05-31-2008, 04:53 PM
We lived in an area for 20 years in between a city of ~50k and a village of 13k (sorta like where we are today!) The city had a few community gardens, most in flood plain areas, that they let out at ~$25 per season (that is fuzzy, but I remember it wasn't free & wasn't a lot...) for a quarter acre area... you did have to sign a code of conduct contract, & could have your 'lease' (it wasn't a lease... use permit???) revoked if you didn't keep it up (no weeds, of ANY kind, keeping it clean & tidy...) they did have a community garden committee that would monitor any complaints & such.
The village had areas along a bike path that the community garden club planted... you had to be a member of the garden club, & abide by rules & regulations set up by the club. The club planted & tended the gardens that had ornamentals interspersed with produce... really nice for formally bleachy areas of the bike path... & the club members divided the produce....
The third option we had was that our company had a lot of acreage that they let employees plant (this is the one we used, as our former house was a one acre Oak forest with heavy thick clay on a north face of a terminal ridge...ie, no way anything with any sense would want to set down roots... except humans!) The company had a very hands off approach, you signed up for as many plots as you wanted (I seem to remember they were 50'x50') and the company would would have it tilled (All of this land was former prairie that had been corn fields for decades, most of it was near an old rail line that had been turned into trails...)
So three different ways to handle... very hands on to fairly informal...
The village had areas along a bike path that the community garden club planted... you had to be a member of the garden club, & abide by rules & regulations set up by the club. The club planted & tended the gardens that had ornamentals interspersed with produce... really nice for formally bleachy areas of the bike path... & the club members divided the produce....
The third option we had was that our company had a lot of acreage that they let employees plant (this is the one we used, as our former house was a one acre Oak forest with heavy thick clay on a north face of a terminal ridge...ie, no way anything with any sense would want to set down roots... except humans!) The company had a very hands off approach, you signed up for as many plots as you wanted (I seem to remember they were 50'x50') and the company would would have it tilled (All of this land was former prairie that had been corn fields for decades, most of it was near an old rail line that had been turned into trails...)
So three different ways to handle... very hands on to fairly informal...