Mini garden project is blooming marvellous
“Look, my cockscomb blooms again!” said Zhu Ruixi who excitedly shared with neighbors the new finding in his “mini garden.”
Zhu is a resident of the No. 7 Yingyuan Community, an old residential community in Jiading District. The community has over 20 mini gardens which are planted with a wide variety of flowers blooming across all seasons.
The mini gardens are built from blank spaces of 10 to 30 square meters at the front of the gate of each residential building. However, some residents planted vegetables in these spaces without permission.
In 2010, the committee of the residential community decided to make a unified planning for these blank spaces to eliminate the illegal occupation. As a result, small-sized gardens were built on these blank spaces.
Residents can get together with their family members or neighbors in the same building to claim ownership of the mini garden.
The garden owners shall be responsible for the management and maintenance of the garden. They plow the ground, dig out the stones and waste, and fill the land with soil suitable for flower planting. “Residents can plant flowers according to their own preferences,” said Zhu.
A board is set up on the wall of each mini garden written with the number of the garden and names of owners.
Li Lielie grows 10 varieties of flowers in his mini garden.
The mini garden promotes communication between residents. Residents fond of planting flowers often take part in events such as lectures organized by the residential community, to share experiences and knowledge of flower planting.
In April and May, residents from nearby communities come to appreciate and take pictures of flowers in the mini gardens.