Guerrilla Gardening

Alert Reader Stacey sent me this great link to a BoingBoing speck on Guerrilla Gardening. The original LA Times article can be found here, but it is useful to look at the BoingBoing speck to read the comments. Like, for instance, a commenter links to Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman, a short novel that tells the story of how one young girl revitalizes an entire community with the simple act of planting some lima beans.

This is an interesting discussion because, as another commenter observed (in a not-so-nice way), property rights should be respected. I can see that but I can also see the converse which is that there are many communities that are desperately in need of activities such as community gardens that put neighbors in touch with one another. What is the message behind the guerilla gardening movement? People are getting tired of blighted properties that absentee owners have abandoned and perhaps this movement is a reaction to the powerlessness most feel in the face of urban landscapes that take citizens further away from their agrarian roots.

I'll reserve my opinions and allow the greater community to slug it out. I do enjoy reading the London-based Guerrilla Gardening.org blog, which is a fascinating look at the movement.


Photo Top Right: Seed bombs for planting on the sly being made. Photo by Gina Ferazzi of LA Times