Outdoor Shed at Urban Roots
While attending Garden Blogger’s Buffa10 in Buffalo, there were many exciting places on our itinerary. One of them was Urban Roots Community Garden Center, an innovative community garden co-op. With over 600 community owner-members and growing, this garden center is a mecca for Buffalo’s gardeners. Urban Roots sells plants for the garden, tools, artwork, hosts a slew of garden workshops, and much more.
Urban Roots was a brain storm of a group of people who wanted to have a garden center for its community in the heart of buffalo. In 2005, in an up and coming neighborhood, literally minutes from any “Garden Walk” garden, they began modestly with a plant swap and heirloom seed sale.
Borrowing the “mission statement” right off of their website, Urban Roots, their mission is a beautiful idea which obviously is growing and flourishing for Buffalo. Perhaps, there are many garden co-ops across the country, but this is the first I have seen, and there are certainly not any in my neighborhood. Once again Buffalo, what an innovative garden idea. Hum….
Our Mission
Urban Roots Community Garden Center is a consumer cooperative business whose mission is to provide quality products for gardening in the City of Buffalo and be an active and enriching member of the community.
• We will offer affordable, unusual, heirloom, organic and local plants, and gardening supplies.
• We will foster a working relationship with the greater neighborhood in order to encourage beautification and urban renewal.
• We will engage the community through education, employment, outreach, expertise and volunteering efforts.
Although it was a rainy Friday afternoon, we all hopped off our bus, ready to eagerly explore this community garden co-op. It was busy, despite the rain. There were two lectures in progress, one on “backyard chickens” and the new city ordinance allowing chickens in Buffalo, and the second inside the Urban Roots shop and next to a sinfully-scented bakery, it appeared to be a well-attended “plant” lecture. Needless to say, my fellow garden bloggers and myself, generously spent and supported Urban Roots in our brief visit.
Slightly Wet Chickens Love Their Limelight
If you are ever in Buffalo, for Garden Walk, Urban Roots Community Garden Center is a must stop destination, and a “place for you to know”. We all could benefit from an Urban Roots model in our communities.
Please share if you have a garden co-op in your community. Please comment on some of the innovative garden ideas you have ongoing in your community.
VintageGardenGal Tidbit Thyme….
If I have given you enough of a tease on on Buffalo’s beauty and innovative garden sense and want more, check out Buffa10 for more beautiful writing and photos from my fellow garden bloggers.
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi! The Urban Roots Center sounds like a powerful center for education and inspiration. We have something similar budding here in Riverside, California. Growcology is a nonprofit (www.growcology.com) that is working to educate our community, provide community outreach and partnerships to further green initiatives, and to nurture community dialogues in the green movement. They have a garden site that community members can tour and volunteer at and they host many events throughout the year including potlucks, movie nights and lectures. In my opinion, one of its greatest powers is creating a community of like-minded people. There are many people here who care about green issues but having an organization to bring those individuals together to dialogue and share ideas and knowlege is what has been most exciting.
Diana, it sounds wonderful. I’ll look at your website. There is something about a community-based garden venture that has strength and passion to assist a community.
It is wonderful to hear about. Thanks for your great comment…VintageGardenGal
It was a pleasure to host all of the Bloggers who came to Urban Roots on that VERY rainy Friday afternoon.What a lovely group of gardeners! We made many new friends and hopefully inspired a few to consider the possibility of a Cooperative Garden Center in their own community. We are very proud to be the only community owned Co-op Garden Center in the country and hope that others follow as we have seen a significant positive change in our community since forming. Thank you for writing about us on your blog. You really captured the spirit of our co-op. Please stop by next time you are in town.
Patti
GM @ Urban Roots
Loved meeting you too. Oh, Lord, my attitude, it often gets me in trouble. You’re doing great with your writing and blog.~~Dee
That is such a cool garden center. I love the chickens.
Meemsync, Urban Roots is definitely worth a visit if you are in the Buffalo area. I usually see chickens at feed stores, rarely at garden centers. It is a nice touch, and the two go hand in hand. Thanks for your comment….VintageGardenGal
{ 1 trackback }