Community Food Garden​

We established a food garden in Bloukurper Street in an enclosed area in GarsCom in 2024. The area has been neglected by the municipality. As a community we cleaned the area, prepared the soil by first covering the ground with cardboard boxes, this kills the grass underneath, which will later become great compost. On top of the boxes, we covered paths with woodchips and made small vegetable beds with recycled materials. The beds were then filled with compost and mulched. The garden is maintained by our local urban farmer, Oupa Lebese. Residents from Garscom can rent a small vegetable bed for personal use. There are two options:

 

                                                   Self service                                                        Full service

Planting and Seedlings         You buy and plant seeds and seedlings       GarsCom buys and plants your garden        

Maintenance                           You maintain your own garden                     The GarsCom urban farmer will maintain your garden

Water                                        Sprinklers from a borehole are installed     Sprinklers from a borehole are installed

Minimum rental period         One year                                                           One year

Monthly rent per lot              R60                                                                    R185

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The GarsCom urban farmer, Oupa Lebese, will keep the general area neat, make compost from materials dropped by residents, look after the assigned garden beds and keep a general eye on the plant health.

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We want the area to be a source of healthy, organic food for the families that participate now and in years to come. This will require a healthy soil and a functional ecosystem. We therefore need to embrace regenerative practices that works with nature and not against it. Participation in the garden is therefore subject to agreement to a few basic rules:

• No chemical pesticides, herbicides or fungicides. Instead, we use companion planting to protect plants. If really necessary, there are organic repellents available that are not environmentally destructive.

• No chemical fertilisers. I may give a short-term bumper crop, but it causes long-term destruction. Good compost and organic fertilisers boost the soil biome which means the soil and its crops improve every year. Food produced in healthy soil is also more nutrient dense than that created by industrial agricultural methods.

• If there is a demand for it, we may host training events and information sessions. We can also offer some help and expertise from our community on request.