Site Selection Criteria | Friendship Gardens Charlotte

Community Garden Site Selection Guide

Aug. 7, 2010

Friendship Gardens has developed the following guidelines for its members who will select sites for new builds. This list is a work in progress.

Physical Criteria

Location and Space

Is the space large enough to provide ample planting room? Each Friendship Garden site should be a minimum of 64 square feet. Is the space easily accessible for the group that will manage the garden? Is the space secure from wildlife that might feed on the plants?

Sunlight

Each proposed site needs a minimum of six hours of sunlight each day.

Soil

If the site proposed will be an in-ground garden, we will test the soil to ensure it is environmentally safe and to determine the best way to amend the soil to encourage the healthiest crops possible.

Water

When possible, we would prefer to water solely or partially with collected rain water. Is there a place for a rain barrel at the site? For larger gardens, is there a place for a large rain water collection system? Regardless of the ability to harvest rain water, there must be a water spigot within usable distance of the garden.

Compost Space

Composting is an essential part of gardening. The potential site must have designated space for a compost pile in the garden area.

Organic Practices

Will the garden be maintained using organic gardening methods for fertilizing and pest control? This is encouraged whenever possible.

Organizational Criteria

Passion

Is the organization or neighborhood supporting the site passionate about gardening? Are the members committed to the mission of growing fresh, healthy, local food for the recipients of Friendship Trays?

Volunteer Commitment

Does the organization have a volunteer base willing to do the garden maintenance work? Do they have a plan for organizing and maintaining volunteer involvement? This is absolutely essential to the success of our program and we cannot commit resources to start a garden that does not have a plan for ongoing support.

Donation Delivery

Does the organization have the ability to deliver their harvest to Friendship Trays? Ideally, a leader or volunteer from the organization would deliver the harvested food to the Friendship Trays kitchen. If that’s not possible, we can explore other methods of pick-up or delivery.

Knowledge

Is there anyone within the organization with experience in gardening or farming? This is not absolutely necessary as we will be educating the volunteers. However, it is important to know ahead of time to ensure a successful partnership.

Want to Know More?

For questions or for more information, please e-mail Henry Owen at Henry@slowfoodcharlotte.org or Carol Adams at Carol@slowfoodcharlotte.org.

Friendship Gardens Charlotte
Creating local, renewable nutritious food resources for meals-on-wheels recipients
An Initiative of Slow Food Charlotte and Friendship Trays, Inc.

Friendship Trays, 2401-A Distribution St. Charlotte, NC 28203 voice 704-333-9229 fax 704-333-5947
Meals-on-wheels in Charlotte-Mecklenburg, NC
Delivering, in a caring and friendly manner, balanced meals to individuals in this community
who are unable, because of age or infirmity, to obtain and prepare their own meal
Friendship Trays is a 501(c)(3) organization. Employer ID #56-1201496. Financial information about this organization and a copy of its license
are available from the State Solicitation Licensing Branch at 919-807-2000. The license is not an endorsement by the State.