Little City Gardens

I recently finished illustrating a new book: Holy Shit: Managing Manure to Save Mankind by Gene Logsdon, published by Chelsea Green. Hot of the press…its witty, smart and timely. Do check it out!

About 10 years ago I picked up an old Logsdon classic called ‘The Contrary Farmer’. It was a formative read that encouraged me to think about how the pursuit of farming, if approached with wisdom and communicated with courage, could be a radical and potent act. Needless to say, it was a great experience to illustrate for an agricultural hero of mine, and to work with the editor Makenna Goodman, a new friend and also a farmer .

heres a little rant originally written for and included in the first issue of Germination:

“The first and most important impact of climate change on human civilization will be an acute and permanent crisis of food supply….Eating regularly is a non-negotiable activity and countries that cannot feed their people are unlikely to be ‘reasonable’ about it” says Gwynne Dyer, a journalist of international affairs in his book Climate Wars. He points out that climate scientist predict the global temperature rising by approximately 3-4 degrees farenheit by 2050 which would reduce the world’s grain supply by 10-20%.

The Oakland Institute published a report last year called The Great Land Grab:Rush for world’s farmland threatens food security for the poor. The report discusses the widespread phenomenon of wealthy nations and private investors purchasing vast tracts of remaining arable land in developing countries, stating that between 37 and 49 million acres of farmland were purchased by foreign investors between 2006 and 2009. The report also “lays bare the insidious role played by international financial institutions like the International Finance Corporation of the World Bank and Foreign investment Advisory Service(FIAS), as well as rich nations, in promoting and facilitating this widespread land re-appropriation-all in the name of promoting food security through foreign investment in agriculture….the report exposes how the huge sell-offs of resources undermines food security and land reform efforts.” the authors ask that “we question the assumption that increased investment in agriculture is beneficial for all parties involved”

Many regions, especially in the global south, but also in the north already experience drought, desertification, erosion, water pollution etc. due to climate change and human land use patterns. An estimated sixth of humanity-1.92 billion people currently suffer from chronic hunger. Of course we can point to industrial agriculture as one significant root cause of our ecological catastrophies, but we also have to look sharply at the political institutions that devised, the concepts of life systems as a business, agriculture as an industry in the first place. Capitalism has a very bad track record.

The ravages brought upon people and place by corporate industrial agriculture are a mirror of the ideological system that engineered it. Wendell Berry argues in his essay Agricultural Solutions for Agricultural Problems that the logic of industry will never solve the problems that it has created, because , as efficient and redemptive as it claims to be, it is “characterized by exhaustion and contamination”. He believes that the dire problems that we face must instead be solved by taking cues from biological systems where waste does not occur, and by following the lead of human cultures who have designed agricultural systems around these principles.

I would also add, in dire times regarding food and water security, it is extremely important not to look to the same political ideology (corporate, “freetrade” capitalism) and the same political institutions, to ameliorate the massive and complex problem that it has conceived via more complex technologies and more massive financing schemes.

Recently i saw that Monsanto had published a full page color advertisment in the New York Times which showed a picture of seed and a water droplet on a leaf. The text read: “how can we squeeze more from a rain drop?” An article published on Grist.org analyzes: “the promise of the ad is more or less that Monsanto’s genetically modified seeds are going to save the world from environmental catastrophe and human hunger, all the while the corporation made more than 11 billion dollars in 2008 amidst a world food crisis” As well as monopolizing the ag industry and seeding the destruction of small farming economies throughout the world, the bio-engineered products of Monsanto (and other companies of their ilk) have directly led to increased pesticide and synthetic fertilizer use which is what poisons the water supply and degrades the land in the first place.

So this is just the thing–in times like these, when there really is alot to be scared about, our corporate ‘leaders’ harness this authentic and tender human emotion-fear-to their advantage, to disguise the real issues. In this case, the real issue is simple:people’s need to have control over their own food supply: their land, water, seeds, pest managment systems, their agricultural and cultural traditions . The systematic destruction of food sovereignty in thousands of communities around the world is the heart of the world hunger crisis.

So how can we re-take our food sovereignty? First we would need land reform, de-privatization of resources, then we would probably see re-localization of trade. These are certainly radical issues which have been the center of many a war and battle. We would have to put an all-out halt on ecologically destructrive industry so that we have land and water left to cultivate. This would set the stage for an all-out cooperative re-investment in restoring ecological systems.

These ideas are so basic-they would have you beleive that they are naive. Maybe they sound crazy and unlikely . But how much more crazy could it get than the way we currently treat food, resources and people. And if we are going to be crazy we might as well be crazy in a good way.

The first issue of Germination is out! It is our handmade zine documenting our experiences, reflections and drawings from Spring 2010. We also have illustrated posters (by Brooke) and sticker sets (by Caitlyn) now available in our online store. There is a permanent link to the store on the menu to the right.

We’re asking for a few dollars (see sliding scale) for each zine or sticker pack, and a few more for each poster, in order to cover some of our printing and shipping costs, and to be put toward future issues of the zine. Please get in touch if you’d like copies of the zine for distribution at your library or infoshop.

PS. There is an article about us today in the New York Times! It describes the way cities are updating their policies and laws in order to keep up with the growing interest in urban agriculture. It’s an abridged version of the discussion, but a good article nonetheless. Check it out here!

There are so many logistics to consider while preparing the land for our small farm. Making the transition to a larger space requires us to constantly evaluate (and reevaluate) everything from the most efficient order of operations to the most appropriate tools for the job. We rearrange our priorities and shift around items on our to-do lists on a daily basis.

First on the list is preparing the soil for planting. For a while, we were making weekly trips out to Mar Vista Stables to shovel horse manure from their corrals. It’s a beautiful scene out there – foggy ocean bluffs, old wooden shacks, and the friendly horses that munch next to us while we shovel their poop. The manure is a rich source of nitrogen for our soil, and since it is from the corral (as opposed to freshly scooped from the stables), it is already nicely aged. This cuts down on the amount of time it needs to decompose before we can safely plant into it.

We’re also experimenting with mulch – lately we’ve been laying the tops of fennel plants onto the field (before they go to seed) as we cut them down in order to keep the soil moist and suppress weed (fennel) growth. Fighting fennel with fennel!

Now that we’ve gotten amendments onto our first field, our need for water is ever more pressing. We’ve been able to temporarily pipe some water in from a generous neighbor’s hose, using a flow meter to keep track of our usage, but we’re still working on a more permanent solution. With no water meter on the property, and with our use of the space being temporary, access to water on the lot is a complicated matter. More thoughts on this later.

In other news, there’s a good article here about our project and the productive conversations that have begun about zoning.

For the next three weeks we’ll be letting our freshly tilled, ammended, watered and mulched field rest while Caitlyn and I get a change of pace and scenery. Tommorow I’m leaving San Francisco and heading down to the Sonoran desert. The purpose of my trip is to volunteer with an organization that i have long admired called No More Deaths, a Tucson based organization that has been working on the US/Mexico border since 2004 on behalf of migrants and out of the desire for humane immigration policy.

Mission Statement: “No More Deaths is an organization who’s mission is to end death and suffering on the U.S./Mexico border through civil initiative: the conviction that people of conscience must work openly and in community to uphold fundamental human rights. Our work embraces the Faith-Based Principles for Immigration Reform and focuses on the following themes:

• Direct aid that extends the right to provide humanitarian assistance
• Witnessing and responding
• Consciousness raising
• Global movement building
• Encouraging humane immigration policy.

History of the organization: “A morally intolerable situation inspired a remarkable humanitarian movement in Southern Arizona in the spring of 2004. Driven by economic inequality, thwarted by ill-conceived US border policy, and ignorant of the harsh conditions of the Sonoran Desert, thousands of men, women, and children had already died trying to cross the Mexican border into the United States. Most of the deaths occurred in the brutal heat of the summer months. With another summer of inevitable deaths looming, diverse faith-based and social activist groups—along with concerned individuals—felt compelled to act to stem the death tide and attempt to save at least some lives. The result was the converging of hundreds of volunteers—local, regional and national—who came together to work for one common goal: No Más Muertes: No More Deaths.”

I am so glad that No More Deaths and a few other grass-roots and/or faith-based organizations exist to perform such an immediate and vital function on a border where enforcement (federally recognized and vigilante groups) is increasingly militarized with limited oversight, accountability, or institutional safeguards for protecting human and civil rights. According to the tally on the organizations homepage there have already been 153 deaths on the Arizona border this season. Migrants to the United States face death in many forms, from dehydration in the desert to excessive force by the Border Patrol.

I am also feeling anxiety and fear. From what I hear and what I can imagine, the Southwest border has an intense climate. Not only does the summer heat reach 115 in the middle of the day, but it is a region where our national racial tensions, the ills of our globalized economy, and federal policies of heightened militarization come to a head. Then add the elements and the inhospitality of the natural world: flashfloods, rattlesnakes, tarantulas, jaguars, fire ants!

While i am there I will be part of the desert patrols. We will be living at a base camp and going out hiking each day with packs full of water, food and medical supplies. We will be leaving water on well traveled paths and looking for individuals and groups that may be lost or de-hydrated or injured.

I imagine I’ll be overjoyed to return to our mediterranean climate. I’ll be excited to get back to farming, and to give a give a report back about what I’ve seen and learned in the desert.

For the past few weeks, with the help of our friend Justin, we have been building ourselves a greenhouse. We needed some shelter on the property to anchor our activity, shelves to house things and plants, and a place to sit down protected from wind. Without obtaining an official permit from the city, we were allowed to build structures under 100sqft, so we drew up plans for an 8×12ft (96sqft) building that could function as a mini-greenhouse and an office. Justin and I had taken a construction course this past year at Laney College in Oakland, so this project was a great opportunity to put new skills to work.

I enjoyed the process so much, from design to material scavenging, from framing and raising walls to hanging doors and windows. We had to jog some old memories from geometry classes, and problem-solve some of our oversights. We got to put our aesthetic touch into every piece of wood that we cut and pieced together. Putting up this greenhouse felt like my favorite kind of art project: outdoors, collaborative, functional, putting old materials to new use. It is extremely fulfilling work to turn an idea and an image into a sturdy, physical construction that you can enter and take comfort inside. We managed to create it mostly from reused material. The only material that we couldn’t find on the streets, or at salvage yards was the polycarbonate corrugated roofing. Come by and see it some time, we are so proud!

Special thanks to: Justin, of course, who devoted a few weeks of his skill and energy to this construction project. He is a priceless collaborator and problem-solver. To Bob Short, our endlessly supportive next door neighbor. He allowed us the use of his electricity and tools. He brought us beer on hot afternoons, gave advice, helped us raise the walls, and graced the door with a goodluck horseshoe. Thanks to Marriane Short for taking these photos. Thanks to Building REsources for salvaging our city’s discarded building materials, and for offering us a great deal on wood, windows and doors.

photo: View of Islais Creek in 1918, disappearing into culvert not far from the Geneva Car barn. Sutro Forest covers part of Mt. Davidson in upper left. From the Greg Gaar Collection, San Francisco, CA

It is wonderful feeling to begin forging a relationship with a piece of land. In our case it is a stretch of soft earth running the length of a city block, couched by the fenced backyards of almost 40 houses. Going out to Cotter street is not yet going to a garden or to a farm, but like going to land. Its long and wild. There is no infrastructure, no water main, no electricity, no structures, no bathroom, no shelter except the dappled shade of a lone eucalyptus. In the mornings, the fog lays low and the Outer-Mission feels like its lodged in a perennial winter. At mid day strong, unobstructed sun warms beats down. Then, like clockwork, around four o’clock, wind kicks up from the south. Some days the fog and wind team up together and stay all day. After a days work, I do not feel like I have been in the city but rather that I have been in the elements. I leave Cotter Street windswept, with a sunburn and chapped lips, and I emerge two blocks away onto Mission.

The ground is still spongy from winter rains, confirming what many neighbors have told us – a river runs under our feet. Cayuga Creek, which hasn’t been day-lighted since the early 1900’s, makes its presence known. Apparently,some winters, in the low spots, the water table rises a foot above the saturated ground, flooding neighbors basements and backyards. Water makes this land compelling. One neighbor has offered to help us dig a well and I am so excited about the possibility of irrigating with our own water. I feel even more endeared to this place after a trip to the SF History floor at the Public Library. Old maps from 1915 show that vast tracts of allotment vegetable gardens stretched across this neighborhood. Probably because of the high water table, and alluvial soil, turn-of-the century SF residents recognized that this was especially fertile ground. I enjoy the feeling of connection to people who lived here a century ago. One of the neighbors we have met, Lena, is from this place then. She must be in her late nineties and says, regarding her friends and community, that she is the last one left. She remembers when most families grew vegetables and some sold them to produce markets.

The weeds are a soft jungle. Pastel fireworks of radish flowers explode out of a fennel cloud cover. Above that, drying wild oats sway making a soft clatter. Sometimes I hear the small scurrying of furry residents in the thicket. This land was in a particular state of grace before we started into it with our weed-wackers and roto-tiller. Even as a determined gardener committed to creating diverse food-producing gardens around the city, it feels like a transgression to plow into this vision of wild spring fertility with spinning blades. The aesthetic of land is subjective of course; multiple neighbors have mentioned that they are happy that we are finally abating the eyesore and the fire hazard. On one hand, our tools leave the land looking razed stubbled and scratched. On the other hand, this state of transition is a vision of potential. It is the image of the first step of cultivation. The first stroke of agricultural care and craft. All good farming and gardening is finding the meeting place between attention to the natural features and habitat of land, and the activity of coaxing your own imaginations, visions and desires from it.

Thank you for all of your letters so far. They have been passionate, pointed and inspiring. We, as a community, have successfully gotten the attention of City Hall, and we are currently weighing our options about how to proceed. We’ll be in touch with a more detailed update, once we clarify the next steps. (We also would like to keep copies of all letters of support, to be used for any future hearings. If you haven’t done so already, will you forward us your letters?)

In the meantime, spring flowers are shining bright in the Guerrero garden, reminding us that springtime is ticking away and summer is coming so soon. If only the timelines of the city could cooperate with the timelines of the calendula. We’re anxious to plant our crops.

May 11 2010

To the members of the SF Planning Commission,

Little City Gardens is an innovative and experimental new business in San Francisco. (Please see attached for more information) Our aim is to strengthen San Francisco’s urban agriculture movement and food security by creating a functional model of a financially self-sustaining, urban micro-farm (Market-Garden). We are working to embody the important language put forth by the Mayor in the July 2009 Executive Directive: Healthy Food for San Francisco. We have negotiated a temporary Land-Use Agreement (at least 1.5 years) with the owner of a vacant lot in a residential neighborhood (RH1). We will grow healthy organic produce, which we will sell to local restaurants and to community members through a vegetable box subscription program. We plan to operate Little City Gardens as a registered business, but equal to our identity as a business, is our identity as social activists piloting a new model of sustainable economy, as educators, as contributors of experience, and information to the growing healthy food-systems movement. We feel that a clarification in zoning code should be made to allow for Market-Gardening in residentially-zoned neighborhoods (without first obtaining a Conditional Use permit) for a few reasons.

1. Market-Gardening is an approach to urban agriculture that could flourish and grow without dependence on limited city and foundation funding. We believe that urban food production (a field strongly promoted in the aforementioned Executive Directive) will not reach its full potential unless there are unhindered avenues in the local market economy for food gardeners to make a living wage through the sales of their produce.

2. Most of the open spaces in cities that are easily accessible to individuals (especially those who are not affiliated with city programs or non-profits) are backyards and vacant lots in residential neighborhoods. Due to traffic and pollution, parcels of land in Mixed Use, Business, or Industrial zoned areas are often less appropriate for Market-Gardens. Access to property in residentially-zoned neighborhoods is essential for Market-Garden projects to succeed.

3. Due to the small scale of most urban Market-Gardens in the context of the larger food economy, the business of Market-Gardening has an extremely low-margin of profit. Most Market-Gardeners have low start-up budgets because they do not expect to have a large return on their investment. In many cases, including ours, the aim of Market-Gardening is to provide more healthy food for the immediate community while compensating the labor of production. In most cases, including ours, the projection of Market-Garden businesses is not profit, but rather self-sustenance. Our Land-Use Agreement is temporary (at minimum 1.5 years). We will be putting this lot to temporary best use until the property owner decides to develop housing. The cost of the Conditional Use application is prohibitive to this type of business and could amount to a significant percentage of our start-up budget.

4. Functionally, our use of the land will be most similar to the uses typical in Community-Gardening. Our activities will be restricted to gardening. We will not be running a produce stand or making commercial transactions on site. In relation to an average small business, the operation Little City Gardens will be extremely low impact. We will commute to and from the garden by bicycle with occasional truck use for bringing in compost and materials. Once every three months we expect to have an 8ft truck drop off compost. Our work will not draw more regular daily traffic to this residential neighborhood than any household. Our work will not contribute more noise to the neighborhood than an average household as we will rarely be using machines or loud equipment.

If the prohibitive obstacle of the Conditional Use Application is lifted, we believe the field of urban agriculture will be more accessible to would-be urban farmers, thus broadening the urban agriculture movement, our overall food security as well as opportunities for creative entrepreneurship.

Thank you for your Consideration.
Brooke Budner & Caitlyn Galloway
Co-owners, Little City Gardens

Tomorrow evening, Wednesday May 12, at 7:30 we’ll be speaking on a panel with other urban agriculture activists at CounterPulse. The event is called Circling the Food Wagons: Local Food Economies. The event is free. We’d love to see you there!