Urban gardening is becoming popular in Vilnius – MadeinVilnius.lt

From St. On St. Mark’s day, Lithuanians started work in the gardens and planted carrots first. Urban gardening is becoming popular in Vilnius as well. In Pilaite, the townspeople have been cultivating the “Bed of Ideas” for the fifth season, and in Sapiegii Park, the mountaineers currently have both outdoor beds and a year-round hydroponic garden. Carrots and beets are grown even in the Old Town. A new community garden will appear in Verkii, and in Naujininkai, the Municipality’s new public space, a place is also being designed for residents’ gardens.

From multi-bed to hydroponic garden

One of the first community gardens back in 2013. was founded in Antakalni. The activity started with three outdoor beds. Later, the garden expanded, and the abandoned greenhouse was used. The active community organized open talks, neighbor’s days, other events, and invited those who wanted to join. The garden is overseen by the association “Antakalniečiai kommunata”. About 20-30 people grow vegetables every year.

The activities of the Antakalniečiai community center “Miestos laboratorija” also started from urban gardening, which has a year-round hydroponic garden in its premises. It conducts experiments in innovative horticulture. This is probably the only place in Lithuania where anyone can freely come and see such a gardening system.

“Through the activities in the gardens, an active community also emerges, so in community gardens I would put the emphasis on communities, not gardens. It’s even more of a social activity than horticulture,” said Goda Sosnovskienė, representative of the City Laboratory.

New vegetable garden – in Verkii

Five years ago, a community garden appeared in Pilaite, next to the Beepart creative workshop. The vegetable garden located on Vydūnas Street initially had 6 beds, later expanded and currently has 33 beds, which are maintained by community members.

“In the beginning, all the beds were shared. This concept was not very acceptable, everyone wanted a separate bed. However, when the community was formed, they got to know each other, and shared beds started to become popular. We grew up,” said architect Laura Petrushkė, one of the founders of this garden. “Idejų lysvė” is growing successfully so far, as another vegetable garden will be established this year in Verkiai – at the former stables of the Verkiai manor.

This idea was selected from 15 others in the competition for the support of community activities of non-governmental organizations announced by the Vilnius City Municipality and received funding. There will be 8 raised beds, water access will be provided, and boxes for storing tools will be installed in Verkii.

“As soon as we announced the news about the community garden being created on social networks, there were more people who wanted to garden than we had space for. On May 1st, we are already inviting you to the first taluka”, L. Petrushkė, the initiator of the city’s horticulture, was happy.

The community garden in the Old Town, in the courtyard between St. Steponas and V. Šopenas streets, has founded the Flower Park community. Nearby, the cultural activity-oriented organization “Sodas 2123” has a vegetable garden on Vitebsko street. Community-maintained gardens are located in Užupy, Šiaurinai Žvēryne.

A garden for each kindergarten

Raised beds are installed in schools and kindergartens. Last year, 17 schools carried out public environmental education projects organized by the Vilnius City Municipality, during which they created and used green educational spaces where they grew various spices, aromatic, medicinal plants, vegetables, fruit trees and fruit bushes.

“Raised beds in schools are not yet so popular, but almost all kindergartens already have smaller or larger beds, some even have greenhouses.” In them, children get to know plants, their care, and try to grow vegetables themselves”, says Ona Motiejūnaitė, ecologist of the Environmental Protection Programs and Plantation Management subsection of the Vilnius City Municipality.

Nearby labels with plant names and QR codes, stands with plant life cycles help you get to know the plants and learn more about their properties. Educators have prepared methodological materials for developing students’ plant growing skills, introducing them to organic farming, plant research methodologies.

Gardens – and in the squares

Places for citizens’ gardens are also planned in public spaces. The Vilnius city municipality plans to adapt a 1.2 ha public space in Naujininkai near Tukstantmetis and Darius and Girėnos streets for residents’ recreation. The territory has a place for gardening, composting, a gazebo, a water column.

“This is the first public space in Vilnius where we have designated space for community gardens. We hope that this will not only encourage community spirit, but also popularize city gardens in Vilnius,” says Akvilė Myško-Žvinienė, head of the Landscape Architecture Sub-Department of the Vilnius City Municipality.

In Grigiškės, in Afindevičiņi Street, the area planned to be maintained is also planned to leave space for the gardens of the townspeople, who have been gardening here for a long time.

Flower beds with cabbage and beans

Last year, the garden-flower garden, established on Šnipiškių Street near the CUP shopping center, delighted Vilnius residents throughout the warm season. And in autumn, together with the children of the capital’s children and youth center “Hobiverse”, a harvest festival was celebrated. This year, 387 leafy beets, 88 pumpkins, 156 kale, 176 kale, 110 climbing beans, 154 corn, 422 amaranth, 387 oregano seedlings will be planted here. In the garden, there are still perennial plants sown from last year: asters, catnip, mint, fennel.

“Urban gardens and edible flower gardens are extremely popular in Western European countries. They look beautiful, but at the same time there is a kind of education for the citizens, especially children – about the plants and vegetables that end up on our table,” said Vaiva Marozienė, the landscape architect of the Vilnius City Parks.

Vilnius city municipality has prepared a city gardening guide for residents, which would help citizens to establish their own garden near their homes. “After agreement with the neighbors, the kindergarten can be established near the apartment building. This is an opportunity not only to grow vegetables, but also to establish relations with neighbors”, says Ramunė Baniulienė, advisor of the Office of the Chief Architect of Vilnius City Municipality.