The Marietta Daily Journal featured a piece by Sally Litchfield that highlights an extraordinary gardening project. The transformation of a rental lot into a community park is the gift of Joanne and Jim Miller. They bought the lot across from their own property, and tore down the existing house. The resulting community park is now a welcomed sight for the Taylors and their neighbors. What makes this gardening project so extraordinary is that it was a quiet project done without the complications of politics and money. The Taylors allowed their creativity and green thumbs to bring an area to life and life to an area.
Whether or not they realized it, this type of project is characteristic of what is called “smart growth”. Usually, smart growth is associated with the likes of policy makers, businesses, citizens, and environmentalists working to develop urban areas that decrease the city’s ecological footprint. Examples of smart growth are the use of public transportation in Bogota, Colombia and the classic mix of residential, business, and park areas in Savannah, Georgia. Granted, smart growth has not been successful in all attempts, but it gives cities an opportunity to think outside of the box.
Inhabitat.com is a website that showcases technology and design that supports green living such as modern energy efficient homes and garden rooftops. These are not always in the realm of high-tech. A thirteen-year old, Aidan Dwyer, observed the patterns of tree branches which led him to discover the solar efficiency of nature – a concept that can help propel solar companies into designing more efficient technology. Another Inhabitat article is about a group of volunteers who are painting NYC roofs white to help decrease the amount of solar absorption, thereby increasing energy efficiency.
I remember my statistics professor who said “KISS = keep it simple stupid”, as she taught ANOVAs and experimental design. There is beauty in simplicity. Wanting to connect with nature is simple. Wanting to share nature is simple. The Taylors made a wonderful gesture to their community by creating and sharing green space.
The Atlanta Journal Constitution article “DeKalb wants to use land bank to spark redevelopment” plays with the idea of transforming foreclosed properties into green space and community gardens. The New York Times brings another perspective to foreclosed properties in a piece about how an Atlanta resident, Kelly Callahan, forages vegetables and fruit from an unoccupied home. These two articles show how the failure of urban development can be flipped around to demonstrate resourcefulness and opportunity.
In the spirit of the Taylors of Marietta, you might be inspired to share a plant with a neighbor, “Plant a Row for the Hungry”, or beautify your own yard with a blueberry bushes and some roses. A gardener can nurture a plant, and at the same time cultivate good will.