There’s a growing movement of subversive green thumbs taking gardening to the streets, brightening neglected public spaces with plant life. Under cover of darkness, like-minded souls are converging on ‘orphaned’ public spaces for a blitz of illicit cultivation. Credited with seeding guerilla gardening via his blog, Londoner Richard Reynolds describes the movement as “fighting the filth with forks and flowers”; or reclaiming a precious resource and cultivating it. The concept has been re-potted around the world, from Switzerland to Sydney to the States. Sensible but not quite legal, guerilla gardening is a protest in the face of food crises, weed infestation, land shortages and unkempt public space. Dig it? Get involved. Consult your local Indigenous nursery, Greening Australia or Florabank for help in identifying plants local to your area. Order Richard’s book, ‘On Guerilla Gardening: a handbook for gardening without boundaries’ (Australian release, July). Or check out moss graffiti, a re-interpretation of guerilla gardening. Who would have thought that such a cherished peasant pastime would become 21st century activism?
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I never would of thought that guerilla gardening would have had such an impact throughout the world.
What he notes in the blog as “not guerilla gardening” as flowers in a skip is actually a bit like PARK(ing) Day http://www.parkingday.org. - still talks about public spaces, green space etc
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Brisbane PARK(ing)Day
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I guess all over the western world we face similar problems, so it’s inevitible that ingenius local responses spread.
Love the idea of Parking Day - what a creative way to get our imaginations working!
Funnily I just met someone who guerilla gardens and composts the Map Remember to Dream Park! I wonder if the Map crew have met him?
That’s awesome, Yen! I don’t think any of us have ever met him … Tell him to leave a note next time or, if we’re there, to knock on the yellow door so that we can make him a fresh espresso to say thank you for keeping our park looking so lovely!