Streets, Vancouver Created and maintained by local residents in collaboration with Vancouver City Hall, Engineering Department. It started in 1994 when a local resident emptied a bird feeder of sunflower seeds on to a pile of compost to be used within a city boulevard. The seeds grew into sunflowers and began a collaboration between City Hall and local residents. Enhances the visual, environmental, and expressive character of neighbourhoods. Increases visual and nature experiences of walkers and cyclists. An opportunity for “place-making” - creating green spaces with local character. Composed of small areas of diverse perennial plantings within roundabouts and verges incorporating herbs, native and cottage garden flowers and plants.

+ Green Streets: Connecting Built and Natural Environments Green Streets champions the ordinary and everyday, the common ground of daily living, involving nature as part of the social and creative landscape. Linking ‘green streets’ to form longer ‘greenway’ routes through a neighbourhood’s built and natural environments. Green Streets gives recognition to the diversity of volunteers working to boost a neighbourhood’s identity. Green Streets integrates organic gardening methods to improve soil fertility (i.e. organic mulches, compost and liquid feeds), and also features densely planted ‘naturescapes’ highlighting native vegetation. Green Streets offers an opportunity to interact with neighbours and share gardening ideas and skills. This includes gardening with children. Green Streets gathers the community together, car traffic is diminished, walkers and cyclists have access ahead of cars.

+ Personal Expression Inspiring Community Gardens: On One Green Street Volunteer’s Story In the early spring of 2007, I had just returned from a lengthy visit with my family in Eastern Canada. We were supporting our mother who was battling cancer. Anyone who has gone through this understands the enormous toll it takes on everyone involved. Feeling overwhelmed and confused at the prospect of losing my mother, I needed to do something that would renew my spirit and give me a sense of peace and optimism. That’s when I created this garden. It’s really a memorial garden, a true labour of love. Mom always appreciated the beauty of gardens, and of course it has her favourite flowers – peonies. What continually amazes me is how something so simple as this garden has stimulated so many wonderful conversation with the people in my community. This is something my mother always valued.

+ Radical Gardening: London Brookwood House Council Estate, The White House, San Francisco City Hall

+ Common Ground, Circles of Community, County Louth Strategic, Social, Creative Encounters with Local People Working with naturally occurring peak times of community gathering (i.e. school pick-ups, shopping periods, sports events, departures from church), when volunteers are asked to plant for a short period of time. Celebrating Environmental Dates, i.e. National Tree Week, Earth Day, Biodiversity Week, Heritage Week, Green Schools “Walk to School Wednesdays”, St. Brigid’s Day, May Day Designating Tidy Towns Gardens as educational areas and meeting places for learning about nature-friendly gardening, and a community’s natural and cultural heritage. Involving schools and community groups, who are interested in nature-friendly gardens to grow new plants to replenish gardens. “The garden that is finished is dead.”

+ How To Celebrate with Volunteers Determine Your Style to Attract Attention Simple, Decorative, Interactive, Inexpensive (“Sustainable is Easy”), Involve Imagination, Collaborate on Creating Interesting Shapes for Planting Areas, Designate each Garden Area with a Name, Work to Produce ‘Quick’ and Visible Results, Prepare Garden Beds, Plan your Event. Incorporate Creativity to Invite Participation Tree Dressing, Community Processions, Nature Poems, Refreshments, Creative Writing, Setting Up Base Camps, Visual Art, Story Telling, Movement, Music, Songs/Chants, Simple Costumes, Theatre, Talks on Community History, Talks on the Ecology of your Community Cultivating Volunteers from Participants Talk to participants and match their interests to future projects. Encourage their involvement in planning. Expect people to volunteer for short periods of time. Name the project that they are involved in, and highlight the project in the local media. Document the project on your website. Plan regular volunteer appreciation activities.