| Picture this. It’s an hour past midnight, the frosty London air is crisp and cold, and three college age kids wrapped in coats and scarves are about to make a break for a public rose bed outcropping across from the British Parliament. Anyone up at this hour couldn’t be doing good, right? Not so fast.Reality is, these kids are part of a new wave of volunteers poised to save the ecological world of public green-space, one sidewalk at a time. The concept is Guerrilla Gardening, an idea founded by Richard Reynolds of London, UK. A Guerrilla Gardener seeks out filty, run-down, parched areas of public green-space and marks it for gardening. Afterwards, often in the still of the night, the Guerrilla Gardener comes back, sometimes with backup, and begins cultivating soil and planting flowers and vegetation to beautify the spot.
The concept is not exactly new, as it has had similar counterparts in other sprawling metropolises, including New York and Philadelphia. But the difference that Guerrilla Gardening presents is that it is often done at night, out of sight, which gives the action a sense of excitement and rebellion. Often, this state of mind is required as public authorities do not sanction forced cultivation of many of these spaces. You need my approval before you can improve my land, in an absurd sense. With over 1000 members, the idea of Guerrilla Gardening has found its way into many rebellious eco-souls. Anyone with some time and an eye for nature will see the appeal in gardening and garden accessories. In fact, the Sun is setting here in California. Please excuse me as I have a nice patch of dirt on the corner of Los Altos and Gale Blvd. to attend to. |
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