Mt. Pleasant Gardens

There is no way for me to tell whether there are more or less vegetable gardens in the District than there were three years ago when I came here. First, I hadn't started noticing gardens until we started one of our own. Second, it seems like I will need to perform a very comprehensive study to count the gardens year after year to know with any kind of certainty if the number is going up or down. And if anybody reading this is willing to give me money to perform such a study, I will be happy to do it. No? Nobody? OK, then.
One thing I will say is that once you start noticing vegetable gardens in the city, they seem to be everywhere. On balconies, windowsills, backyards, front yards, patios, roofs, some are in public spaces, etc. Recently I started walking around the neighborhood where I live with intention to photograph and count all the vegetable gardens I can find. For this I only counted gardens that grew something that can be considered food (herbs included). I only counted those that were within the boundaries of Mt. Pleasant. And I only counted gardens that were clearly visible, as I had no intention of snooping around peoples fenced-in areas, and looking into every window. Truthfully, I looked over a fence once, to find a great garden, well maintained and abundant. And the only reason I photographed it is because I met the owner right there, standing over the fence, she was a warm and pleasant person, like I think most gardeners are.

Yes, I took a picture of one of those Heritage Trail signs. This was another benefit of walking around your neighborhood, they have these everywhere, and I would recommend it to anyone in DC. But back to the gardens. In the grey area in the picture above, with my less than thorough method, I have counted 42 vegetable gardens. That's a magical number.
Some of the things I saw people grow included: tomatoes, cucumbers, peas, beans, beets, lettuce, arugula, herbs, carrots, cabbages, corn, squash, pumpkin, eggplant, rhubarb, melons, onions, garlic, grapes, strawberries, peppers, sunflowers, kale, and sweet potatoes. Did I forget anything? Yes, probably.
I've also noticed an interesting thing while doing this. Where there was one garden, there was another nearby. It seems like once the neighbors see a garden, they want one of their own. Is this a rule, or is this place an exception? I don't know, but here are some of the 42.

Bancroft School garden

Bancroft Front garden

And finally, here is my favorite picture, and one of my favorite gardens because it shows how much you can do with very little, and how good it can look. Look at all those awesome tomatoes!

To me all of these were fantastic. I have a wish that more people do this, grow their food, even a small portion of it. This is not a big idea, but it connects you to something really big. Try it.