Frisky Town wants YOU to make a garden.

After all the covert operations involved in making a guerrilla garden, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that not only have Caltrans ended up being quite reasonable about my squatting on their land after a little initial resistance, but they went on to connect me with DPW who are almost ecstatic about it all. H'm. It's hard to be a rebel gardener when the officials are encouraging you! ;)

And now the SF Parks Trust are on a GIY (garden-it-yourself ) bender and are putting on a series of talks in order to enable to wannabe-green-thumbs out there who lack that one precious, critical item: San Francisco real estate.

Tuned-in P. Garden volunteer Emily forwarded the info below to me - I might have to attend one of these meetings!

The SF Parks Trust, along with Garden for the Environment, are working with the city to locate new plots of land to start community gardens. To find our more, please read the announcement below about upcoming planning meetings.

Garden City: How to find space to grow food in San Francisco
Three Part Workshop series
Have you been dreaming of starting your own urban oasis, a garden where you can grow you own food and find some piece of mind, but you don’t have any space and don’t know where to look to find some? This three part practical workshop series is for you. Attend one workshop, or all three. This workshop series is co-presented by the San Francisco Parks Trust and Garden for the Environment.

Garden City Workshop I: Finding City Land for a Garden
Date: Sunday, October 25
Time: 10 AM – 3 PM
Location: SPUR, 654 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-4015
Cost: $15-$30 sliding scale
Pre-registration is required, and space is limited, so sign-up soon.
To pre-register, please call (415)750-5110, or email julia@sfpt.org

Even though San Francisco is a very dense city, there are more open parcels of land than one would think. In this session, learn how to identify possible spaces for gardens in San Francisco, including city property, privately owned lots, school gardens, sidewalks and backyards. The basic pros and cons of each option will be explored. After a brief lunch break, workshop participants will venture out on a bicycle tour of gardens implemented in such spaces. All participants should bring a bag lunch, water, and a bicycle.

Garden City Workshop II: Navigating Permits, Procedures and Building Community Support for your Garden
Date: Sunday, November 8
Time: 10 AM – 2 PM
Location: SPUR, 654 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-4015
Cost: $15- $30 sliding scale
Pre-registration is required, and space is limited, so sign-up soon.
To pre-register, please call (415)750-5110, or email julia@sfpt.org

After you find a potential garden site, what’s next? In this session, learn how to successfully navigate the procedures and permits relevant to your type of site. Learn how to effectively build community support for your garden project and cultivate a committed volunteer group to ensure your garden thrives. A panel of successful garden-entrepreneurs will share how they launched their projects and lessons learned in the process. All participants should bring a bag lunch.

Garden City Workshop III: Digging In: Getting your Garden Started
Date: Sunday, November 15
Time: 10 AM – 2 PM
Location: Garden for the Environment, 7th Ave. at Lawton Street, San Francisco, CA
Cost: $15-$30 sliding scale
Pre-registration is required, and space is limited, so sign-up soon.
To pre-register, please call (415)750-5110, or email julia@sfpt.org

You’ve identified a site for your garden, you’ve completed all appropriate permits and built community support, now it’s time to dig in and create your dream garden. The day will start with a tour of the GFE where we will begin to build our garden skills toolbox. We will assess potential challenges and gain techniques for overcoming those challenges through basic garden design practices, plant considerations, irrigation systems, soil, compost systems, and much more! Don’t forget to bring a bag lunch!