Raleigh allows more community gardens

RALEIGH -- A patch of dirt behind Moore Square Museums Magnet Middle School may hold the secret to getting children to eat their vegetables.

Students last week planted rows of lettuce, leeks, radishes and onions next to the school ball field, showing the kind of excitement normally reserved for video games or Justin Bieber.

They are already talking about sampling the harvest. "It's a whole salad," said principal Dave Kershner.

And it's an undertaking that advocates hope to replicate across Raleigh, now that they've convinced city officials to ease limits on community gardens on private and unused public land.

Groups will soon be able to choose from a 200-page list of possible garden locations provided by the city.

Raleigh would let nonprofits and community groups raise fruits and vegetables on surplus city-owned land. The city may also loosen zoning restrictions for gardens on private property.

It's the latest sign that the urban-farming phenomenon is poised to put more fresh food on the dinner table.

Gardens have brought together churches and neighborhoods across the Triangle and provided a source of fresh produce for local food banks.

After planting for the first time last year, 20-plus members of the after-school garden club at Moore Square have come to relish the opportunity to eat what they grow.

"We find that students try things they probably wouldn't try at home," co-organizer Gab Smith said.

The citywide changes in Raleigh, more than a year in the making, are part of a sweeping revision of the city's development code. The policy is slated for City Council review in July.

"We believe we've found an approach that will work for all parties," said Mitchell Silver, the city's planning director.

The changes have been needed, said Katherine Andrew of Interfaith Food Shuttle, a nonprofit that collects surplus food from farmers markets and grocery stores and delivers it to shelters and soup kitchens.

The group teaches young people to raise profitable crops and shows families how to eat better on limited budgets, among other programs.

"We're excited to see thecity finally taking an interest in community gardens, recognizing the importance and making some changes," Andrew said. Other communities, Andrew said, provide access to water, gardening tools and even tax breaks.

The town of Chapel Hill partnered with UNC's Campus Y last year on a 14-acre garden on Homestead Road. Part of the site is an urban farm run by volunteers and homeless workers.

"Raleigh is big, and maybe not quite as nimble as some of our other municipalities," said Laura Aiken, director of Advocates for Health in Action, a group that pushed for the policies. "Any time you're dealing with that scale, you want to do it the right way."

During a public review last week, Raleigh Councilman John Odom said he thought he'd picked his last butter bean when he moved to Raleigh in the 1970s from rural Scotland County. His grandfather made a living raising cantaloupes and watermelons.

Now it seems young people love raising their own fruits and vegetables. "This is interesting to me," Odom said.

But the trend isn't all that different from Victory Gardens during World War II, Councilwoman Nancy McFarlane said. In the 1940s, the government encouraged families to grow food at a time when labor shortages made it harder to carry goods to market.

Remember those days, John? Odom, 64, offered a slight smile. "I'm not that far back," he said.

The school garden at Moore Square may provide a model. It's run as a partnership with Ratio Architects, a nearby firm that sends staff members to help tend vegetables and cheer on students.

Fifty pounds of food went to Interfaith Food Shuttle last year, and the children set a goal to send 90 pounds this year.

And mint raised in the club's herb garden went to Poole's Diner for use in cocktails, organizers said.

Managing a full growing season takes lots of work, said Ratio architect Louis Cherry. This fall, the students plan a pumpkin patch for Halloween.

"You've got to have a champion," Cherry said. "If we were going to make it happen, we had to commit to it."

It also helps to have young people eager for a reason to go outside and play in the dirt.

"Once they see their hard work coming out of the ground, they get excited," said Kershner, the principal.

Staff writer Mark Schultz contributed to this report.