Wanna Green the World? Plant a Garden! PlanetShifter.com Interviews Erin Axelrod - DailyActs.org Program Director on the May 15-16, 2010 350 Garden Challenge, Sonoma County, CA. By Willi Paul

Please download the Complete Event Announcement – at the end of this post!

On a single weekend, May 15-16, 350 Sonoma County landscapes will be transformed into bountiful gardens, which save water and carbon emissions, grow food and habitat, and promote greywater and low-impact development, all while educating and empowering community and supporting local businesses. This can be as simple as planting a fruit tree or a tomato plant in a pot. But it is also an opportunity to create innovative gardens on front yards, apartment patios, school and church grounds, and business premises. The 350 Garden Challenge was inspired in part by the 350.org international campaign to find and implement solutions to climate change. We use the term "waterwise" to emphasize the need to conserve water in all aspects of life including as we increase local food production.

The goals are simple:

• Create a healthy homegrown food supply
  
• Save water and cut greenhouse gas emissions
  
• Support local businesses
  
• Build community and beautify our neighborhoods

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How will the new gardens be networked together so the accumulative impact and PR can be maximized?

First, we'll successfully answer the challenge we've set for ourselves––we hope to overshoot 350 by a lot. Supervisor Shirley Zane suggested adding a zero and shooting for 3500 gardens! We'll create innovative demonstration gardens––front yards, apartment patios, city landscapes, schools, churches, organizations and businesses. Everyone's involved! We'll put each individual garden on a comprehensive county map and unveil it on Sunday, May 16th at a party celebrating what we've accomplished in a single meeting.

We hope our efforts will act as a model and precedent for national organizations dedicated to combating climate change, especially 350.org's October 10, 2010 International Day for Climate Action. Last year, as a part of this International Day of Action, Daily Acts, Petaluma Bounty, and Rebuilding Together Petalumainstalled a garden at Petaluma City Hall. We hope to use this 350 Garden Challenge to leverage further actions like this across Sonoma county in October––Santa Rosa City Hall should be next.

Where do think that a garden cannot be built?!

Having had much experience in urban settings, and having lived in New York City for 4 years, I firmly believe that Sonoma County is uniquely suited to gardening––and thus I am hesitant to say that there is anywhere in this county that cannot host a garden. We are incredibly lucky to have such ideal growing conditions.

I would say a word of caution to make sure to plant in healthy soils––we live in a world full of contaminants and you do not want to be growing spinach (a brassica which uptakes lead from the soil) in lead-contaminated soil, and then eating it! (New York City has a huge issue with lead contamination) Grow Smart! If you are concerned about your plot, either do a comprehensive soil test analysis, or plant in raised beds and import soil from Sonoma Compost or other organic soil providers.

How is this event addressing water and grey water issues? What do we all in common here?

With the new greywater codes in California that came about as a result of the emergency drought, we are strongly encouraging folks to install laundry-to-landscape systems to irrigate fruit trees on their property. These are cheap, easy, and hugely effective ways to irrigate with water you are already using! The Sonoma County Water Agency sees a doubling of water use in the summer that can be cut if people re-use their household––and extremely clean––water to irrigate their fruit trees. Youth Green Jobs Sonoma just installed one in Santa Rosa, and Daily Acts will be hosting a workshop in early June educating people about the simplicity and cost-effectiveness of installing a system like this. We'll also host two 5-day greywater installer trainings this year.

Sonoma County Water Agency has put up $25000 in matching funds for the event, which needs to be raised. (Contact Daily Acts about donations). What is your strategy to get hit this goal?

Local businesses and nurseries have a lot to gain from joining this endeavor––the savings on our communities will be enormous, everything from water savings, to reducing our inputs to landfills and thus reducing our methane emissions, to reducing stormwater run-off and saving our rivers and streams, and of course reducing the trucking of food into our communities. Every business has an interest in supporting this challenge and we hope they will step up and help match this grant.

How does the 350 Garden Challenge relate to the original 350.org international campaign?

Industrial agriculture is the largest contributor to greenhouse gases, so cultivating a more local food system directly addresses climate change. But this is not about working against climate change, but about working towards more beautiful, resilient, healthy communities, and reconnecting us with the source of our food, and the ecological processes that life depends on.

iGROW is a major educator for the 350 Garden Challenge. What do they "bring to the garden?!"

They are the switchboard resource center and also bring the connectivity to the county policy level. This is truly a concerted effort from a range of individuals and stakeholders––everyone from city employees and politicians, to community organizers and schoolchildren.

I want to join a crew. How do I find a project?

Go to 350 Garden Challenge or call Beth Dadko at 707-565-6681.

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Eco-Businesses, Sustainability Consultants and Green Non-Profits please Join the DailyActs.org LinkedIn Group to discuss this and other posts from DailyActs.org and friends!

Connections –

Erin Axelrod, Program Director
DailyActs.org
707.789.9664
erin at dailyacts dot org