CTV.ca News

Toronto — As cities grow and green space disappears, a group of environmentally conscious urban dwellers are taking matters into their own hands to turn parking spaces into gardens, bus stop roofs into lush terraces and neglected parks into inviting play spaces.

It's a phenomenon called guerrilla gardening and it's changing the way our cities look as volunteers, working mostly under the cover of darkness without permit or permission on private property, transform abandoned public spaces.

Terry Aldebert, the east Toronto director for the Public Space guerrilla gardening group, says volunteers do it at their own expense, on their own time, and with little or no thanks or fanfare. The grassroots movement is driven by ordinary people who want to make a difference in their own community, she says.

"I got involved with guerrilla gardening because I didn't have a yard and I wanted to get into gardening," Aldebert explains simply, taking a break from weeding a new garden at the corner of Boston Avenue and Dundas Street on the city's east side.

The spot, now the home of a lush, colourful, robust garden that has changed the feel of the entire intersection, used to be the overgrown corner of a weed-infested parking lot.

"I chose this spot specifically because I used to walk my dogs here and I saw that it had fallen into disrepair and I thought we could make it beautiful again," Aldebert, a University of Toronto instructor, tells CTV.ca.

So, in a typical guerrilla-style gardening blitz, roughly 10 volunteers showed up to the location, each bringing soil or plants or mulch, and they set to work.

Weeds were pulled, garbage was removed, old pieces of broken concrete were repurposed as edging for raised flower beds. A rich mix of topsoil, peat and compost was added to breathe new life into the ground, flowers were planted and finally, mulch was put down.

After two hours, the location had been transformed.

It's a model that had worked well for dozens of projects around the city, Aldebert says.

"Mostly the volunteers bring the plants and the soil and the mulch. We ask people who are going to come for the day that we're planting to bring one or two plants each, and if 10 people show up that's a garden. We just get together. It's like a flash kind of gathering. These gardens took two hours to do."

On the day the Boston/Dundas gardens were put in, people who lived nearby came out to help, and some even brought ice cream for the workers. Since then, they have taken on some of the responsibility for watering and weeding the gardens.

That illustrates an important point, Aldebert says. Guerrilla gardeners try to choose locations where local residents are likely to take ownership of the project. That happened in Parkdale -- one of Toronto's most economically challenged areas.

The group installed a garden two years ago. Recently, volunteers revisited the location to do some upgrades, when miffed residents approached them.

"They said 'what are you doing here? This is our garden,'" Aldebert says. "In a couple of years they had totally taken ownership of the project."

Officially, guerrilla gardening is against the law in Toronto, and volunteers are taking a small risk by participating. But the group has never had any trouble, and Aldebert says the city turns a blind eye to the infraction.

"They city simply can't afford to take care of all the public space in the city," she says. "They need help."

Guerrilla gardening isn't isolated to Toronto, though it has one of the more established groups with almost 10 years experience. A similar group has sprouted in Vancouver, with volunteers working to transform some of the most neglected parts of the city. And people in Sydney, Australia, have contacted the Toronto group to ask for advice on setting up their own group.

The grassroots philosophy behind the work, said gardening expert Cullen, is one that translates to people across Canada -- taking marginalized space, investing some of yourself in it and then making sure the neighbourhood maintains it.

Plus, he adds, it proves that "breaking the law, can be fun."

Comments are now closed for this story

Chris
It's good to see something like this happening in a city that doesn't have the best reputation. And I can only hope that the law continues to turn a blind eye on this. Attempting to make the city a better place should never be a punishable offense.

shane
Wow! Happy, cheerful news for a change!

Shoe
Great idea sine most downtown locations have little to no green spaces. All has been converted to buildings, and parking lots. Keep up the good work!

Go Green Toronto!
Very amazing to me that people always find way to adapt. I fully supporting this and I hope that they keep doing and create beauty into Toronto. This is making Toronto an specail city if they make it plain and boring city then they are doomed. GO GREEN TORONTO YOU NEED IT!

I'm sick of ugly civilization.

Jack
I love it!!!

Dan
These people should clearly be arrested. Just kidding, good for them for sprucing up the environment we all live in.

Dan Ireland
Fantastic!!!
Great idea. Cities and towns alike,should be doing this. People could possibly give a small donation for the flowers. Maybe give some homeless persons a job.

Think of how nice that would be...
Keep up the good work.

Scott
I for one see no harm in this movement they are not trying to free hardened criminals, and they are making the environment a better place.

Way to go!

Green Thumb
Congrats to all concerned! Readers of these posts in all cities take note: Don't rely on city or provincial politicians to "green" your cities - few will do that. They only know about expense accounts and the perq.s of their (elected) positions.

As demonstrated in the article, greening starts at the grassroots level - no pun intended. If everyone does his or her bit, in every aspect of environmentalism, we can bring enough pressure - through example - to force governments into regulating the big emitters.

Norm in NB
Could you make it vegetable gardens for fresh produce?

Over Taxed Ontario Taxpayer
What a fabulous idea. I tip my hat to these green warriors. Well done!

James
Kudos!

And could you swing by this weekend and mow my lawn?

Adrian E
Great job people! Keep up the good work. Ugh just thinking about the dilapidated parts of my city makes me want to call these volunteers and save the city

Dee from Alberta
This is an uplifting and pleasent act in a world of too much doom and gloom. Way to go...I love it.

Lynne
Awesome Job gardners!!! and thanks to CTV for a (good News) story!! we need more of this type of reporting these days

Jay
This is another great example of how the average local citizen can help make their community a better place by getting involved.

A lesson for us all!

Jacqui
I think the idea that Dan Ireland had is nothing less than brilliant. Get the homeless to help, they will benefit in so many ways. Gardening is therapy to me, it makes me feel like I've accomplished something worthwhile.

Brenda
FANTASTIC -- its great to see good and uplifting news for a change.
I hope this takes off all over the country - every city and town could do this. There is also green roofs that could be done. food gardens could also be done in areas where there is a real need as well.
Who knows where this kind of news can lead to -- love it and please keep up the great work.
You hard working fun loving volunteers show that you care for the earth and you will be repaid multiple times with the knowledge of this wonderful restful and healing work that you have done. You all deserve our most heartfelt thanks and support.
LOVE IT

Doug BC
How great is this?.It is to rare to find something positive in the news these days.And all done by people who are improving their communities and having some funa at the same time.
Well done.

JR / North Central Sask
Kudos to those people.
With all the talk on the Enviro & Green Spaces, these people are actually doing what benefits us all
Great Story for a change, Nice to see that some really care about the Enviro
I hope they Inspire others all across Canada "BRAVO"

Urban Dweller
I had a friend do this years ago in an unused planter on Yonge St. at the time she was worried she would get in trouble. The garden stayed there without anyone touching it. So obviously people like this sort of thing. Glad to see that there are some courageous people out there who aren't just waiting for the government "to do something".

flower power
What a brilliant and beautiful idea!

On the dowmside I would bet a weeks pension that someone in City Hall is right this instant putting together a plan where you guys will have to pay for a "permit" and submit detailed plans first so they can tax you accordingly

Using city property without paying all the required tax......unforgivable !

Having said that I think others less able to physically assist like myself would love to donate a few bucks to your fantastic efforts

Thank you all so much!

heidi
that is wonderful, to see something great happening in a big city. congrats on the great job

Larry - Northern Guerilla Gardener
Some history: early instances of guerrilla gardening include nomadic gypsies who would plant potatoes along the side of the road, so there would be food for the next group coming along behind them. Also, in many areas of the original trans-continental railroads, you will see old apple trees. This is because the workers were given apples with their lunches, and they buried the cores by the side of the tracks.
True Guerrilla gardening should take the least amount of money as possible. Some hints for EVERYONE in the fall:
Split your perennials and bulbs, and plant them in your local parks.
Collect acorns, beechnuts, walnuts, chestnuts, etc and plant them in neglected areas of your community, or along the sides of local highways.

Matt
I'm glad so many people realize that the urban city environment just isn't something people can really live in, and that we really need to do something to make it a more human friendly environment.

Now all we need is for the government to realize this and stop trying to force everyone to live in such cramped overpopulated cities.

I live outside the downtown core of my city because I can't stand the total concrete environment. The cities are trying to discourage me from living outside the city by actually ripping up roads and parking spaces so I can't easily get into town.

Mike vdB
What a great, uplifting story! Thank-you CTV for actually looking for a good story for a change. The world is full of good people reports...you just have to find them.