Dwight, The City of Wilmington has in several locations donated the hookup to city water as well as the use of the water. In the interest of conserving resources though - these community gardens are using drip irrigation systems - one that is on an automatic timer that has a manual override and one that is manually set off. Our community garden 'plots' are raised beds and each bed has a manual shutoff so that if an individual chooses not to have his or her bed watered by the system, they are at liberty to do so. So far no one has declined though. The garden coordinators are the ones that oversee the irrigation system and having it be a drip system gives everyone a little more time for other tasks. It hasn't been flawless but so far it seems to be working pretty well. Oh, the systems were also donated so there are no charges for water use for any of the gardeners. There is actually no charge for a 'plot' either - which I think makes it much easier for the garden coordinator to re-assign a neglected bed if necessary but also easier for individuals to feel they can neglect their beds. The gardeners pitch in for their own materials and supplies and the DE Center for Horticulture (DCH) helps with tools, materials and technical support for sponsored gardens as well. A farmer in the area has been donating through DCH all the compost and wood chips the gardeners need as well as the drip irrigation systems. DCH picks up the items and delivers them and helps the gardeners with their implementation as well. I don't think this really answers your question but is simply another perspective. Ann Dwight <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: This is somewhat of an idle query, but I'm interested in the answer.
I was originally told a garden plot in San Jose would cost $70/yr. I think that might have been the lowest price. When I asked about a specific plot, it was $186/yr. They say this is to pay for the water. If there are no means to make people conserve, I'm figuring I'm paying for people who can't be bothered with conserving. Are there any gardens where drip irrigation or some other efficient means is required? Any gardens with individual water meters per plot? I figure if people paid according to their own use, it might keep the cost down. Dwight _______________________________________________ The American Community Gardening Association listserve is only one of ACGA's services to community gardeners. To learn more about the ACGA and to find out how to join, please go to http://www.communitygarden.org To post an e-mail to the list: [email protected] To subscribe, unsubscribe or change your subscription: http://list.communitygarden.org/mailman/listinfo/community_garden_list.communitygarden.org --------------------------------- Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try it now. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://list.communitygarden.org/pipermail/community_garden_list.communitygarden.org/attachments/20071203/e6a41536/attachment.html _______________________________________________ The American Community Gardening Association listserve is only one of ACGA's services to community gardeners. To learn more about the ACGA and to find out how to join, please go to http://www.communitygarden.org To post an e-mail to the list: [email protected] To subscribe, unsubscribe or change your subscription: http://list.communitygarden.org/mailman/listinfo/community_garden_list.communitygarden.org
