Daybreak's Community Gardens are a hit with residents
Community Gardens, like the one’s in Daybreak , help build roots with neighbors and create a deeply connected community.
Editors Note: Kathy Dalton is a consultant to Daybreak and the author of The Danish Mama Blog. She is also the CEO of Little Stinker, a natural products company focussed on childrens products.
The first community gardens I saw were about 15 years ago in Malmo, Sweden. Sweden is an extremly environmentally conscious community and focused on sustainablility before it was mainstream.
I was visiting my friend Camilla, a foreign-exchange student I had gotten to know in the US during High School. Camilla and I instantly became friends because we both have Grandmother’s that were born in Copenhagen, Denmark. During a visit to Denmark to see my grandparents, I took the bridge over to Malmo Sweden for a visit.
Malmo is a small down on the very coast of Sweden. We walked into town, a short walk and a small town, together. As we walked the path to town through some green land, I saw sections of rectangle plots with little sheds surrounding Summer Homes. I was very confused. The plots didn’t match. “Who would plant mismatched plots, that’s silly“, I thought to myself. I had never seen anything like it before and asked my friend what these mismatched plots were all about. Camilla explained that people can rent the plots and grow what ever they want. Often people in Sweden live in apartments in the city and have a cottage a few miles out of town where they go on the weekends. This allows people to have their own yards or gardens to plant on. Sweden has long been known for being sustainable and green.
I see why Community Gardens are catching on here in the US.
On a visit to Daybreak, I toured the Community Gardens and saw for myself the appeal of a Community Garden. The facilities are a gardener’s dream. Water, benches and shade. It’s a great way to work together with friends.
Daybreak believes in bringing neighbors together. The sustainability of community gardens are a huge part of the the neighborhood planning process. Because the gardens are a central feature you get a feel of an enhanced community.
Gardens increase the quality of life by providing a way for neighbors to grow roots together, get outside and enjoy the fresh air and sunshine, all while working toward a common goal.
The gardens are green and beautiful. There are 6 community garden areas sprinkled throughout Daybreak with several hundred plots that residents can rent for $25 per season.
ROGER & GLORIA MARROW, Garden Park residents, have always had a garden. They love to congregate and visit with people. “It’s a great way to visit with each other and it’s fun to see what everyone else is growing”.
Gardening is also a way to get your kids outside and away from TV/video games and teach them things about nature and growing things that they my not lean in school, when in fool bloom our gardens look spectacular and have a lot of variety to them, so it’s fun to just walk through and see what everyone is growing in their individual plots.
There is something very rewarding about eating the fruits of your labor.
Come see for yourself the beautiful Daybreak Community Gardens. If you’re new to the community, stop by the Glass House Information Center and ask for a map.