Biohuerto Ayllu 21 (Villa El Salvador, Lima)
Lima, Peru · Operator: Neighbourhood gardeners with REDAVES (Asociación de Redes Ambientales de Villa El Salvador)
Overview
In an arid peripheral district of Lima, older women turned wasteland into a 1,400 m² agroecological garden. A resident-led response to food insecurity and the climate crisis, it puts urban agriculture at the heart of neighbourhood food and social life.
Citizen participation
In Villa El Salvador, a self-built district of southern Lima, neighbours—mostly older women—reclaimed a plot that had become a dumping ground and started this communal garden in 2018. Backed by the environmental network REDAVES, residents tend some 40 six-metre beds two days a week using agroecological methods; the MUSA project (supported by Cuso International) has recently upgraded its infrastructure.
Operating model
Communally run by resident volunteers. Harvests feed participating households and local community kitchens (ollas comunes), with surplus sold; NGO and international-cooperation grants (e.g. Cuso International) help fund infrastructure.
Impact
Simultaneously restored neglected public space and boosted older residents' participation, supplying fresh vegetables to community kitchens and improving local nutrition. It has drawn media and municipal attention as a model for southern Lima's urban-agriculture movement.
Crops
- chard
- radish
- broccoli
- celery
- tomato
- beet
- basil
- spinach
- lettuce
- aromatic herbs
Scale
1,400 m² — About 1,400 m² with some 40 six-metre beds in Sector 2, Grupo 21 of Villa El Salvador, on land recovered from an informal dumping ground
Sources(3)
This entry is compiled from the public sources, official sites and research below.
- ArticleBiohuerto Ayllu 21 (Wikipedia, es) ↗es.wikipedia.org
- ArticleTrabajo conjunto de mujeres convierte un basurero en un huerto ecológico en Perú (IPS Noticias) ↗ipsnoticias.net
- ArticleProyecto MUSA — Mujeres Unidas por la Seguridad Alimentaria y Ambiental (Agricultura en Lima) ↗agriculturaenlima.com
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