Golden Hill Community Garden

Dan Olsen works in the garden

— a place to plant homegrown produce and nourish lasting friendships

By Manny Lopez

The Golden Hill Community Garden in Balboa Park is at the heart of today’s farm-to-table movement providing urban gardeners homegrown produce plus a connection to the environment and their neighbors.
Juxtaposed alongside a view of the downtown San Diego landscape, the community garden adds tranquility, charm and scenic beauty to one of the city’s oldest and most architecturally diverse neighborhoods. Started in April of 2004, in a once unused area of the park overgrown with weeds, the 4,000-square-foot open space located at 2440 Russ Blvd. has blossomed into a vibrant and thriving organically based garden, with 29 plots that currently boasts a waiting list.
Vicki Garrett, projects coordinator for the American Community Garden Association, an organization that works to promote and support community gardening, located in Columbus, Ohio, said that the Golden Hill Community Garden is a good use of parkland space, because people who need to garden most are often renters who do not have access to land. Garrett added that with space at a premium in urban areas, people that can benefit from growing their own food can access fresh and nutritious produce in a cost-efficient way. For residents of Golden Hill the community garden is the only public space available in the neighborhood, for them to cultivate a piece of land.
Anxiety over food safety issues such as melamine contamination, salmonella, E. coli and listeria have led to a rebirth of agriculture, said David Olsen, a board member and grower at the community garden. According to Olsen, knowing where their food is grown has become very important to people in the last few years. As a result, he said interest in the garden has increased as more people move away from store bought products that may contain pesticides or genetically modified ingredients.
Environmental concerns, the desire to conserve natural resources and the additional costs associated with the production, processing and transportation of food has got people wanting to eat more local, said Garrett. “The average bite of food travels 1,500 miles to get to your plate,” she said. “So it’s not as fresh, used a lot of energy to get there and you don’t know who the grower is.”
Regardless of their purpose, growers at the Golden Hill Community Garden have created a community, said Maureen Burk, who has tended a plot at the garden since its inception. A self described “garden hack,” Burke pointed out that through her involvement, she has developed lasting relationships with people from all walks of life, whom she otherwise would never have met.
Burke said that through community gardening, neighbors are able to exchange information, reap the fruits and share in the rewards of tending the land, which she believes helps to build a stronger and more integrated community. Burke also pointed out that the garden contributes diversity to Balboa Park, because it’s another way for residents to enjoy the open space and get physical activity at the same time. “It’s like a basketball court for some of our senior citizens,” she said. “Being able to get their hands in the dirt provides many therapeutic benefits.” Burke who is a senior buyer for a local company said that gardening help her unwind and shake off the effects of her busy schedule.
The Golden Hill Community Garden holds regular meetings on the first Saturday of every month, which are open to anyone who wishes to attend. Guest speakers are invited and members share all types of information on growing and agriculture.
For more information on the Golden Hill Community Garden, go to goldenhillcommunitygarden.com or call (619) 231-0182.