Thursday, August 12, 2010

When people say young people aren't gardening today, I say bullshit.

Young people are gardening everywhere, and these are the gardeners and farmers who inspire me the most.

"You cannot determine the ancestors you inherit, but you can completely determine the kind of ancestor you will be."



This is the trailer for Grown in Detroit. From their website....
Grown in Detroit focuses on the urban gardening efforts managed by a public school of 300, mainly african-american, pregnant and parenting teenagers. In Detroit alone, there are annually more than 3,000 pregnant teenagers who drop out of high school. This school is one of three located in the United States. As part of the curriculum, the girls are taught agricultural skills on the school's own farm located behind the school building what used to be the playground. The young mothers, often still children themselves, are learning by farming to become more independent women and knowledgeable about the importance of nutritional foods. Many of them start out disliking the often physically hard work on the farm but this aversion disappears as they see their crops growing and being sold for profit. “Back to the roots”, a simple yet effective solution for a city that has to start all over again and perhaps a lesson to be learned for the rest of the world.
Inspired, inspired, inspired.

7 comments:

Beth S. said...

I'm from the Detroit area but I had not heard of this documentary. I want to see it now. Thanks for sharing!

It reminds me of the book "Seedfolks" by Paul Fleischman. It's fiction, but it's got a similar feel to it: an inner-city community garden brings people together and helps the neighborhood.

Heather said...

Being pretty broke right now, I've been cooking more at home and discovering that it's frankly easier (and cheaper) to do with fresh produce - even if it "supposedly" costs more. I think any exposure to fresh produce (especially growing it) is great for everyone involved.

Amy said...

thanks for sharing this! It's odd, but most of my friends (who I would argue are 'young') are gardening! And canning! And making cheese (although that's mostly just me, making my friends learn how to make mozzarella!)

Taylor said...

I'm 27 and I've had a garden since I was 24. I think that counts as young! And the best part is, I've seen so many of my friends from high school and college start gardens.

Katie said...

Ah, yes. That age-old argument is so annoying to me also! This documentary looks very cool, thanks for sharing!

Anonymous said...

Our local paper sponsored a homemade salsa contest at the farmers' market last weekend. All three (3!) top prizes were awarded to two teenage boys who planted and share an awesome garden and who created the winning salsas. I agree ... bullcrap!
Trudy's Mom

sarah gilbert , cafemama said...

tears and loads of love for this project. you picked out the most powerful bit, too: what kind of ancestors we'll be. thanks for co-inspiration.