After coming to Providence from his native Laos, Chue Kue had to travel more than 25 miles to raise his own crops on a small patch of land. Subsistence farming might be widespread throughout Southeast Asia, but in the tighter confines of a Northeast city, farmland wasn't close at hand. At least not until the establishment of the Southside Community Land Trust (SCLT), which has been helping Kue and other urban gardeners to connect with the land for 20 years.

The premise is simple: a $15 membership fee buys a plot of land (about 15 feet by 15 feet), compost, and water for the season. Members, who are expected to help clean the gardens, are free to grow whatever vegetables and herbs they like, says special projects coordinator Michelle Sheehan.

The benefits are substantial. For starters, growing vegetables saves money on grocery bills. "Plus, it's more convenient" says Kue, a 15-year veteran of the land trust. SCLT has helped families in South Providence to transform unsightly vacant lots into beautiful urban farms and gardens, and City Farm, a certified organic urban farm, serves as base camp for community-building events, including classes on seedling propagation and bee-keeping. (For info, visit users.ids.net/~sclt/.)

Deborah Schimberg formed SCLT to help people, like Kue, who faced barriers to farming. "I was interested in the idea of making land available to urbanites as a way to continue their lifestyle," she says, as well as keeping green space in community hands. The SCLT met both needs so well that the program continues to thrive even after the founder's departure. Membership hovers around 250 families. "It's getting into waiting lists for some of the plots," Sheehan says, adding, "Right now, everyone who wants one will probably be able to get one."

Perhaps more important than the gardening itself is the sense of community fostered by the effort. "We have potluck suppers just so people can meet each other," Sheehan says. Kue notes that one of his favorite parts is getting together with fellow gardeners to "meet and chit-chat." Adds Schimberg, "It's the epitome of what a city should be -- people coming together and sharing and getting to know one another."

Issue Date: April 19 -25, 2002