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groenten_uit_gent [2012-10-22 14:57] – created imogengroenten_uit_gent [2012-10-23 09:14] (current) imogen
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-GROEnTEN uit GENT – Growing food and helping build a community +==== GROEnTEN uit GENT ==== 
-Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GROEnTENuitGENT+Part of the [[gent plant people]]\\ Details at Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GROEnTENuitGENT
  
-GROEnTEN uit GENT is located at Dok, run by Willem Van Gucht. Willem works for Sociale Werkplaats De Sleutel Gent a drug prevention and social work centre which integrates people back into the work system after hard times.  +GROEnTEN uit GENT is a productive vegetable garden located at DOK. The program is run by Willem Van Gucht. Willem works for Sociale Werkplaats De Sleutel Gent a drug prevention and social work centre which integrates people back into the community and the job system after falling on hard times.  
  
-There are 2 garden programs (the other garden is in Brugse Poort). It began in 2012 and is aimed to help workers feel a sense of responsibility in running a project and in the process kinds of people within the wider community. The hope is that they benefit from this experience after having been socially isolated and get the feel for what it is like to work a full day in the hope that they can take on a job in the future. Willem says that even the simplest conversations are the first stepping stones to re-establishing contact with other people, something that most of us take for granted. +The garden program provides its workers with a sense of responsibility in running a project and in working with the wider community. Many of the volunteers are connecting with people for the first time having suffered from significant social isolation. Willem says that even the simplest conversations with new colleagues and friends are the first stepping stones to re-establishing contact with the community, something that most of us take for granted. 
  
-The Gardens are also open to the public where you can harvest and take home food in return for helping out. They are open every Tuesday and Thursday and one Saturday per month. Anything not harvested and taken home by volunteers gets sold very cheaply at the stall out the front of the gardens or given to the unemployed as a part of a food bank. +The Gardens are also open to the public where you can harvest and take home food in return for helping out each week. They are open every Tuesday and Thursday and one Saturday per month. Anything not harvested and taken home by volunteers gets sold very cheaply at the stall out the front of the gardens or given to the unemployed as a part of a food bank. 
  
-The location of the gardens is on an old industrial site at DOK, and one day it may be developed. So it was important to garden using containers so that the soil quality was assured as well as the fact that one day in the future the garden may need to moveThey use all kinds of recycled materials to build containers, from bathtubs to skip bins to old tyres. Willem says that container gardening is a big learning curve, particularly in keeping the soil moist as containers and pots tend to dry out very quickly. Mulching has become a big part of their gardening and it also helps put nutrients back into the soil to feed the plants. +The garden is located on an old industrial site at DOK. The have developed container gardening techniques to assure soil quality and also incase the garden may have to move in the future due to redevelopment of the siteWillem and his team use all kinds of recycled materials to build containers, from bathtubs to skip bins to old tyres. Willem says that container gardening is a big learning curve, particularly in keeping the soil moist as containers and pots tend to dry out very quickly. Mulching has become a big part of their daily routine and it also helps put nutrients back into the soil to feed the plants. 
  
-I also met Jan one of the workers in the program. Jan has been involved since the beginningalthough at first he wasn’t interested in plants! He liked building things and didn’t care at all about gardening. But since being at the gardens, he is now very interested in plants and growing food. He has loved seeing the whole process from seedlings to plants to harvesting and eating. He wants to work in growing food, perhaps on a farm. Willem seemed very proud that Jan has enjoyed his time at the gardens so much.+The program risks losing its funding in 2013so Willem and the team are looking at ways they can make money from the gardens, including selling seedlings and surplus food to local restaurants
  
-They have 2 lovely chickens (although they arent laying eggs yet!) and they hope to get bee hives soon. But next year it looks like they may not get the funding to pay for the garden programSo Willem needs to find ways to make money out of the gardens. He has ideas about selling seedlings and selling surplus food to local restaurants, and then using the leftovers to feed their chickens and make compost to put back on the gardens+Willemhope is to build a large community at the gardens and everyone is welcome to get involved and help out in return for harvesting vegetablesContainer gardening is a valuable skill for growing food in urban areas
  
-Willem’s hope is to build a community at the gardens, but their location seems a bit out of the way and they haven’t had as much interest as he would likeIf you are reading this and you are interested in getting involved, then go down there and say hiIt’s a great way to help build a communityAnd learning about container gardening is a valuable skill for growing food in urban areas+{{ :groeten1.jpg?direct&700 |}} 
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  • groenten_uit_gent.txt
  • Last modified: 2012-10-23 09:14
  • by imogen