They're growing more than just weed out in Washington State ....

[Scuba]

I love this idea.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. It is an excellent idea, and I wish more cities would implement it. n/t

[Coyotl]

13. Check this VIDEO:

Seattle's Food Forest 2012

[LWolf]

30. This was so good

that I'm going to be late for work this morning.

Thank you.

[Scuba]

36. Thank you for adding this!

[Phlem]

2. I saw that a few months ago.

That's my state! Don't know why I didn't post, must be all the weed.


-p

[Control-Z]

3. What a fantastic idea!!!!

Imagine if this catches on with the rest of the country? I love this plan!

[reusrename]

4. K&R

Bring back the commons!

[awoke_in_2003]

5. You mean walk up to a tree...

pick a piece of fruit, eat it, amd pay no one? Damn commies (how I wish I could lib in such a progressive place)

[angstlessk]

6. Heck, when I was a kid...we had to climb fences for free fruit

I like this...since I am too old to climb anything

[rustydog]

14. I remember in the fall

walking past orchards and picking apples right off the tree for a snack on the way home.

That is theft, isn't it?

I think Seattle's idea is a good one. I hope it works.

[malthaussen]

39. Sure is, Rustydog...

... the guilt from doing it caused a huge crisis of conscience for Augustine of Hippo. So much so that when he grew up he denounced others for the same thing.

You know, kind of like Republicans and pot.

-- Mal

[LanternWaste]

55. I s'pose one might even argue that removing a dandelion from a corner stoop is theft

"That is theft, isn't it?"

I s'pose one might even argue that removing a dandelion from a corner stoop is theft. Thankfully, I don't know anyone quite that absurdly dogmatic enough to argue as such...

[calimary]

7. SUPERB!!!

[CarrieLynne]

8. i went and checked it out last summer

wasnt much more than a few squash plants at that time but certainly room for alot more....i am excited about it and I might have to go volunteer there.....

[pokerfan]

9. You haven't had an olive

until you've plucked one right off the tree and popped it in your mouth!

[indie9197]

16. LOL n/t

[MineralMan]

24. Pucker up!

[bkanderson76]

10. Beautiful....Go washington n/t

[brett_jv]

11. Love the idea, but like so many wonderful ideas, I have to to sadly wonder if it'll work as we hope

What's to stop the trees being cleaned out the first day the fruits ripen by people who just want to turn round and sell it all at Farmers Market (or even just to hoard it for themselves)?

With all my heart I hope such fears are totally misplaced, and it turns out to be a beautiful 'community thing' where everyone will take only what they need.

That would make for a very nice 'lesson' to certain people in the world who need to learn certain things about humankind, as a matter of fact.

[JDPriestly]

19. Higihly unlikely. They would have to carry it home.

As I stated below, a church in my area has a front garden that is edible. It invites those passing by to take one item to eat. I don't think they have had a problem with theft although they are on a busy corner.

[CrispyQ]

34. The pessimistic cynic in me agrees.

This summer, a church in our town had a garden of pumpkins. I don't know if they were going to sell them or just give them to the kids in their congregation, but one night, about two weeks before Halloween, someone smashed all the pumpkins. There's always gonna be some asshole to fuck things up.

[KurtNYC]

50. I don't know about Washington but here the farmer's market isn't like a swap meet where

just anyone can show up and sell. Mostly you need some kind of farm first.

This kind of open garden has been done many times before in blighted neighborhoods. Seems to have gone well:

Not sure why many want to claim to be "the first" to do something but Washington will be far from the first. Urban agriculture is red hot right now.

[steve2470]

12. probably a tad too cold for citrus there

Excellent idea !!!

[rustydog]

15. Pear, apples, cherries,

grapes, what have you...veggies?

[steve2470]

17. oranges don't do well if it dips below freezing

I think Seattle gets below freezing. Otherwise it's a wonderful idea.

[Arugula Latte]

45. Hazelnut trees would be great, too. We do that well here in the NW!

[Sanity Claws]

33. Plum trees do well in Seattle too

I know --- I had one in my yard when I lived there.
Other things that I remember doing well in Seattle: herbs: rosemary, thyme, oregano, chives;
vegetables: zucchini, small tomatoes (not enough sun for Beefsteak tomatoes), pumpkin, butternut squash
fruit: cherries, plums

[Coyotl]

42. There is no citrus in the PNW because it freezes here.

But, we do have some of the best fruit in the nation, especially the apples, pears, cherries, peaches, and more. Kiwis do well and grapes thrive.

[JDPriestly]

18. A Unitarian church not too far from my house ohas an edible front garden and it invites

passers-by to pick one thing to eat. I think it is a wonderful idea. What a great park for Seattle.

[mountain grammy]

20. Great idea! No wonder Seattle kicked our butts!

Colorado needs to follow suit..

[niyad]

48. even with our VERY short growing season, we could certainly do something

similar. we do have some community gardens, but that is not the same thing at all.

[demigoddess]

21. yes, all cities should

do this. We should plant trees all over the place to freshen the air and purify the water. And loads of fruit trees for locally grown produce. for Local neighborhoods and for homeless people. Also it might help the bees if they keep down the pesticides.

[Enthusiast]

22. Clearly this amounts to communism.

It undermines free enterprise.

[Laelth]

28. You laugh, but that's exactly what our oligarchs will argue. n/t

-Laelth

[Enthusiast]

59. Oh, I know it.

[kelliekat44]

23. I love the thought but envision possible gun battles over stand your fruit ground. nt

[lonestarnot]

25. Fantastic!

[Boom Sound 416]

26. Cool idea

But the cynic in me says the injury lawyers are salivating

[packman]

32. Sadly, that's the first thing I thought

Some Yoyo will climb a tree, branch will break, person injured, park/city sued, program discontinued, park bulldozed. Litigation evolution.
Nevertheless, great idea and hope it works. Loved to climb my grandmother's sweet cherry tree back in Pennsylvania to pick those dark , ruby red sweet cherries. Still can remember the taste and the adventure of climbing that tree. Still can remember the internal distress the following day from eating all those cherries also.

[Boom Sound 416]

37. Right, it's terrible that's the first thought

Maybe if they charge $1 then it covers it under normal business practices.

[Laelth]

27. Good idea. k&r for exposure. n/t

-Laelth

[B Calm]

29. Great idea! Will the park service employees spray the trees?

If they don't spray, the fruit will be wormy.

[packman]

31. Perhaps they need an

Adopt-A-Tree program. Donate money for the upkeep-spraying, trimming, pruning, etc. - of a tree. Bet they'd be quite a bit of support for this.

[Jamastiene]

35. Every city should do this.

It is an amazing idea.

[Brickbat]

38. It's called Beacon Food Forest and here's more information about it.

http://www.beaconfoodforest.org/

[Scuba]

40. Thank you for adding this!

[BlancheSplanchnik]

41. Yay!!

Wonderful idea!!

[Blue_Tires]

43. It's an idea which should have implemented long ago, but

the cold cynic in me says:

1. The city is begging for a lawsuit the moment some kid eats something rotten

2. Since the local Philistines go batshit insane over deeds for the common good, I could see some mob storming the park in the middle of the night; beating any homeless to death and poisoning all the gardens

3. Since the local Philistines believe anything "socialist" means the Bolsheviks are officially taking over, it will take 30 seconds for the "AH DONT WAHNT MAH TAX DOLLAHS PAYIN FOR _____" -crowd to make it an issue in local/city elections

4. Because the "Church of Capitalism" believers live to show us all how big of a bunch of dicks they can all be, I can see them hiring the homeless at a buck an hour to harvest all the crops to sell roadside at a markup...

[Scuba]

44. I too often struggle to keep my cynicism under control.

[Bluenorthwest]

66. My instant guess is that you live in a place with more conservatives in power than Seattle

Seattle recently elected a socialist, not a 'Socialist' but an actual socialist, to the City Council. 'Church of Capitalism' impresses no one. It has no protections to allow it to hire the homeless for a dollar and set up business with impunity.
Where DO you live? I know it is not out West.

[Blue_Tires]

70. Virginia Beach, VA

Home of Pat Robertson, the anti-tax loons long before they started calling themselves the 'tea party', and the rugged, "no free lunch" individualists...

[niyad]

46. there is a lovely town in england where the public square, and, indeed, most

of the businesses and residents, plant edibles--trees, fruits, all sorts of things. there are MAPS to tell you who is growing what--and it is all free for the picking!! what a novel idea. todmorden:

Incredible Edible Todmorden project
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Incredible Edible Todmorden project is an urban gardening project started in 2008 by Pamela Warhurst, Mary Clear and a group of like minded people in Todmorden, West Yorkshire, England.[1][2] The project aims bring people together and through actions around local food, help change behaviour toward the environment and build a kinder and more resilient world.

Since its conception, the Incredible Edible ethos has been taken up by communities all over the world where local people are coming together in their own time to turn unloved pieces of land into community gardens growing food to share, and there are now more than twenty other 'Incredible Edible' towns following the lead of Yorkshire's Todmorden.[1]

"At first, we had trouble getting people to help themselves, because we're from a country where people say, 'Get off my land', so we had to tell people it was OK .... nearly 50% said it had had a positive impact on their income." [3] -- Mary Clear

In 2009, Prince Charles visited the Incredible Edible Todmorden project in support.[4]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incredible_Edible_Todmorden_project
years ago, a friend and I started talking about trying to have that sort of thing here in our community--everybody growing different edibles (not wasting water on grass) so that the whole neighborhood is one gigantic garden.

[Scuba]

47. Thanks for adding.

[Dark n Stormy Knight]

49. Well, some local R will just strip the trees and sell the fruit for profit.

I can't help but worry. What's to prevent that?

[KamaAina]

62. Ag theft laws

most agricultural states (like CA, HI) have them. Since WA grows apples and some wine grapes, I'm sure it does, too.

[Dark n Stormy Knight]

65. I hope my cynicism is unfounded and such laws won't even be necessary.

I can't always keep a glimmer of hope.

[kestrel91316]

71. Oh yeah, THAT will stop them.

There will be no funds for enforcement, no one to watch out for wholesale crop stealing and no one wanting to bother with prosecution.

Those laws are for punishing people who steal from CORPORATIONS, not from WE THE PEOPLE.

[canoeist52]

51. A link to their facebook page for pictures

https://www.facebook.com/beaconfoodforest

[A HERETIC I AM]

52. Check this out;

Urban food;

[Chef Eric]

53. Hopefully, the trees will be friendly.

|

[wildbilln864]

54. great idea! k & r. n/t

[kestrel91316]

56. Betcha some "entrepreneur" will take it all for themselves and sell it

on a street corner.

[KamaAina]

63. See #62 above.

Of course, when has breaking the law stopped them?

[questionseverything]

57. gardeners rock!

even if your city will not try this you can start planting here and there yourself

20 years ago I started planting asparagus, apple trees, blueberries, raspberries, all come back stuff in my yard and along my back alley.....couple neighbors did the same and now we have quite a bit of edible stuff growing

it is fun to "catch" the new neighborhood kids "snitching" an apple...we just laugh and say...you don't have to hide ,that is what it's there for

the only trouble we have had is teaching the kids to let the berries fully ripen

[MFM008]

58. Love My State

innovation!

[KamaAina]

60. Those would do really, really well in California

especially in Central Valley cities like Sacramento and Fresno.

Not so much in drought years like this one, though.

[AngryAmish]

61. just make sure the soil is not lead contaminated

[blackspade]

64. Super awesome.

But, I bet some teabagger will vandalize it though.
We can't be feeding the homeless and the poor for free.
They need to be punished for their poverty, don't ya know....

[MrMickeysMom]

67. Yes, indeed… I know about food forests

I can't think of a better way to invite a peaceful public place for everyone…

Jeebus… maybe this practice will finally take off.

[Chico Man]

68. Take a hike

First food forest?

I wonder what used to grow there.

Could cause animal problems..

Seems very artificial and superficial.

Bugs.. Fertilizer.. Compost.. Pesticides.. Have they really thought this through?

[jtuck004]

69. It's part of a public health campaign. We made weed legal, want to offer a healthy alternative

to potato chips

Got the Munchies? Grab an Apple From Your Tree!