Philadelphia has long embraced its gritty character, but the recent municipal workers’ strike has highlighted the pressing need for clean and accessible community spaces, particularly during the summer heat.
This is where community gardens come into play.
These garden spaces are often driven by local neighborhoods and typically emerge from the city’s vast number of vacant lots, estimated at around 40,000.
Mimi McKenzie, the legal director of the Public Interest Law Center, illuminates the situation, explaining that Philadelphia’s vacant and abandoned lands are often owners of both private and city property.
“It’s collecting debris and trash and rodents. And the neighbors roll up their sleeves and put in their own blood, sweat and tears to clear the land of debris and to bring in soil, to test the soil, to make sure it’s safe,” she remarked.
Her organization is dedicated to preserving green spaces in the city and assisting local gardeners in securing legal ownership of their gardens.
McKenzie noted, “Neighbors all around the city have been stewarding and gardening this land. They make huge investments up front and then have been taking care of this land for many, many years. And all of us benefit.”
Among these stewards is Ben Corn Miller, a chef and co-founder of South Philly Barbacoa and The People’s Kitchen.
He plays a crucial role in the Reinhard Street Community Farm in South Philadelphia, passionately dedicating himself to transforming neglected spaces into vibrant gardens.
Miller humorously notes his middle name isn’t actually ‘corn,’ but he adopted it as a nod to his love for tortillas and a clever pun that resonates with his culinary endeavors.
Over the years, he has observed the troubling trend of illegal dumping in vacant lots.
“Being up there since 2006, I’ve seen all kinds of stuff dropped off up there,” he recounted.
“Abandoned cars, animal carcasses, bags of trash, old furniture, you name it. And I think that has a tangible effect on neighbors that live there. Their children play there. They walk their dogs there.”
Miller ties these environmental issues to broader social problems, stating, “Like with the trash, they all kind of go together — the drug dealing, the delinquency, the bullshit, it causes depression.”
He argues that by investing love and effort into the land, community members can initiate transformative changes that yield many positive outcomes.
Studies have shown that converting vacant lots into gardens does more than alleviate neighborhood blight; it also yields improved health outcomes, reduces temperatures affected by the urban heat island effect, and decreases gun violence as well as crime rates.
These community gardens, such as Reinhard, are vital as they provide fresh, nutritious food for food-insecure individuals in Philadelphia.
“We can’t always rely on the government to take care of us,” Miller stated.
“We have to take care of ourselves and our own communities, and that’s why we’re doing this.”
Lu Thain, who directs land and environmental initiatives at The Village of Arts and Humanities’ Philly Earth Farm & Orchard, shares a similar perspective, especially in the wake of recent SNAP cuts.
Her organization assists in feeding the Fairhill-Hartranft community, which she classifies as a food desert.
“We’re very heavily geared towards the youth and youth education,” Thain said.
“Once a week, we do some type of culinary arts demo for them. So we’re doing a lot of cooking and processing with what we grow.”
For Thain, the expansion of green spaces within Philadelphia is crucial in a city often dominated by concrete.
“Humans’ connection to the land is severely broken,” she explains.
“Being around big trees and connecting with the earth invokes a sort of regulation in people’s bodies. They might not articulate it well, but they feel it.”
Creating a new garden is akin to painting a mural; both endeavors beautify spaces and give them a sense of purpose.
Thain mentions, “At The Village, we have many stunning murals as well as sculptures. We refer to them as art parks, but our green spaces resonate profoundly with the community’s response to them, especially in our neighborhood.”
Furthermore, well-maintained spaces encourage respect among locals, reducing the likelihood of vandalism or neglect.
To engage the community, Thain emphasizes the importance of starting small.
“Sometimes we just give out plant starts and teach people the basics of gardening, so that they can do it at home. It’s about empowerment and helping people realize they need control over their own food source.”
Community gardens typically begin as small ideas before blossoming into larger environments.
Individuals yearning for more green spaces in their neighborhoods may need to take the initiative to transform vacant lots themselves.
Miller advises, “Pick the one that’s next to your house, one you can oversee. Think about its ownership status and check if there’s a nearby fire hydrant for water access. Engage in conversations with neighbors to ensure that they are supportive of the idea.”
While creating a new garden can be daunting and filled with uncertainty, Miller suggests a few methods.
He explains that many vacant lots are simply the remnants of demolished buildings, often covered with rubble and topped off with a layer of soil.
“Mound layers of compost on top of it,” he advises.
Working with local arborists to acquire wood chip mulch can aid in revitalizing the soil.
After a month, the compacted soil can be treated again, repeating the layering process with compost from organic recycling centers until the earth can support plant life.
Adam Hill, director of community gardens at The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, emphasizes that while starting a garden can be immensely rewarding and beneficial, it also comes with its own set of challenges.
PHS boasts a network of 190 independently run community gardens in Philadelphia and provides a mapping service for individuals interested in participating.
Hill encourages aspiring gardeners to remain aware of the rewarding nature of gardening, as well as the significant time and effort required in terms of land access, water accessibility, and community organizing.
Additionally, creating new spaces isn’t the sole avenue for involvement.
The Public Interest Law Center leads Vacant Land 215 sessions focusing on gardening in vacant lots, with Hill set to present alongside representatives from various organizations in August.
PHS’s Garden Tender series also offers beginners guidance to cultivate their green thumbs.
Organizations like Philly Earth Farm & Orchard and Reinhard Street Community Farm often welcome volunteers, providing programs for community members to engage with the local environment.
“I’ve been in Philly for 20 years, and I love it,” Miller concluded.
“[The city] has a lot of special people with a revolutionary spirit, who devise creative ways to collectively address the struggles we face.”
“Sometimes,” he added, “we have to do it for ourselves.”
image source from：billypenn
