Garden Dating: Want To Share My Veggies?

Posted by Robyn Gee on January 7, 2011

Liz McLellan, creator of Hyperlocavore, tends her garden.

On your way to work or school, you might pass a few empty, neglected plots of land.  Or, you might pass under an apartment balcony overflowing with potted plants.  People either don’t have enough space, or vice versa.  That’s where the Internet comes in… introducing: garden dating.

New networking sites for urban gardeners are sprouting up all over the Internet. PSFK.com refers to the trend as “Garden Dating” because of the personal profiles, photos, and friendly chats that populate the sites’ main pages.

The basic idea is to connect people who have land to spare, with would-be-gardeners, so that the two parties can collaborate and reap the fruits of their efforts.  It’s the perfect solution for small apartment-dwellers who yearn to grow fresh vegetables, as well as property owners who don’t have time to water or cultivate a yard.

Liz McLellan created Hyperlocavore: A Yard Sharing Community in 2008, a yard share site in the Bay Area, and since then it has taken off.  “As a kid I lived in San Francisco and noticed that there was often a lot of vacant unused space in the middle of city blocks. I thought it would be great if those were parks with food gardens, outdoor kitchens, play areas…I lived in NYC for about 10 years while I was there I really missed having a garden. There were lots of community gardens but the wait lists were long and the plots were very small. ”

A few example sites mentioned by PSFK.com are Landshare in the UK, and YardShare, SharedEarth, and Urban Gardenshare in the United States.  Here are some sample messages:

- “I am new to gardening, I have a backyard I am looking to help, learn and start a garden!”
- “I’m gardening a large vegetable plot in Oakland near Peralta… Much of the bed space has opened up recently. I just removed numerous crops. I’m looking for extra hands and mouths.”
- “I have an urban farm in my backyard to share, located in San Francisco… Have already planted the fall garden, but welcome help tending it, and planting more as the end of summer’s squashes die off. “

How is this different than advertising garden space or abilities on Craigslist?
Landshare and Hyperlocavore users create Facebook-esque profiles where they can list their hobbies and gardening experience, and put up photos of their gardens or of themselves.  In addition, users have ongoing dialogues about gardening tips, good times to plant certain crops, and their gardening progress.  McLellan says, “We have pictures and full profiles, seed and tool sharing and a whole lot more. We feature a ton of videos and our members who are having success after success where they live.”

As garden dating grows in popularity, McLellan says the concept is old.  “Growing things and eating together is something that has always brought humans together. It’s a wound in our collective psyche that we can be healed in a garden!”

In addition, she says garden dating is an economically sound trend as well.   “People will have to find new ways to get food on the table, save money and be productive. The great thing about gardening is you get a ton of exercise, it’s great for your mood, you will eat ten times better, and it’s something you can do with others that is good for everyone! A 25 dollar investment in seeds can bring you 2500 dollars worth of healthy, clean, organic, pesticide free food. Can’t beat that!”

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