WEBVTT - Small Plants in the Big City 0:00:06.000 --> 0:00:08.039 One of the things I loved most about New York 0:00:08.160 --> 0:00:11.879 is how people use the space. I once peeked into 0:00:11.920 --> 0:00:15.000 this tiny art studio on Avenue A that had been 0:00:15.120 --> 0:00:18.400 turned into a drive in theater. Someone just pulled a 0:00:18.440 --> 0:00:21.680 car into it, and for a price, you could sit 0:00:21.920 --> 0:00:24.720 inside that car and watch a movie on the wall. 0:00:25.920 --> 0:00:30.880 It was ridiculous. But that's not the only example. My 0:00:31.120 --> 0:00:34.440 favorite museum of the city is in this tiny freight 0:00:34.479 --> 0:00:39.839 elevator shaft. I've been to book signings and drinks in cemeteries, 0:00:40.600 --> 0:00:44.519 inside mausoleums. I've seen an apartment with a drawbridge in it, 0:00:44.760 --> 0:00:47.720 honest to God, like a drawbridge that the tenant built 0:00:47.760 --> 0:00:50.640 so he could lower it and crawl from this tiny 0:00:50.680 --> 0:00:54.000 platform on one side to his loft on the other side. 0:00:54.800 --> 0:00:57.160 But what I'm really trying to say is that despite 0:00:57.240 --> 0:00:59.680 the lack of space in the city, people come up 0:00:59.720 --> 0:01:05.360 with insanely ingenious ideas. So I've been curious, how do 0:01:05.440 --> 0:01:08.800 people really garden in the city, because this is not 0:01:08.920 --> 0:01:12.040 the suburbs. When you've only got a balcony, or, let's 0:01:12.080 --> 0:01:15.479 be honest, a fire escape that you call a balcony, 0:01:15.600 --> 0:01:17.920 how are you supposed to build the garden of your dreams. 0:01:19.480 --> 0:01:21.120 I think you have a pretty good sense of my 0:01:21.160 --> 0:01:24.280 gardening ambitions by now. I am not trying to live 0:01:24.280 --> 0:01:27.000 off the fat of the land, but I would like 0:01:27.080 --> 0:01:29.920 to use the space I have to I don't know, 0:01:30.200 --> 0:01:33.160 create some life and and then put that life into 0:01:33.160 --> 0:01:35.880 a salad. And I want to use this hobby to 0:01:35.920 --> 0:01:38.400 connect with the earth, because while the rest of the 0:01:38.440 --> 0:01:43.479 world is looking up, dazzled by our cities skyscrapers, there's 0:01:43.520 --> 0:01:51.800 this whole beautiful ecosystem here growing at our feet. Hey there, 0:01:51.880 --> 0:01:55.240 I'm monga fatigular co host of Part Time Genius, one 0:01:55.240 --> 0:01:57.800 of the co founders of Mental Flaws, and this is 0:01:58.400 --> 0:02:02.400 Humans Growing Stuff, a collaboration from my Heart Radio and 0:02:02.440 --> 0:02:05.400 your friends at Miracle Grow. My goal is to make 0:02:05.440 --> 0:02:09.720 this the most human show about plants you'll ever listen to, 0:02:10.440 --> 0:02:14.080 and along the way, we'll share inspiring stories, tips and 0:02:14.120 --> 0:02:17.840 tricks to nurture your plant addiction, and just enough science 0:02:17.919 --> 0:02:21.040 to make you sound like an expert. This episode is 0:02:21.080 --> 0:02:23.560 for the city dwellers, all of you out there with 0:02:23.800 --> 0:02:26.440 very little time on your hands and even less space 0:02:26.480 --> 0:02:29.520 in your homes. All you need is a little dedications, 0:02:29.600 --> 0:02:33.760 some creativity, and less square footage than you think. Today's 0:02:33.760 --> 0:02:40.239 episode is Me and the City Garden, Chapter three, Bright Lights, 0:02:40.560 --> 0:02:44.960 Big Snake Plant. In the last few weeks, we've acquired 0:02:45.000 --> 0:02:48.280 a lot of new roommates, and it's great. For the 0:02:48.280 --> 0:02:51.040 most part. I have all these new plant friends to 0:02:51.320 --> 0:02:53.880 keep me company in the living room, joining me when 0:02:53.880 --> 0:02:57.760 I edit or read or watch TV, and seeing all 0:02:57.800 --> 0:03:02.400 that green it genuinely makes me happy. But I'm also 0:03:02.520 --> 0:03:05.440 noticing it's getting a little cramped in here, and I 0:03:05.480 --> 0:03:08.640 am constantly shuffling my plants around. So it's turned me 0:03:08.680 --> 0:03:13.880 into this weird plant real estate agent. Like every day 0:03:13.919 --> 0:03:16.680 I'm showing different areas to the plants and taking them 0:03:16.680 --> 0:03:19.920 on walkthroughs and trying to sell them on a particular 0:03:19.960 --> 0:03:22.760 window because it will be such a good fit for 0:03:22.800 --> 0:03:27.800 them and their kids. Because yes, I am talking to 0:03:27.840 --> 0:03:31.359 my plants now and trying to find them the perfect 0:03:31.360 --> 0:03:35.520 home within my home. But as I run out of 0:03:35.560 --> 0:03:38.520 obvious locations in this apartment, I'm trying to figure out 0:03:38.880 --> 0:03:42.560 what else is possible. How can I maximize my space 0:03:42.600 --> 0:03:46.160 and feed this new plant addiction. So I called up 0:03:46.200 --> 0:03:49.520 our friend Anna from the Instagram account and YouTube channel 0:03:49.600 --> 0:03:53.240 plant Anna Plant, and it's got over a hundred plants 0:03:53.280 --> 0:03:57.360 crammed into her beautiful apartment in Toronto, and I'm hoping 0:03:57.440 --> 0:04:00.360 she can help us pull back this big green curtain 0:04:00.400 --> 0:04:07.640 of possibilities. Hyanna. First things first, tell me how did 0:04:07.720 --> 0:04:11.320 you fall in love with plants? Growing up? I always 0:04:11.320 --> 0:04:14.000 had a backyard, and my parents always took amazing care 0:04:14.160 --> 0:04:16.320 of all of our gardens and all of the plants 0:04:16.320 --> 0:04:18.880 and everything. And then I had an opportunity to do 0:04:18.960 --> 0:04:21.400 part of my PhD in Australia, so I moved to 0:04:21.400 --> 0:04:23.960 Sydney for a little while, and living there, they don't 0:04:23.960 --> 0:04:26.920 have winters like we have in Canada, so that meant 0:04:26.920 --> 0:04:29.160 that I was around plants all the time. And once 0:04:29.200 --> 0:04:32.360 I finished I moved back to Canada, I realized that 0:04:32.640 --> 0:04:34.320 life seemed a little bit different when I was no 0:04:34.400 --> 0:04:38.160 longer surrounded constantly by plants. And I bought four little 0:04:38.200 --> 0:04:44.560 succulents in May of and that for little succulent planter 0:04:44.640 --> 0:04:47.080 all of a sudden turned into twenty and then thirty 0:04:47.240 --> 0:04:49.599 and then forty, and then next thing you know, we 0:04:49.680 --> 0:04:53.240 had over a hundred plants. I just I felt so 0:04:53.320 --> 0:04:55.120 much better. It was one of those things where being 0:04:55.160 --> 0:04:58.040 surrounded by greenery and bringing all the plants inside was 0:04:58.120 --> 0:05:00.480 just an amazing thing. I end up that's have been 0:05:00.520 --> 0:05:03.560 this like major distraction from the pandemic for for a 0:05:03.640 --> 0:05:06.279 lot of people. But I'm curious for you, what are 0:05:06.480 --> 0:05:10.279 the joys of sort of being in an indoor jungle? 0:05:10.680 --> 0:05:13.400 It just it makes me happier. And with doing a 0:05:13.480 --> 0:05:16.320 PhD two, a lot of the work is done alone, 0:05:16.560 --> 0:05:19.520 particularly like with data analysis and writing and everything. And 0:05:20.240 --> 0:05:22.760 I always felt so much better sitting among all of 0:05:22.760 --> 0:05:24.839 my plants in the one particular area where we have 0:05:24.880 --> 0:05:26.880 a lot of them, and it just I found it 0:05:26.960 --> 0:05:30.640 calmed me. It made me feel more grounded. And also 0:05:30.720 --> 0:05:32.160 it would give me a little break if I wanted 0:05:32.200 --> 0:05:34.680 to care for my plants at all. Um So, yeah, 0:05:34.720 --> 0:05:37.799 so just being around them definitely made me a lot happier. 0:05:40.440 --> 0:05:43.680 Let's get into growing in a small apartment. What do 0:05:43.680 --> 0:05:46.440 you think is the the easiest way to start growing? 0:05:48.240 --> 0:05:50.560 We actually have to think where is my plant going, 0:05:51.080 --> 0:05:54.200 what are the conditions there, and what plants will thrive 0:05:54.440 --> 0:05:57.600 or at least do decently well in those type of conditions. 0:05:58.440 --> 0:06:01.719 People will at succulents and they'll say that they kill 0:06:01.800 --> 0:06:03.479 all the succulents all the time. But then when you 0:06:03.480 --> 0:06:04.880 find out where they are, they have them in a 0:06:04.920 --> 0:06:07.880 hallway that has no natural light, or they're in the 0:06:07.880 --> 0:06:10.360 middle of their dining room table that has very very 0:06:10.360 --> 0:06:12.520 little light. You really need to think about like the 0:06:12.560 --> 0:06:15.440 actual conditions of the spot where you want to put 0:06:15.440 --> 0:06:17.279 a plant, and then kind of work backward from that. 0:06:17.760 --> 0:06:21.479 I like to think about it that way. Um, for 0:06:21.480 --> 0:06:24.000 for let's say a bathroom where there's a lot of 0:06:24.080 --> 0:06:27.000 humidity but maybe less direct sunlight, do you have some 0:06:27.120 --> 0:06:29.440 suggestions for for your favorite things to put in there? 0:06:29.920 --> 0:06:32.560 If if you have humidity, then you would want some 0:06:32.720 --> 0:06:35.640 type of tropical plant. Sometimes people think that cacti and 0:06:35.720 --> 0:06:38.400 succulents will want humidity, but they don't because they're they 0:06:38.400 --> 0:06:40.960 actually originate in the desert where there's very little or 0:06:41.040 --> 0:06:44.160 no humidity at all. So for places where there is humidity, 0:06:44.200 --> 0:06:47.320 thinking not only just the bathroom, but also a kitchen too, 0:06:47.320 --> 0:06:50.039 because our kitchens actually have a lot of humidity in them. 0:06:50.080 --> 0:06:52.920 So something like a pathos is a really good plant 0:06:52.960 --> 0:06:55.040 to put in there because they can they can handle 0:06:55.040 --> 0:06:58.400 the humidity, they can handle lower light, and they don't 0:06:58.640 --> 0:07:00.800 need as much care like the not considered a high 0:07:00.839 --> 0:07:03.479 maintenance plant. So Apothos is one of those plants that 0:07:03.520 --> 0:07:07.040 tends to be underwhelming to some people. People don't necessarily 0:07:07.040 --> 0:07:09.880 love them, but they are a really great plant because 0:07:09.920 --> 0:07:11.960 they grow fast. You can trail them along the wall 0:07:12.080 --> 0:07:15.679 with particular hooks that you can get, they can hang down, 0:07:15.920 --> 0:07:20.280 they can go in the shower with you. Talk to 0:07:20.280 --> 0:07:24.000 me about these moss balls or Marimo moss balls. They're 0:07:24.040 --> 0:07:27.400 so cute. Yeah, and oh gosh, Okay, so that is 0:07:27.400 --> 0:07:31.840 a story and a half, which So I was in 0:07:31.960 --> 0:07:35.640 Calgary for work and I saw them, So the Marmo 0:07:35.720 --> 0:07:38.400 moss balls, which are actually not moss, they're actually lge 0:07:38.560 --> 0:07:40.800 and I saw them at a really cute plant store 0:07:41.040 --> 0:07:42.840 and I decided I was going to buy them. But 0:07:42.920 --> 0:07:45.440 they need to be in water, and they specifically need 0:07:45.480 --> 0:07:48.200 to be in tap water because they feed off of 0:07:48.840 --> 0:07:52.520 whatever is in tap water. So, as we all know, 0:07:52.920 --> 0:07:57.080 we're not allowed to fly with liquids. Right. So I'm 0:07:57.120 --> 0:07:59.720 in the Calgary airport with my partner and I had 0:07:59.760 --> 0:08:01.200 them in a little bag. I had them in water, 0:08:01.280 --> 0:08:03.320 and right before going through security, I had to dump 0:08:03.360 --> 0:08:05.560 all the water out and they're in this classic bag. 0:08:07.400 --> 0:08:09.760 I was bringing home more plants than just that, so 0:08:09.840 --> 0:08:13.080 my carry on was full of suck. I've got a 0:08:13.120 --> 0:08:15.400 box in my lap and I've got these. The security 0:08:15.400 --> 0:08:17.680 person when they're running everything through that little X ray 0:08:17.760 --> 0:08:20.040 machine is, excuse me, there's something in there that I 0:08:20.080 --> 0:08:21.760 need to take a look at. So she opens my bag, 0:08:21.800 --> 0:08:23.840 she pulls them out. She said, what the heck are these? 0:08:25.080 --> 0:08:27.360 So I explained to her she did not care about 0:08:27.400 --> 0:08:30.680 plants at all, which is completely But then once we 0:08:30.720 --> 0:08:34.640 got through security, we then had to refill the the 0:08:34.679 --> 0:08:36.679 bag with water and then I just sit with my 0:08:36.840 --> 0:08:39.480 marmal moss balls in a bag of water with the 0:08:39.600 --> 0:08:42.680 succulents on my lap from Calgary to Toronto. When you 0:08:42.720 --> 0:08:45.240 go to new cities and new regions, are are are 0:08:45.240 --> 0:08:48.720 you looking for plants to add to your collections? Chances are, 0:08:48.720 --> 0:08:51.400 if I've been traveling within Canada, there is a plant 0:08:51.520 --> 0:08:55.360 or five in there. How are you making time to 0:08:56.080 --> 0:08:59.520 water all these plants appropriately? And and and fit in 0:08:59.679 --> 0:09:02.560 the the plant care into your life? And and also 0:09:02.920 --> 0:09:07.439 do you speak to your plants? It's not that plants 0:09:08.559 --> 0:09:11.960 react to your voice. What the research actually shows is 0:09:12.000 --> 0:09:14.240 that people who talk to their plants tend to be 0:09:14.320 --> 0:09:17.960 more involved in their care. So it's not actually the 0:09:18.080 --> 0:09:20.880 talking that impacts the plants. It's the fact that because 0:09:20.880 --> 0:09:23.400 you're talking to your plants, it shows that you're interacting 0:09:23.400 --> 0:09:25.880 with the more. So you're going to notice things such 0:09:25.920 --> 0:09:28.040 as if they have test more, or if there's dead leaves, 0:09:28.120 --> 0:09:30.959 or if they need to repot it or water. It's 0:09:31.000 --> 0:09:34.160 a really really interesting phenomenon. What do you think some 0:09:34.200 --> 0:09:36.960 of the biggest misconceptions are about trying to grow things 0:09:36.960 --> 0:09:41.000 in a small apartment. Yeah, there's a misconception that people say, oh, 0:09:41.000 --> 0:09:43.040 I have a small space, I'm not going to bother 0:09:43.120 --> 0:09:45.840 because I don't want to crowd for people who are 0:09:45.840 --> 0:09:48.360 obsessed with plants, there's actually no such thing as not 0:09:48.480 --> 0:09:52.120 enough space for plants with really small spaces to Another 0:09:52.160 --> 0:09:55.640 thing that people tend to not think about is working vertically. 0:09:56.160 --> 0:09:59.120 Building vertically is an amazing way to add a whole 0:09:59.120 --> 0:10:01.880 bunch of plants. We also have plants hanging from the ceiling, 0:10:02.040 --> 0:10:03.760 so that's another way to where you have a really 0:10:03.760 --> 0:10:06.880 small space and you can add extra foliage there, or 0:10:07.040 --> 0:10:10.520 you get plots that are supposed to go against the wall, 0:10:11.000 --> 0:10:13.080 or you can get strip lights so you can get 0:10:13.160 --> 0:10:15.560 indoor growing lights and you can put that under your shelf, 0:10:15.600 --> 0:10:17.400 and then you can put your plants there as well too. 0:10:17.800 --> 0:10:20.959 So just because you may be thinking that you're restricted 0:10:21.000 --> 0:10:22.400 based on the fact that you don't have light or 0:10:22.440 --> 0:10:24.960 something like that, you can definitely get good quality grow 0:10:25.040 --> 0:10:28.360 lights and that can really expand your ability to put 0:10:28.360 --> 0:10:32.120 things in different places. But I think trying diving in 0:10:32.240 --> 0:10:35.440 doing it, I think, I think, to me, that's incredibly important. 0:10:35.559 --> 0:10:38.480 And if I buy an extra one, my partner generally 0:10:38.480 --> 0:10:41.440 doesn't notice or except if it's just because we have 0:10:41.520 --> 0:10:45.079 so many points. But I, yeah, I don't know, it's 0:10:45.160 --> 0:10:47.760 it's hard to explain it. I know, No, I I 0:10:47.800 --> 0:10:50.240 completely agree with what where is? I mean, I've only 0:10:50.320 --> 0:10:54.480 started gardening recently, and just walking into the living room 0:10:54.520 --> 0:10:57.880 and seeing these plants makes me happy. But then also 0:10:58.480 --> 0:11:01.360 the little routine and a little care of of watering 0:11:01.400 --> 0:11:05.959 them is really meditative. It is. It is and also 0:11:06.120 --> 0:11:08.160 things too. And I know your daughter likes the basil 0:11:08.200 --> 0:11:10.920 plants or basis as she calls them, which is so good. 0:11:11.600 --> 0:11:14.840 How awesome is it to make pizza or passa sauce, 0:11:15.000 --> 0:11:17.160 or you're making a sturfire or something, and then you 0:11:17.280 --> 0:11:21.240 put the basil that you've been growing yourself. It's something 0:11:21.280 --> 0:11:23.640 that's so small, but it's it's awesome and it's something 0:11:23.640 --> 0:11:30.800 that you're doing. Yeah, and a plant and a plant 0:11:30.920 --> 0:11:33.800 is the Instagram account. Thank you for taking time away 0:11:33.800 --> 0:11:36.360 from your your kiddo and family. I really appreciate it. Yeah, 0:11:36.400 --> 0:11:37.760 thank you so much for having me. This is being 0:11:37.800 --> 0:11:48.079 great to talk about. And now here's Mangoes inner monologue. Today, 0:11:48.120 --> 0:11:51.599 I saw a rat carrying a slice of pizza. He 0:11:51.760 --> 0:11:53.520 dragged it over to a patch of dirt in the 0:11:53.559 --> 0:11:57.880 park and he began digging, And I thought, if he 0:11:57.960 --> 0:12:04.760 can do it, so can i. Humans growing stuff will 0:12:04.800 --> 0:12:12.559 be right back after a short break after talking with Anna, 0:12:12.720 --> 0:12:15.720 Like right after talking with Anna, I told Lizzie we 0:12:15.720 --> 0:12:18.720 should get a pathos. Pathos have come up a few 0:12:18.720 --> 0:12:21.280 times on the show now, but I couldn't quite figure 0:12:21.320 --> 0:12:24.800 out how they'd fit into our apartment. Then suddenly I 0:12:24.840 --> 0:12:28.520 spotted this little space above our upright piano and it 0:12:28.640 --> 0:12:32.079 felt right for colonizing. I don't know how excited she 0:12:32.240 --> 0:12:35.079 is for my new plant hobby, but she's been pretty supportive. 0:12:35.920 --> 0:12:38.200 But even with all these new tips of trying to 0:12:38.200 --> 0:12:42.040 think about our space more vertically and using more shelving 0:12:42.160 --> 0:12:45.839 to store these plants. I'm starting to realize this kingdom 0:12:46.000 --> 0:12:49.760 is feeling a little small for my ambitions. We're running 0:12:49.760 --> 0:12:52.520 out of floor space. We have more mother in law 0:12:52.600 --> 0:12:56.200 tongues than actual mother in laws. And even though I 0:12:56.240 --> 0:13:00.520 want to live that hashtag plant life, I think there's 0:13:00.520 --> 0:13:03.040 a cap on what we can actually grow in this apartment. 0:13:03.760 --> 0:13:06.400 So I reached out to two big shots from the 0:13:06.400 --> 0:13:10.480 New York Botanical Garden, Ursula Chance and Kadisha Williams, to 0:13:10.600 --> 0:13:14.000 learn more. Ursula is the director of Bronx green Up 0:13:14.160 --> 0:13:19.240 and Kadisha is green Ups community horticulturist and urban agriculturist. 0:13:21.880 --> 0:13:24.520 So before we get too deep into this, I want 0:13:24.559 --> 0:13:30.240 to know a little bit about the green Up project. Sure. 0:13:30.280 --> 0:13:34.400 So Bronx green Up was started in and it was 0:13:34.440 --> 0:13:38.360 started really by people who were in the Bronx staying 0:13:38.400 --> 0:13:42.400 to Bronx, people like Kadisha's grandfather, who were saw these 0:13:42.400 --> 0:13:45.920 spaces that they wanted to do something positive, to make 0:13:45.960 --> 0:13:48.640 beautiful grow food for the community. And so those kind 0:13:48.640 --> 0:13:52.280 of organic efforts were starting and people turned to the 0:13:52.280 --> 0:13:54.880 Botanical Garden to help with these efforts. In the Botanical 0:13:54.880 --> 0:13:57.920 Garden created the Bronx Greenup Program to to really do 0:13:57.960 --> 0:14:01.760 that one thing that is really exciting. I think for me, 0:14:02.480 --> 0:14:06.440 there's this almost organic conversation between cultures. So people come 0:14:06.440 --> 0:14:09.800 into the garden and even back you know, at the 0:14:09.840 --> 0:14:11.839 beginning of this, when a lot of these lots didn't 0:14:11.880 --> 0:14:15.240 have anything in them, people were coming together the growth stuff. 0:14:15.600 --> 0:14:18.480 Even though there may be language barriers, even though they 0:14:18.480 --> 0:14:21.880 come from completely different cultures, they'd be excited about the 0:14:21.920 --> 0:14:25.480 same plant. While we all come from different places, we 0:14:25.560 --> 0:14:30.040 have different faces, we still need to eat. And that 0:14:30.120 --> 0:14:33.080 was a really good way that we tire our cultures 0:14:33.120 --> 0:14:37.320 together in the ways that we build community. Yeah, that's incredible. 0:14:37.320 --> 0:14:39.720 I I was thinking about that too, just how we 0:14:39.920 --> 0:14:43.760 are so often like siloed in our own apartments and 0:14:43.880 --> 0:14:46.600 our own like work and whatever. But but that the 0:14:46.600 --> 0:14:50.560 garden really gives the space to almost forces interaction between 0:14:50.600 --> 0:14:54.520 not just communities, but also generations. I means something that 0:14:54.600 --> 0:14:57.080 just popped into my head. Happened a while ago when 0:14:57.080 --> 0:15:00.440 we were helping with the New Roots Community Farm, and 0:15:00.480 --> 0:15:02.400 I remember one time we were there and there was 0:15:02.520 --> 0:15:04.520 like a bottle that was just laying in front of 0:15:04.520 --> 0:15:07.680 the gate, and so I was like, oh, let me 0:15:07.760 --> 0:15:09.760 just pick this up. I saw there was a piece 0:15:09.760 --> 0:15:13.000 of paper inside, and I was like, oh, that's interesting. 0:15:13.080 --> 0:15:15.080 So I just I don't know why I actually pulled 0:15:15.080 --> 0:15:16.520 out the piece of paper, which you know, you don't 0:15:16.560 --> 0:15:19.360 usually go around examining garbage, but I was like, let 0:15:19.360 --> 0:15:20.840 me just do that. And then there was a note 0:15:20.840 --> 0:15:23.120 into it and it was like, Oh, are you started 0:15:23.120 --> 0:15:26.520 a community garden. I want to be involved. I love 0:15:26.600 --> 0:15:29.760 that A literal message in the bottle, just waiting for you. 0:15:30.280 --> 0:15:32.800 And it was like I was such a moment like oh, like, 0:15:32.920 --> 0:15:36.120 I just feel like these spaces are so precious and 0:15:36.160 --> 0:15:39.280 important and people are really craving that place to come 0:15:39.320 --> 0:15:41.760 together and get their hands in the dirt and grow 0:15:41.880 --> 0:15:44.880 and connect with nature. And I think just seeing that 0:15:44.920 --> 0:15:47.400 like that just speaks to it, like that people are 0:15:47.440 --> 0:15:52.400 really craving that opportunity. What role do community gardens play 0:15:52.440 --> 0:15:54.680 in the fabric of a city? For for the two 0:15:54.680 --> 0:16:01.360 of you, so much. Community gardens are are safe havens. 0:16:01.880 --> 0:16:06.520 There's spaces for community organizing, save spaces for young people, 0:16:07.320 --> 0:16:11.960 spaces where you can perform, and spaces where you can learn, 0:16:12.000 --> 0:16:15.440 like spaces for education, also just a space to sit down. 0:16:15.560 --> 0:16:21.400 Like it's all of those things combine it's a hub. Yeah, 0:16:21.480 --> 0:16:24.160 I mean, just more to echo what Cadisia said, I 0:16:24.160 --> 0:16:26.320 mean I do. I do think community gardens are kind 0:16:26.360 --> 0:16:29.440 of the heart of a neighborhood and community and all 0:16:29.480 --> 0:16:32.840 that they can offer and provide. And I see that 0:16:32.960 --> 0:16:37.160 so often and just there's so much and just taking 0:16:37.160 --> 0:16:39.560 a space on a hot day to sit in the 0:16:39.560 --> 0:16:42.960 shade and cool down. There's just so many things and 0:16:43.080 --> 0:16:46.400 resources that community gardens can offer. There should be more 0:16:46.480 --> 0:16:50.600 community gardens all over the world. We have to root ourselves, 0:16:50.680 --> 0:16:54.920 put our feet in the dirt. I love that, you 0:16:54.960 --> 0:16:57.000 know what. One of the articles I read in The 0:16:57.080 --> 0:17:00.280 Times that that really made me smile was that, uh, 0:17:00.440 --> 0:17:03.840 there's this gentleman who grew so much in his plot 0:17:03.920 --> 0:17:06.520 that he was sending extra produced to his family in 0:17:06.560 --> 0:17:09.359 Puerto Rico, and and it just made me curious, like, 0:17:09.520 --> 0:17:12.520 how much food are people actually growing in these little plots. 0:17:12.800 --> 0:17:16.280 It depends on a variety of things. It depends on 0:17:16.359 --> 0:17:20.119 the season. Sometimes you could do everything right and you 0:17:20.160 --> 0:17:23.479 don't produce a lot. Sometimes it's totally by accident. You know, 0:17:23.520 --> 0:17:26.480 not everyone tracks their produced the same, but it's definitely 0:17:26.760 --> 0:17:29.720 hundreds of pounds something like at the start of this 0:17:29.800 --> 0:17:32.760 pandemic in New York City. Community gardens I think are 0:17:32.800 --> 0:17:35.879 so oftentime leaders in their community. What they're like, what 0:17:35.880 --> 0:17:37.760 can we do? We can grow food, We grow That's 0:17:37.760 --> 0:17:40.919 what what's we do. And so they could produce a 0:17:40.920 --> 0:17:44.520 lot of food that can contribute to food pantries, to 0:17:45.280 --> 0:17:49.120 soup kitchens, to night just senior housing. I love that. 0:17:49.960 --> 0:17:52.640 So you both do such a good job with education. 0:17:52.800 --> 0:17:56.040 But but I'm curious, how do you welcome people in 0:17:56.320 --> 0:17:59.679 who might be a little intimidated. Oh I love to 0:17:59.720 --> 0:18:02.720 tell people that you're going to kill a lot of 0:18:02.760 --> 0:18:07.160 stuff and that's okay. Yeah, I love that too. I mean, 0:18:07.240 --> 0:18:09.879 I agree. I feel like, you know, the more I 0:18:09.960 --> 0:18:12.760 do this more, there's always something to learn. There's always 0:18:12.760 --> 0:18:16.360 something new to discover and observe. And so just reminding 0:18:16.359 --> 0:18:19.760 people just start small. Is there any community garden etiquette 0:18:19.800 --> 0:18:23.320 that we should all know about. Every garden is completely different. 0:18:23.960 --> 0:18:27.800 There are, of course similarities, communities that look the same, 0:18:27.960 --> 0:18:33.399 that eat the same, But the garden community, the garden etiquette, 0:18:33.400 --> 0:18:36.600 as you say, is completely different. It depends on the garden. 0:18:37.760 --> 0:18:40.480 One thing I would say is asked, asked before you 0:18:40.520 --> 0:18:45.800 take something. Most people are really most gardeners are like, oh, 0:18:45.840 --> 0:18:47.920 of course, sure, Oh you want to try this. Sure. 0:18:48.359 --> 0:18:50.480 I mean you can imagine like spending a whole season 0:18:50.480 --> 0:18:58.040 growing something and then watching someone pick your cucumbers with tomatoes. Yeah, 0:18:58.119 --> 0:19:03.080 I guess that that's sort of politeness. Hope it's not. 0:19:03.119 --> 0:19:07.760 Though it's not. I think it's less about politeness and 0:19:07.800 --> 0:19:11.160 more just excitement. Even I do it. Sometimes I go 0:19:11.200 --> 0:19:14.000 in and I reached them like, oh wait, that's not 0:19:14.040 --> 0:19:17.520 my fairy tomatoes. Let me ask, let me just get 0:19:17.560 --> 0:19:20.680 positioning real quick. I'm like enamored by it. I'm like, wow, 0:19:20.680 --> 0:19:23.040 this is so beautiful. Look at all this stuff growing, 0:19:23.080 --> 0:19:25.919 and oh my god, they'd be so successful, and I 0:19:25.960 --> 0:19:28.280 can't I need to ask for pission before I put 0:19:28.280 --> 0:19:31.600 my hands on people's stuff. I was stunned that they 0:19:31.640 --> 0:19:34.120 are all these like bees and chickens and the photos 0:19:34.200 --> 0:19:37.400 and it's not just flowers and plants at these gardens, right, 0:19:38.440 --> 0:19:44.240 of course not again, like as culturist mix and we tried. 0:19:44.560 --> 0:19:47.440 You know, as we go further and further and push 0:19:47.520 --> 0:19:50.440 the envelope with urban farming, we want to bring more 0:19:50.440 --> 0:19:53.560 and more aspects of rural farming to the city. I 0:19:53.600 --> 0:19:58.480 think chickens are so fun. My community garden is I 0:19:58.480 --> 0:20:00.280 don't want to say it free for all. It for 0:20:00.320 --> 0:20:03.120 a long time, people have definitely been chucking animals over 0:20:03.119 --> 0:20:06.760 the gate. I think. I think in their minds they're like, 0:20:06.840 --> 0:20:09.480 this is a beautiful green space and they take care 0:20:09.480 --> 0:20:12.200 of chickens and bees, so like they will save this duck. 0:20:13.160 --> 0:20:16.560 And children love it, like they see chickens and they're 0:20:16.560 --> 0:20:18.880 just like wow, like I can't believe they're chickens here? 0:20:19.280 --> 0:20:22.240 Can we touched them? And that's that's been really cool 0:20:22.240 --> 0:20:24.439 to to show them how to take care of the chickens, 0:20:24.440 --> 0:20:26.960 how to feed them. It's been good for us to 0:20:27.200 --> 0:20:30.960 we can use the chicken manure to help for lize 0:20:31.040 --> 0:20:35.439 our beds. It's been interesting to learn how to incorporate 0:20:35.480 --> 0:20:39.080 that stuff into the operation. Very cool for for an 0:20:39.119 --> 0:20:41.159 outsider like me. What what is the first step to 0:20:41.240 --> 0:20:43.679 getting involved in a community garden? Do you have to apply? 0:20:43.960 --> 0:20:46.720 Do you have to do you have to know someone? Like? 0:20:46.760 --> 0:20:51.040 What what is the process? It's different for every garden. 0:20:51.680 --> 0:20:55.160 It's different for the communities. Of course, community gardens are 0:20:55.160 --> 0:20:57.040 open to the public, so if the gate is open, 0:20:57.119 --> 0:20:59.920 you're welcome to come in and enjoy that space. It's 0:21:00.000 --> 0:21:03.000 a community space, so it belongs to the community. If 0:21:03.040 --> 0:21:06.639 you want to be a garden member, there is usually 0:21:06.680 --> 0:21:10.040 an application process. Um, if it's you right, and you're new, 0:21:10.080 --> 0:21:11.760 and you're walking down the street and you see a 0:21:11.800 --> 0:21:14.720 garden and it's open, I would walk in and talk 0:21:14.720 --> 0:21:17.520 to someone and see what their their way is for 0:21:17.840 --> 0:21:21.320 becoming a guarden member or getting involved. If all those fails, 0:21:21.640 --> 0:21:24.440 if you're in the Bronx, you can call Bronx been 0:21:24.480 --> 0:21:27.280 up with the new Botanical Garden, and we try to 0:21:27.280 --> 0:21:30.000 connect you to the right persons. And then if it's 0:21:30.040 --> 0:21:32.760 outside of the Bronx, you could always talk to Green 0:21:32.840 --> 0:21:35.960 Thumb of the New York City Parks Department. And So, 0:21:36.320 --> 0:21:39.040 what is the biggest reason you tell city dwellers to 0:21:39.119 --> 0:21:41.920 like get into gardening and get into these community spaces 0:21:42.080 --> 0:21:47.280 because it's awesome. There's not one reason. Everyone has their 0:21:47.280 --> 0:21:50.320 own reason for getting involved, which I think that that 0:21:50.440 --> 0:21:54.480 makes the experience so much more beautiful. Well, I think 0:21:54.520 --> 0:21:57.399 just showing that the different community gardens and farms, if 0:21:57.400 --> 0:22:00.000 there's one near you, there's there's different ways you can 0:22:00.000 --> 0:22:03.960 get involved, either become a member or help ountain volunteer. 0:22:04.600 --> 0:22:06.920 And I think also just seeing these commit gardens and 0:22:06.960 --> 0:22:09.960 are farms just as part of our larger New York 0:22:10.000 --> 0:22:14.040 City green space with our parks as well. I've been 0:22:14.080 --> 0:22:16.080 on the busiest streets in New York City and I'll 0:22:16.080 --> 0:22:19.000 look up, you know, in late September, and all of 0:22:19.040 --> 0:22:22.160 a sudden, they'll be a monarch that will be flying by, 0:22:22.359 --> 0:22:25.399