This season, the city of Akron is getting involved in the urban agriculture movement with a new program called Akron Grows.  Eight city-owned vacant lots have been turned into community gardens, and community members can acquire plots in which to grow food for a small fee of $20-$30.  “We recognize, especially in today’s economy, the need for people to put affordable, fresh food on the dinner table; the city itself also has a need to put vacant lots to productive use.  I’m excited to watch Akron Grows spur community involvement and serve as an educational opportunity for our kids,” said Mayor Don Plusquellic in a city press release.  

    Kathy Duckworth and Shanae Davis, a pair of ORIP interns, have been working in these gardens this summer.  Their work is headed by Dr. Parwinder Grewal and Dr. Mary Gardiner, both of whom are interested in how landscape structure influences the above and below-ground pest management and pollination supplied by insects.  Landscape ecology examines how surroundings affect the bug populations of agricultural land.  They have selected six Akron Grows sites as well as six nearby vacant lots and are measuring and comparing the bug populations of the sites.  They want to assess the population differences between rural and urban areas and between gardens and vacant lots.

    Duckworth is focusing on underground life, primarily nematodes.  Davis works aboveground, ensnaring flying insects using sticky traps, yellow pieces of cardboard coated in a sticky substance.  She is looking at different types of lady beetles as well as other beneficial insects, such as hoverflies and damselbugs.  The results are analyzed to determine the differences between urban and non-urban bug populations as well as the difference created by the existence of a garden.

    With Davis and Duckworth, we visited two gardens and two vacant lots.  We first stopped at a garden on Lover’s Lane (yes, that is actually the name of the street), which seemed to be coming along well.  As with most urban gardens, it felt a little incongruous with its surroundings.  Old houses, empty buildings, and city streets surrounded the small garden.  A construction vehicle was parked right next to it.  However, the plots were well developed and the crops were growing.  There wasn’t much to see in the vacant lots, but they looked like suitable sites for future gardens.  In the other garden we visited, not all of the plots were in use, but those that had been planted were flourishing with tomatoes, lettuce, and brightly colored flowers.  The most productive of the gardens contained a sign that proclaimed it to be “Karen’s Garden.”  As these community gardens develop and more vacant lots become growing space, more Akron citizens will be able to have gardens like Karen’s.  If you are in the Akron area and interested in acquiring a plot, visit http://www.ci.akron.oh.us/News_Releases/2009/0402%20AkronGrows.pdf for more details.