Urban Farming

I have always been fascinated with the idea of urban farming. Type "urban farming" into Google and the variety of projects around the world is astonishing. The idea that city slickers can grow their own food appeals to me no end. The fact that we may HAVE to in the not too distant future is also at the back of my mind. This is exactly what happened in Havana, Cuba. Back story can be read here , here , here and here

When I lived in Durban I has a small veggie patch that produced an astounding array of veg. It was not much bigger than a double garage. The argument that many people have to NOT plant more food is that they do not have space. That is total BS.

The first time I became aware of people using every square inch in an urban setting was many moons ago on a visit to Dar es Salaam. Every bit of ground was used to grow something. The soil was a powdery sand but that did not stop people trying.

My son recently sent me photographs he took in South Korea.

The topography in South Korea is very hilly and mountainous. There is not a lot of land suitable for agriculture so every little bit counts. Slopes are terraced to gain maximum planting space.

Note the little stream (storm water drain?) running through this garden as well as the tank to save water. The photographs were taken from a moving vehicle.

Even roof tops and balconies are used. To prove that this is not a flash in the pan I am including a wider shot that spoilt by some sun flare, but you can get the idea.

Which now begs the question, why are we so lazy? We have lots of ground, yet we have so many people claiming poverty and hunger. If the people of Dar es Salaam can grow food in sand, if the Cubanos can replace their expensive imports and the South Koreans can grow food along freeways and on roof tops, why do we still have issues with hungry people?