Grow your community by planting a garden

Want to add a splash of color to your surroundings while getting people to bond? Plant a garden!  Don't believe it? Try this experiment. It is set in usually the most non-garden friendly environment you'll be in your daily routine-the office. Pick out a sunny window where people pass or hang out close to. Put a simple pot with some soil planted with basil. You can put it on the ledge or at a nearby desk or table. Check out what happens.

My bet is the following scenario will play out: a person walking by will see the deep rich basil plant and stop and smell it. He or she will say how good it smells. Another person will invariably ask how basil is used. Another onlooker will share simple recipes that use basil. This starts a conversation about other topics. There will be funny anecdotes and stories. People will laugh. Other pots of herbs quickly appear after a few days and the same process repeats again.

The truth is, gardens enable conversations and community-building. Try the following garden types to boost community bonding and neighbor conversations where you live. Start a mailbox garden. If you live in the city, space is at a premium. A mailbox garden is ideal for small urban spaces. Plant it in the small square of dirt where your mailbox is. Not only do you get mail; you also get herbs to put on your recipes.

Neighbors walking their dogs will inquire about your garden, and you might share some of your herbs and a conversation ensues. You can try planting a neighborhood garden in an abandoned lot. Planting herbs is easy and it also beautifies your neighborhood turning an empty lot with trash replaced by a green space in the middle of the City. Your neighborhood garden fosters community bonds since there are so many opportunities for neighbors to bond and talk about the plants.