Comments on: A Teaching Garden for our National Mall in Washington D.C. http://www.yourlocalmarketblog.com/2008/09/10/a-teaching-garden-for-our-national-mall-in-washington-dc/ Organic Grocery Market, Shop Local, Small Farms, Family Farms Wed, 23 Mar 2011 19:01:43 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Rose http://www.yourlocalmarketblog.com/2008/09/10/a-teaching-garden-for-our-national-mall-in-washington-dc/#comment-3089 Rose Fri, 12 Sep 2008 14:14:21 +0000 http://organictobe.org/?p=1332#comment-3089 Wow, this would be such a wonderful way to bring families into gardening. When I am "on the road" promoting gardening as a healthy lifestyle with incredible horticultural benefits including physical, mental, spiritual, emotional, and yes, edible, I still come across droves of people who have never heard such an idea. I usually get the "no time, no space, bad back" responses, which of course are easily addressed and before they leave, they are gardening converts! To be able to access the throngs of people who visit the National Mall each year would be amazing. However, even with volunteers from garden clubs and master gardeners and DC educators who would rush forward to care for the gardens, some group would still have to be responsible for the care, maintenance, and decision-making about what to plant, etc. With so many people visiting the gardens, the upkeep would be much higher than normal. It would need a caretaker and an educational staff. Logically, it would be easy to get a for-profit whose branding opportunities would go through the roof to take this on as a test-garden or simply for bragging rights, but we probably would not want any group with a commercial vested interest to be in charge. A collaborative effort of nonprofits might work with an oversight committee, perhaps bringing in a staff of gardening educators including interns and maybe utilizing the talents of local master gardeners. I'm sure there are enough nonprofit greening groups in DC to care for this gem, but to make it a true national gem, I would like to suggest that there should be folks tending the garden from around the country. Visitors are from all over and not all have the DC climate, so it would be nice to have someone there that could really relate to them. Perhaps offering a one-year stint to gardening educators from each climatic region of the country would bring in the desired diversity. However it works out, I will follow this story with interest. I imagine getting DC to agree to take on such an endeavor is the first hurdle. Keep on gardening! Rose Wow, this would be such a wonderful way to bring families into gardening. When I am “on the road” promoting gardening as a healthy lifestyle with incredible horticultural benefits including physical, mental, spiritual, emotional, and yes, edible, I still come across droves of people who have never heard such an idea. I usually get the “no time, no space, bad back” responses, which of course are easily addressed and before they leave, they are gardening converts!

To be able to access the throngs of people who visit the National Mall each year would be amazing. However, even with volunteers from garden clubs and master gardeners and DC educators who would rush forward to care for the gardens, some group would still have to be responsible for the care, maintenance, and decision-making about what to plant, etc. With so many people visiting the gardens, the upkeep would be much higher than normal. It would need a caretaker and an educational staff.

Logically, it would be easy to get a for-profit whose branding opportunities would go through the roof to take this on as a test-garden or simply for bragging rights, but we probably would not want any group with a commercial vested interest to be in charge. A collaborative effort of nonprofits might work with an oversight committee, perhaps bringing in a staff of gardening educators including interns and maybe utilizing the talents of local master gardeners.

I’m sure there are enough nonprofit greening groups in DC to care for this gem, but to make it a true national gem, I would like to suggest that there should be folks tending the garden from around the country. Visitors are from all over and not all have the DC climate, so it would be nice to have someone there that could really relate to them. Perhaps offering a one-year stint to gardening educators from each climatic region of the country would bring in the desired diversity.

However it works out, I will follow this story with interest. I imagine getting DC to agree to take on such an endeavor is the first hurdle.

Keep on gardening!

Rose

]]> By: Lisa Barnes http://www.yourlocalmarketblog.com/2008/09/10/a-teaching-garden-for-our-national-mall-in-washington-dc/#comment-3084 Lisa Barnes Fri, 12 Sep 2008 03:55:18 +0000 http://organictobe.org/?p=1332#comment-3084 This is so interesting Jeff. Who knows if anything would have been different if your original garden had been realized. I'd certainly vote for you and your plan! Cheers! Lisa This is so interesting Jeff. Who knows if anything would have been different if your original garden had been realized. I’d certainly vote for you and your plan!

Cheers!
Lisa

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