Following the steps of NCAD Community Garden


(picture taken by Martin Obst yournaturalhome.ie)

I have been following the steps of NCAD Community Garden since three years ago, when I ended up there picking some tasty vegetables for me and my friends, introduced to the charming humble gardener's hands of Martin Obst.
Tony and Martin have been the staples of this Community Garden and this has to be remembered. Between works hours and life Martin was always on the shovel helping Tony early in the morning and in the evening.
Four years of work, consciously connecting to the soil, building compost, making that compost flourish with the most amazing, tasty vegetables, carefully chosen by Martin and his contact with the National Botanic Gardens, gathering seeds and tips for growing.

I want to mention this because the Garden seems to be dying slowly.
People are moving on in their lives, I no longer live there to be part of it, but my heart is connected with it.
Thanks to the amazing proactive heart of Amanda McKnight there is still a hope that this garden will keep going, showing the strength and the importance of what a Community Garden in an urban environment can do.
When growing there there is a deep connection with the matter, the energies are stronger than just doing the job for the sake of doing it. Is a primordial need that we all have, is for our mental wellbeing that gardening is fulfilling every bit of our cells.

Somebody forgot the story.
Somebody doesn't know the story of NCAD Community Garden.

There is an amazing man called Tony Louth that gave body and soul every day gathering all the essentials of that garden. All for the sake of the community.

There was once a carpark, full of weeds and concrete.
Here are some chronologic facts, about the positive of this garden, what once as been... is nearly forgotten.

I want to share some of the links that made NCAD Community Garden stepping up, showing what has been done, how and who was constantly involved to make this place what it still is.
No lock will change the history of this place.

RTE Radio, Yournaturalhome.com and The Irish Garden Magazine, The Perennial Plate and FARE Ireland where highlighting the beauty of this amazing place. Here some documentation:

Martin is describing his experience from the early days of the Garden in his blog:

The start: URBAN GARDEN (Martin Obst)

     1. http://yournaturalhome.ie/food_medicine/urban-organic-farm-dublin/
  1. http://yournaturalhome.ie/food_medicine/building-urban-garden/
  2. http://yournaturalhome.ie/food_medicine/spring-urban-growing-time/
Tony was featured on RTE radio about the Garden, giving an amazing overlook about what has been done and what could have been (You can listen to the Podcast!)


The Perennial Plate is a two-time James Beard Award winning online weekly documentary series dedicated to socially responsible and adventurous eating.  Chef and Activist, Daniel Klein and Filmmaker Mirra Fine are traveling the world exploring the wonders, complexities and stories behind the ever more connected global food system.
Here is a video on how NCAD Community Garden was built. 



The following page is an article about NCAD Community Garden, issue October/November 2016 (3 pages on Community Gardening page 54, 55 and 56). Is highlighting what has been grown, how it has been developing since now.


Last Year (2017) amazing documentary on Community Gardens, where Martin Obst got interviewed.


Since December 2017 the Garden got locked. 
Here is another proof the institution did not help, if you can just trust the community and the people who really care and work with their passions and work with it, instead of stopping the flow...
I believe there is a need of a knowledgeable gardener coming to rescue the place with a good gardening plan, a bunch of days for volunteers to come from the College and from outside, melting the community and creating an educational place that can be source of inspirations for the Artists and the locals.

The new Director, the Student Union and the volunteer need to acknowledge that there is a path that has been made already. There is a flow of work and energy that have been put into the Garden, if it dyes, if there is nobody taking care of it, managing the natural environment that have been built until now... the garden will go back into a dump, a jungle where to hide needles and builders waste.
 The Garden is not a Garden Show which comes and goes for a few days, a Garden needs dedication, love, experience and knowledge.
An Organic Garden needs CARE.
Art and Gardening can join together, respecting each others, having painting sessions of still life and botanical art... gardening sessions every now and then... but there is a need of a gardener figure understanding the flow that has been written down from before.
This idea of Community gardening is happening already in Europe. Ireland should coop with such a generous opportunity as well.

I wish this garden a long lifetime. Wishing the guardians to be dedicated and inspiring as Tony and Martin are.

All the best,

Giulia Canevari
Organic Grower and Botanical Artist.

Thanks to NCAD community garden I am know an experience grower, working in Moy House, Lahinch, painting and getting inspired by Nature.
www.giuliacanevari.com



Comments

Popular Posts