About the Community Gardening Network: started in Ottawa in 1997 – 22 years old this year!
- Housed at the organization Just Food – For More info see https://justfood.ca/
- 90+ Community gardens across Ottawa plus 40+ school gardens;
- Gardening workshops every year;
- Have a Community Garden Development Fund that is available every year to financially support new gardens and maintaining or expanding established gardens.
BREWER PARK COMMUNITY GARDEN
Garden Name: Brewer Park Community Garden
Location: Brewer Park
Address: 100 Brewer Way, Ottawa
Garden Promenade Route: More Gardens
Garden Number: 5
Description:
- Community Garden
- Started in 2012, raised beds, 64 plots
- They also have the biodome, which is a greenhouse that replicates the outdoor environment, made with geodesic spheres
- This park is on City land. The City of Ottawa allows for gardens in many parks and other City lands and is presently working with Just Food to finalize easier information for the public about starting community gardens on City land.
- Brewer Community Garden is a strong garden that supports a lot of other gardens across the city by producing manuals on how to build raised beds, deal with pests and manage water. Garden Coordinators can share larger tools, resources and knowledge across Ottawa through the Community Gardening Network.
- Biodome Garden
In the spring of 2014, site excavation began on BPCG’s Biodome Garden with construction taking place over the summer months. And on August 17, 2014, City of Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson officially opened the completed biodome structure.
The Biodome Garden, a pilot project, is the first of its kind in Ottawa. Like a greenhouse, the biodome will give BPCG members an extended growing season, as well as serve as a demonstration, education and research station, for gardeners, community members, and local schools.
BROOKE TOWERS COMMUNITY GARDEN
Garden Name: Brooke Towers Community Garden
Location: 125 McLeod Street, Ottawa ON K2P 0Z6
Address: 125 McLeod Street, Ottawa ON K2P 0Z6
Garden Promenade Route: More Gardens
Garden Number: 8
Description:
- Started in 2014, communal garden
- Their garden is designed with edible landscaping principles – meaning a focus on perennial edible plants that come back every year and spread throughout the landscape, from grasses, flowers, annuals, herbs, berry bushes, nut trees etc.
- There has been more interest in gardening with edible perennials among gardeners in general, with many seeking more permanent and larger spaces to grow. A communal garden is one option.
- Another option the Just Food is piloting is a project called the ‘Commons’ which offers 1/16th of an acre to gardeners, much larger than the majority of other options in the city for gardeners.
- Interested in something larger? You can also scale up to ¼ of an acre and start market gardening at Just Food’s start-up farm program
DALHOUSIE PRIORITY COMMUNITY GARDEN
Garden Name: Dalhousie Priority Community Project (Dalhousie Community Association Community Garden)
Location: Preston at Somerset
Address: Preston at Somerset
Garden Promenade Route: More Gardens
Garden Number: 13
Description:
- Started in 2017, raised beds, 37 plots
- On a temporary site scheduled for development in a few years’ time.
- Gardening space is in demand in an urban context, often seen as competition for housing.
- Important to have urban planning that supports housing AND community gardening in the same neighbourhood and even integrated on the same site (including roof top gardening built into the design for residents).
- Another Community Garden called BUGs (Bytown Urban Gardens) started on a site that was to be developed, and BUGs along with the Community Gardening Network successfully advocated for a community garden to be included in the Request for Proposals for the future housing development, eventually awarded to CCOC (Centertown Citizens’ Ottawa Corporation), with garden beds throughout the courtyard, located near the Nature Museum.
NANNY GOAT HILL COMMUNITY GARDEN
Garden Name: Nanny Goat Hill Community Garden
Location: corner of Laurier and Bronson
Address: 551 Laurier Ave. W, Ottawa ON K1R 5Y9
Garden Promenade Route: Miracle-Gro Downtown Ottawa Garden Route
Garden Number: 13
Description:
- It started in 1999 as an in-ground garden and recently moved to raised-beds due to new regulations at the provincial level that meant the soil below did not meet the new standards. While maintaining 150 plots, the switch from in-ground to raised beds meant a lost 40% of the gardening space.
- And still, it remains one of the largest downtown community gardens.
- They not only have amazing food growing, but a new gazebo that Councillor Catherine McKenney fought hard to have, as community gardens are not just for food security for also for creating space for a community. This is a real focal point in this neighbourhood.
OLD OTTAWA EAST COMMUNITY GARDEN
Garden Name: Old Ottawa East Community Garden
Location: behind Residence & Conference Centre, St. Paul University
Address: 201 Main Street, Ottawa ON K1S 5T8
Garden Promenade Route: More Gardens
Garden Number: 3
Description:
- Started in 2008, in-ground beds, 51 plots
- Great example of successful in-ground growing, as important and a best practice to grow in-ground when soil is healthy because of:
- carbon sequestering
- helps with rainwater catchment when heavy rains and floods
- ensures sustainable food growing practices into the future
- builds soil and is less expensive to maintain
- This garden is hosting a pick-up spot for a local farm – Ferme Agricole – for their Community Shared Agriculture or CSA box. You purchase a membership from the farm and every week a box of diverse, fresh produce gets dropped off at the garden for residents to pick up throughout the season, whether they have a garden plot or not.
- Great example of successful in-ground growing, as important and a best practice to grow in-ground when soil is healthy because of:
OTTAWA CHILDREN’S GARDEN
Garden Name: Ottawa Children’s Garden
Location: Robert F. Legget Park
Address: Main Street, Ottawa ON K1S (at Clegg Street)
Garden Promenade Route: More Gardens
Garden Number: 4
Description:
- Started in 2008, this garden focused specifically on programming with children and runs as communal garden plots, where everyone shares tasks and shares the harvest
- Related to kids: A key partner with the Community Gardening Network is Canadian Organic Growers and their two programs: Growing Up Organic, which animates garden education at elementary schools and Senior Organic Gardeners, focused on getting seniors to engage and share their gardening knowledge.
ST. JOE’S SUPPER TABLE COMMUNITY GARDEN
Garden Name: St. Joe’s Supper Table Community Garden
Location: 151 Laurier Ave E, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N8
Address: 151 Laurier Ave E, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N8
Garden Promenade Route: More Gardens
Garden Number: 1
Description:
- Started in 2014, in-ground plots
- All food grown is used within their meal and food sharing programs.
- Over 30,000 people access food banks in Ottawa each month. All community gardens, home gardeners and farmers are encouraged to participate in the Plant-a-row, Donate-a-row program and donate a portion of their fresh produce to their local emergency food banks.
UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA
Overview:
The University of Ottawa, often referred to as uOttawa or U of O, is a bilingual public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The University hopes that gardens will help bridge the urban / green space divide, providing an opportunity for people to interact and enjoy green space on campus.
Garden Name: Green Campus Community Garden
Location: University of Ottawa
Address: 85 University Private, Ottawa, ON K1N 9A7
Garden Promenade Route: More Gardens
Garden Number: 2(1)
Services for Visitors: Parking $ – Bicycle Racks – Washrooms – Wheelchair Accessible
Description: The University of Ottawa community gardens bring us closer to each other, so we can work together as students, staff members and neighbours. In a sense, community gardens help us create long-term relationships and lasting friendships.
The University hopes that community gardens will help bridge the urban / green space divide, providing an opportunity for people to interact and enjoy green space on campus. Furthermore, we hope that community gardens will help raise awareness about the importance of growing food in the local community.
Garden Name: Learning Community Garden
Location: University of Ottawa
Address: 649 King Edward, Ottawa, ON K1N 7N8 – Garden behind the UCU near the Pivik
Garden Promenade Route: More Gardens
Garden Number: 2(4)
Services for Visitors: Parking $ – Bicycle Racks – Washrooms – Wheelchair Accessible – Eating Areas
WE GROW WELL COMMUNITY GARDEN
(OTTAWA CITY HALL COMMUNITY GARDEN)
Garden Name: We Grow Well Community Garden
Location: Ottawa City Hall
Address: 110 Laurier Ave. W., Ottawa, ON K2P 2H9
Garden Promenade Route: Miracle-Gro Downtown Garden Route
Garden Number: 3(3)
Services for Visitors: Parking $ – Bicycle Racks – Washrooms – Wheelchair Accessible – Eating Areas
Description: This new raised-bed garden is being built this summer at City Hall. It will be managed by The Well, a day program for women and children in the Ottawa area with meal programming that is located on Elgin close to City Hall. The majority of what they grow will contribute to their free lunches