Morningglory with leaf
https://www.pictorem.com/2441320/morningglory-with-leaf/
#Flower #Wildflower #macro #photography #art #artist #IrisRichardsonArt #smallbusiness #artshop #artstore #giftideas #gardeners #ayearforart #buyintoart #fallforart #supportthearts #supportartists #holidayshopping
Flowers picked near the beach, before and after.
Coming up soon my next art exhibition: September :)
#flowers
#arte #artexhibition #teo
#artoftheday
#oilpainting
#artisonmastodon
#gardeners
Trailing Fuzzybean Flowers, another guest in our garden
https://www.pictorem.com/2431218/trailing-fuzzybean-flowers/
#gardening #beans #wildflower #naturalremedy #macro #Photograph #IrisRichardsonArt #art #artist #artshop #artstore #giftideas #gardeners #nature #fallforart #buyintoart #artbusiness #smallbusiness #localbusiness #supportthearts #supportartists #fediart #fedistore
#Massachusetts - #GrowFood #Northampton raises more than $1M for #AtRrisk communities
Namu Sampath, Thu, July 24, 2025
NORTHAMPTON — "#GrowFoodNorthampton is growing.
"The local food and #farming justice group has raised over $1 million for an effort to increase support for vulnerable community members, it said in a statement.
"The money will go toward providing more #FreshFoods to families experiencing hunger, will establish #CommunityGardens at #LowIncome housing sites, will support #LocalFarms and #gardeners, and will go toward implementation of #ClimateResilience measures.
" 'All of these efforts are critical right now due to drastic #FederalCuts to local food and farming programs, the ongoing #ClimateCrisis, and ever-growing #inequities in the local food system and beyond,' the statement said.
"The fundraising effort began late last year. There was an 'outpouring of support,' and the financial goal was met ahead of schedule, the group said.
"The organization will still accept donations through the rest of the summer, and supporters can opt to add their names to a campaign contributors list, which will be installed at the Community Garden in Florence.
"The organization also said it would accept non-monetary support from the community.
" 'Community members are invited to attend summer events, share the campaign with friends and family, and volunteer their time,' the statement said."
Source:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/grow-food-northampton-raises-more-170811234.html
#SolarPunkSunday #BuildingCommunity #FoodJustice #FoodSecurity #FoodInsecurity #CommunityGardens #LocalProduce LocalFarmers #BuildingResiliency
#ChicagoHeights '#ZFarm' helping #UrbanGrowersCollective battle #FoodInsecurity
'We're encouraging everybody to join us to grow 10% of your own food'
By Cheryl Scott and Blanca Rios, Thursday, June 19, 2025
CHICAGO HEIGHTS, Ill. (WLS) -- "Protecting the planet can start with the food you put on the table.
" 'Just thinking about how many miles it took for that tomato to come to your plate and all the energy that is consumed along the way for that tomato, that in the end, doesn't really taste that good,' said Ericka Allen.
"Allen is the CEO of Urban Growers Collective. The Black and women-led nonprofit helps to provide locally-grown food to the South and West sides of the city, through its seven urban farms.
"But #UGC's footprint just got a whole lot bigger after acquiring access to a 42-acre farm in south suburban Chicago Heights. About 30 of those acres are arable land, said Allen.
" 'This is a farm that we're calling Z-farm, formerly the Zeldenrust Farm,' said Allen. 'Now we can spread out here and grow so much more food and also create more food security, with food coming back into the city. So we're not relying on having to ship food from across the country.'
"One seed at a time, UGC will start growing everything from collard greens to pumpkins on just five of Z-farm's acres for the first couple of years. The rest of the land will be covered with black-seeded sunflowers come harvest time.
"And for the first time, they now have access to heated hoop houses.
" 'For us to have a little bit of heat means we can extend those tomatoes all the way through Christmas, all the way into the new year. That means that we can start peas in January,' said Allen.
"UGC is also making sure future generations learn to grow their own food.
" 'We're teaching, basic skills. Transplanting to seeding, to harvesting, and eventually going to sell it to the community,' said Urban Growers Collective Director of Farming Malcolm Evans.
"Evans, a Chicago native, trains interns, staffers, and community members, some who don't have easy access to grocery stores.
" 'A lot of these are #FoodDesert neighborhoods,' said Evans. 'A lot of these communities don't have access to healthy foods and don't have food affordable to them so they have to travel miles away.'
"But UGC is hoping to change that narrative.
" 'We're encouraging everybody to join us to grow 10% of your own food, to purchase 10% of your own food, to make a positive impact on #ClimateChange, and just to have a more secure food shed.'
"Even if that means getting a little extra help from a neighbor.
" 'If somebody's growing a ton of zucchini down the street and they want to give you some zucchini, take that zucchini, make five things out of it. That's #FoodSecurity,' said Allen.
"Aspiring gardeners can stop by the Z-Farm's onsite nursery every weekend to purchase seedlings to grow at home.
"And come harvest time, people can drive up to the curbside farmstand to purchase vegetables."
#SolarPunkSunday #UrbanGardening #UrbanFarming #Farmstands #Illinois #GrowYourOwn #BlackOwnedBusiness #WomenOwnedBusiness #Gardeners #GardeningEducation #FoodDeserts #ChicagoIL
#Poland - #UrbanGardens help cities fight #ClimateChange
By Andrei Ionescu
July 1, 2025
"Warsaw isn’t short on parks or tree-lined boulevards, but a trio of Polish universities wondered whether smaller, resident-run gardens could add something crucial to the capital’s climate resilience.
"To find out, researchers from SWPS University, Warsaw University of Technology, and the Warsaw University of Life Sciences mapped every vacant meadow, former orchard, and post-industrial lot within easy walking distance of apartment blocks.
"They came up with a staggering 1,864 hectares (4,600 acres) – more than enough space, they say, for a citywide network of community gardens that soak up stormwater, cool overheated streets, and capture carbon.
"The investigation combined that spatial analysis with more than 250 in-depth interviews. The goal was to see who is already gardening, what motivates them, and how much social capital – trust, shared norms, cooperative spirit – might be harvested alongside tomatoes and herbs.
Who uses the urban gardens
"It turns out the movement is surprisingly broad. Urban gardening brings together all social groups, the team reports, from school children planting pollinator patches to cultural institutions converting courtyards into micro-farms.
"Still, two cohorts dominate the regular volunteer lists: retirees – often women with higher education – and young middle class families.
"Most gardens revolve around a core group of 10 to 15 steady hands, supplemented by casual helpers and passers-by who stop to chat, water, or simply lounge among the raised beds.
Motivation of urban gardeners
"Why do they show up week after week? According to study co-author Piotr Majewski of SWPS University, the motivations of urban gardeners vary.
" 'The most important ones are: #reconnection to #nature, positive contribution to the #environment, social relations, and mutual learning between #gardeners,' said Majewski.
"Food, interestingly, is not the primary driver. Leaders said harvests help, but real value comes from #biodiversity, #composting, and public workshops on #sustainable living.
Tiny plots, big impact
"Those activities tally with an expanding body of international research linking urban agriculture to climate adaptation.
"Even pocket-size plots act as #CarbonSinks, trap particulate pollution, and soften the #UrbanHeatIsland. Raised beds can be engineered to hold back flash-flood water, while #compost heaps divert organic waste from #landfills.
"For #Warsaw, the numbers are compelling. Nearly all of the identified 1,864 hectares (4,600 acres) lie within a quarter mile of housing, meaning a potential garden is no farther than a ten-minute stroll for most residents – and often half that.
"Such proximity, the experts argue, makes it easier to harness gardens as a distributed #GreenInfrastructure network in a warming metropolis of nearly two million people.
"Yet the real strength may be social. Garden groups knit neighbors together, boosting the informal networks that cities rely on during #heatwaves, #floods, or other climate-related shocks.
"Many interviewees said they joined to cultivate community first, vegetables second. Regular workdays double as impromptu skill‐shares: retirees pass on horticultural know-how, children learn ecological stewardship, and newcomers forge local friendships.
#UrbanGardens in city plans
"Majewski and his colleagues believe Warsaw’s planners should take that social-ecological synergy seriously.
" 'The system of community gardens should also be considered as a tool to support climate change adaptation solutions in urban policies in spatial planning – provided that they are considered an important link in the urban green infrastructure system,' he explained.
"To get there, the researchers lay out a handful of recommendations. First, city hall could weave gardens into official zoning strategies rather than treating them as informal afterthoughts.
"That might mean leasing public land at peppercorn rents, streamlining permits, or integrating gardens into new housing estates from the design phase.
"Second, municipal agencies could supply starter kits – soil, timber, rain barrels – while leaving day-to-day management to residents. Third, wider publicity would help spread the idea beyond the usual eco-activist circles.
Scaling gardens citywide
"The study also flags areas for further research. At what point does a collection of isolated plots start delivering measurable cooling or flood mitigation benefits?
"How can Warsaw ensure that garden networks thrive in all districts, not just affluent ones with vocal community groups? And what responsibilities will fall on municipal departments when gardens become part of critical infrastructure rather than hobby spaces?
"Those unknowns aside, the evidence is clear: Warsaw already hosts a vibrant cohort of 'hero #activists' who coax life from overlooked corners.
"With modest institutional backing, their trowels and #CompostBins could double as #ClimateAdaptation tools – cooling concrete and absorbing rainfall.
"Perhaps most importantly, they help draw neighbors together in a city that will need every ounce of solidarity as temperatures rise."
https://www.earth.com/news/urban-gardens-help-cities-fight-climate-change/
#BuildingCommunity #ClimateChange #CityPlanning #Resiliency #SolarPunkSunday #UrbanGardens #SpendingTimeInNature #GreenTime
Hello gardeners 👋
Here is a playlist of PeerTube videos about gardens and gardening:
🌱 https://fedi.video/w/p/tTGagpr99PNv92xdB57v7W
- Watching on a phone: Swipe up first two videos at bottom to browse rest of playlist
- Watching on a computer: Choose video by scrolling through playlist on right of screen
- Watching embedded: Click ⏭️ or ⏮️ to see next or previous videos in playlist
cc @gardening
Gay Curmudgeon
Iris Richardson Fine Art 🇩🇪🇺🇸📷
Meidas Charise Lee 💙🌊🌴🥥🫘
Polo
DoomsdaysCW
Virtual Coach
Fedi.Video