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Community gardenActiveSince 1973

Seattle P-Patch Community Gardens

Seattle, United States · Operator: City of Seattle, Department of Neighborhoods (P-Patch Program)

Overview

Seattle's city community-garden program, begun in 1973 with ~90 sites, where immigrants and refugees grow heritage crops from their homelands—Ethiopian kale, Hmong herbs and more—recreating ancestral tastes and food cultures in the city and forming one of Seattle's most multicultural public spaces.

Citizen participation

Residents rent plots; immigrants, refugees, BIPOC and low-income households are prioritized and grow heritage crops from their home countries.

Operating model

A city-run public program funded by plot fees, the municipal budget, donations and volunteers.

Impact

Has provided equitable garden space sustaining immigrant food cultures for over 50 years.

Crops

  • bok choy
  • collard greens
  • Ethiopian kale
  • Hmong herbs
  • heritage crops from immigrants' home countries

Scale

City-wide program of ~90 community gardens; among Seattle's most ethnically diverse public spaces

Sources(2)

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Seattle P-Patch Community Gardens — Urban Farm DB