San Francisco Urban Gardens May Be Just Around the Bend

By: Alyssa Sittig

Wait one second. Before you take another bite into that delicious apple, can you tell us where it came from? If you’re drawing a blank, perhaps it’s time to plan a trip to your local community garden.

Finding an urban garden in your San Francisco neighborhood is even easier than you think.

Thanks to San Francisco Recreation and Parks – you can search the website for citywide locations of community gardens via GPS mapping. You can also learn how to become a community garden member and start one of your own. This new tool is a great example of the marriage of Web 2.0 technology with Gov 2.0 community involvement that is at the core of the Reset San Francisco community.

Urban agriculture is revolutionizing San Francisco’s relationship with food.

City Hall recently passed a bill that will make locally grown foods more accessible and easy to cultivate in San Francisco. Homegrown produce can now be sold and donated throughout the city, including “value added products” like homemade pies, jams and pickles.

As San Franciscans, we understand the importance of eating healthy and being aware of our impact on the environment – and the benefits are limitless. Growing your own fruits and vegetables with community gardening can help boost your health, reduce our carbon footprint on the environment and build a greater sense of community.
And this month, Reset San Francisco launched a survey on solutions for the city, like urban gardens – and with over 600 San Franciscans responding, 74% said they are “Very Likely” or “Likely” to support more incentives for urban gardens throughout the city.

So, the next time you find yourself short one tomato or in need of some fresh mint, look no further than your community garden. The simple knowledge that your ingredients are locally grown and cared for in the spirit of community may be all it takes to take your cooking from everyday to truly delicious.

Do you think we need more urban gardens in San Francisco? Log in, join the discussion and comment below.

What are you waiting for? Go get your hands dirty!