Deep-rooted issues: The SF VICTORY GARDEN

Victory from oil dependence.  Victory from having to buy unhealthy food at high prices.  Victory from shopping at big box stores.   The event was put on by Slow Food Nation and was quite the media circus.  Of course Alice Waters was there (did you even have to ask?_) Gavin Newsome and his stepford girl were there, the NY Times was there.  

Even my permaculture class was there.   We decided that it would be a good idea for the class to experience food justice in its most public form.  Plus they gave us cool t-shirts and lunch.   There were literally dozens of photographers, journalists, and onlookers all witnessing a phenomenal event.   The first food garden to be planted in a public space in San Francisco since 1943.

I volunteered to help John Bela and his crew of carpenters and urban farmers set up for the event.  There was a lot to move around and put into place before the cameras started to roll.   I actually got to MOVE DIRT WITH A JOHN DEERE FORKLIFT.   It was awesome!

it's time to get this beast in gear

My three-year-old godson would have LOVED to tag along to help with the heavy liftin’.   It was a lot of hard work, but it paid off.   On Saturday, the whole class rallied and we planted our keyhole beds with corn, beans and squash (all grown by Green Gulch and City Slicker Farms).  This classic combo is one of the defining “guilds” in permaculture and is sometimes refered to as “the Three Sisters”.  The native people of  North America had this all sorted and nowadays, smart folks can see these ‘sisters” as an example of plants that grow together to help each other out. 

A threesome that actually works without any drama. 

The beans climb on the corn which shades the vines as they grow.  The bean flowers actually attract pollinators to the squash vines which function as the “skirt” around the whole planting, conserving moisture in the soil by shading the roots.   These sisters are doing it for themselves.   And we helped. 

The class was stoked, and by mid morning, we had the whole thing planted and watered in.

getting the three sisters all hooked up

The organization planned this garden to showcase local, urban food production for the “Come to the Table” Slow Food event at the end of August:  http://slowfoodnation.org/

Check out the future of food.  It’s a deep-rooted issue.

civic center plaza - in my hometown