COMMONS MAGAZINE

Growing a Gardening Community

Sharing garden space and a patch of soil is the best means to connect with local green thumbs and enjoy delicious homegrown food.

Fans of the Web site Hyperlocavore know there’s more than just sugar, saws and snow blowers that we share with our neighbors. They discuss the advantages of sharing our yards, from a bit of soil for a flower bed to an entire garden, which can connect neighbors, improve our gardening skills and help us to eat more healthy homegrown foods.

Yard sharing is an arrangement between people to share gardening resources – land, time, tools, seeds, skills and labor– to grow food locally. By cooperating in a backyard garden, people can grow more food and flowers, work less weeding and hoeing, eat more locally grown foods and save money.

Since its inception in 2009, Hyperlocavore has steadily grown a vast network of green thumbs across the country. Within the site, people can connect with gardeners in their communities who are interested in participating in yard sharing programs.

“I created Hyperlocavore to encourage people to grow food with their friends, family and neighbors. It’s a social networked yard sharing community dedicated to help people build resilience in their neighborhood,” Hyperlocavore creator Liz McLellan said.

To start, users must first sign-up on Hyperlocavore and create a profile on its network. After a profile has been made, users can search for people in their areas who are looking for space to garden or have extra space in their garden. You can join existing yard sharing groups or start a new group.

As a yard sharing garden develops, users can upload photos and videos of their efforts while showcasing all the plants they had grown. Gardeners can also dig into robust discussion boards where gardening tips and ideas are exchanged.