Challenges A discussion of starting and managing a community garden would be incomplete without a discussion of the challenges encountered by gardeners and garden organizers . Common challenges faced by most community garden groups include :
� Management Community gardens are management intensive . They demand patience , time and the capacity to work with and organize people and projects . They also typically require systems to enforce rules and resolve conflicts .
� Maintenance Community gardens are maintenance intensive . Grass will need to be mowed , equipment will need to be repaired , and plant debris will need to be composted , among other things .
� Participation From year to year , gardeners and garden leaders come and go from community gardens for a variety of reasons . Because of this , it can be challenging to maintain a sense of community and consistency at gardens .
� Theft and vandalism Theft and vandalism are commonplace at many community gardens . As a general rule , theft is the result of adult activity and vandalism is carried out by children .
� Gardening skills Many new and some returning gardeners don ' t know a lot about gardening . Gardeners who lack gardening skills and have poor gardening experiences may be more likely to give up .
� Leadership skills Many gardeners may not have the skills to take a leadership role at their respective garden .
� Services and supplies Plowing , tilling and the delivery of compost and mulch can be challenging services for gardeners to arrange for themselves .
� Water Most gardens need some way to irrigate fruits and vegetables during the summer . Finding a source of water can be challenging . Also , because most community gardens are located on borrowed land , installing a water hydrant may not be feasible or cost effective .
� Site permanency Most community gardens are located on borrowed land . This limits the amount of infrastructure that can be added to a particular site . It may also create an atmosphere of instability among gardeners since the garden could be lost at any moment .
Starting a community garden
Before getting into the nuts and bolts of starting a community garden , it ' s helpful to lay a foundation for the work at hand .
From the outset , it is essential to understand that community gardening is about more than growing food , flowers and herbs . It ' s also about interpersonal relationships , group dynamics , planning and organizing , group decision-making and the associated rewards and challenges that come with working with people . In short , community gardening is as much about " community " as it is " gardening ."
If community is so important to community gardening , then how do we orient ourselves to the task of starting or enhancing a community garden ?
The authors of the Growing Communities Curriculum ( Abi-Nader et al ., 2001 ) offer a set of suggestions developed by community gardening experts from across the country . These suggestions , written in the form of " core beliefs ," can be used to guide the development of your community garden and provide a strong foundation for growth .
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