VEGETABLES IN THE FRONT YARD?

---

Vegetables are an eye sore?

 

Recently a home owner in the downtown area of Sacramento was cited for having planted her whole front yard (50’x25’) with a vegetable garden..corn, squash, tomatoes, onions etc..

Cited as a nuisance.. and eyesore….she planted the front yard as her back yard was shady and had a swimming pool taking up the rest of her yard.  She had 30 days to remove the garden for face fines…she managed to get a extension on this as she went to city hall to complain and possible lawsuit got cityhalls attention.

 

One answer is more community gardens.. but in this older part of town…vacant lots do not exist for a community garden.  In poorer parts of town.. others grow veggies in their front yards…but in this older upper class area…complaints from at least 1 neighbor has started this process.  I have viewed her yard.. and right now its fine.. very green and flowering plants – a very nice garden… but it is different among all the homes with lawn.

 

So now a meeting has been called to review the code…a garden radio talk show host, master gardener, city councilman, local newspaper garden writer, code enforcement officer, and myself along with the home owner will meet to discuss possibly changing the long time city code that permits landscaping-grass and shrubs and concrete(not to excess 50% of the front yard)

 

And possible rewrite the code to include water wise gardening and vegetables..for the front yard

 

I am Looking for other cities that have this veggie option in their codes… and comments on this topic from the listserve.  I will keep you posted.

 

Thanks

 

Bill Maynard