Grain of Soil

by Eugenijus Barzdžius with support of Daniel Seiler in partnership with:

Einführung

Die Art, wie Menschen arbeiten, bestimmt ihre Lebensweise. Die Art, wie sich Menschen ernähren, prägt neben den klassischen Landwirtschaftsflächen, die es auch in einem städtischen Kanton wie Basel-Stadt gibt, vor allem Freizeitgartenareale, Gemeinschaftsgärten, private Gärten, als Anbauflächen genutzte Dächer, Balkone, Vorgärten, Hinterhöfe oder Zwischennutzungen auf temporär freien Arealen.

Zumeist spielt neben dem Anbau von Gemüse und Früchten auch der soziale Aspekt eine wichtige Rolle. Im Gemeinschaftsgarten wird miteinander gearbeitet, die sozialen Kontakte stehen im Vordergrund. Im Freizeitgartenareal können ebenfalls wertvolle soziale Netze entstehen.

Die urbane Agri-Kultur erfährt derzeit einen neuen Schwung, der auch in Basel zu beobachten ist. Dies hat zweifellos mit dem stärkeren Bewusstsein zur Rolle nachhaltiger Ernährung in der Stadt zu tun.

In den letzten Jahren ist auch im Kanton Basel-Stadt das Bedürfnis nach nachhaltiger Lebensmittelproduktion, Transparenz und Rückverfolgbarkeit gewachsen. Als Antwort darauf sind neben bereits bestehenden Gärten und Freizeitgartenarealen zahlreiche Quartiermärkte, Hofläden und Gemeinschaftsgärten entstanden und diverse private Akteurinnen und Akteure aus der Gesellschaft, Wirtschaft und Forschung engagieren sich mit vielfältigen Initiativen und Vorhaben für eine lokale und nachhaltige Lebensmittelversorgung in BaselStadt – zum Beispiel die Markthalle, die Aktienmühle oder die Meriangärten.

Besonders erwähnenswert ist das jüngste Projekt «plankton – die Gemüsekooperative aus der Stadt», das vom Regierungsrat unterstützt wird. Das Projekt setzt sich für eine dem Standort angepasste, klimaverträgliche Landwirtschaft ein, die städtische Biodiversität fördert und die Teilhabe der Bevölkerung am lokalen Ernährungssystem ermöglicht. Konkret werden

bisher ungenutzte Stadtflächen wie beispielweise Flachdächer, Hinterhöfe und Rasenflächen für den Anbau von Gemüse, Obst, Beeren und Kräutern genutzt. Die Produkte gehen entweder als Gemüse-Abos zurück in die Quartiere oder werden direkt vor Ort verwertet.

Ein weiteres Projekt, das Projekt zur regionalen Entwicklung «Genuss aus Stadt und Land» (PRE), will dem Bedürfnis nach mehr Regionalität und Authentizität mit einem wachsenden Angebot aus regionaler Produktion nachkommen. Herzstück sind konkrete Teilprojekte, die in den Bereichen Produktion, Logistik oder Marketing investieren. Die Investitionen werden zum grössten Teil von den Trägern selber finanziert sowie von Bund und den beiden Basel mit Beiträgen unterstützt.

Eng mit dem PRE verknüpft ist die Basler Genusswoche, die jeweils im September stattfindet. Diese fördert den Genuss, den Respekt vor den Lebensmitteln, die Freude am Kochen und am guten Essen.

Diese Bühne, die dem lokalen

Genusshandwerk geboten wird, kann immer besser genutzt werden. So wird Basel die Ehre zuteil, Schweizer Genussstadt 2022 zu sein.

Ganz von ungefähr kommt diese Auszeichnung nicht. Der Kanton Basel-Stadt fördert mit einem speziellen Massnahmenpaket schon lange eine nachhaltige Ernährung und hat mit der jährlichen Unterstützung der Genusswoche Basel und mit dem PRE die Weichen für diese Auszeichnung gestellt.

Ein einfühlsames Portrait verschiedener Akteurinnen und Akteure (nicht nur) der Basler Agri-Kultur steuern nun Eugenijus Barzdžius und Daniel Seiler bei. Es zeigt Menschen, es zeigt ihren Lebensraum und es zeigt auch ein Stück ihrer Lebensweise.

Es hätte zu keinem besseren Zeitpunkt erfolgen können.

Lukas Ott, Leiter Kantons-und Stadtentwicklung Basel-Stadt

Foreword by the author

My personal interest in selfsufficiency spans my whole life.

In my childhood, I have been observing and slowly learned by helping my grandmother at her small farm. Parallel to that, my mother cultivated an allotment for our family, where my knowledge and experience are also coming from.

In my late teens, I started to travel abroad and see various gardening and self-sufficiency activities in towns, and villages. This experience broadened my understanding, that people are doing this activity with what is available at their hands everywhere I go.

Later in life, I moved from my parents to Vilnius and subsequently to Copenhagen where I spent more than 7 years. I have also studied in Newport, Wales, and in London, and traveled in Europe and USA, where I noticed that not only in allotments but also on balconies, on rooftops, or in backyards also young people are cultivating various plants, and that was a changing point in my mindset, that urban gardening activity is not only for middle-aged or elder people. In the last 20 years or so, with the changing economical situation, and general attitude towards the environment, more people looked back to ecological ideas, which are also bringing a bigger meaning but a therapeutic aspect to life in a city.

For this project, I was observing

different urban gardening activities in Basel and Vilnius, which gave me a wonderful opportunity to draw parallels in the same activity field. In both cities, I also had a chance to meet people with different cultural and ethnic backgrounds. Those possibilities, even more, proved to me that the will of producing a harvest with one’s labour is something in common for all people, no matter of cultural, ethnic, or economic background one is coming from. The main difference is the structure of allotments: in Vilnius, they are becoming more of a place to build a proper house for living, since the municipality gives such permits, and cultivation is becoming less common practice there, as a typical 600 m2 land plot is just enough to build a house with a parking space and a tiny space for grass, a few bushes or trees. When observing allotment spaces in Basel, we can see how it is more regulated for the initial purpose of an allotment - to cultivate fruits and vegetables for oneself.

The most impressive is the variety of people’s interests in the cultivation of mushrooms, berries, fruit trees, herbs, root plants, bee-keeping, flowers, and many more. Each person finds one’s interest in something specific, that answers to one’s call in carrying out a joyful activity, which is still requiring manual labour, but is fruitful, giving more in return, which is usually more evaluated than harvest itself.

Eugenijus Barzdžius

Laura

In a suburban part of apartment blocks in Vilnius, she initiated a public garden for people to come and grow whatever they would like in raised beds. In the third year of this project, the initiative is receiving more and more involved people who are willing to try to grow something for themselves but also to be more involved in the urban gardening movement.

Laura

Living in an apartment block is not limiting Laura’s passion for flowers as she cultivates quite a huge variety of them on a glass balcony throughout the year.

Thomas

The backyard gives a lot of space for experimenting since Thomas used to work as a biochemist. In his garden is a huge variety of plants and fruit trees that are pollinated by bees, which he is keeping there as well.

Greta

Before this Spring, she had never thought of sprouting seeds or growing anything on a windowsill but when Greta started her first experiment, she said that it brought enormous joy to observe progress each day.

Aurelija

Living in a tiny apartment in the old town of Vilnius does not limit Aurelija to prepare seedlings until they will be ready for planting in her summerhouse outside the city.

Agnė

One of the best things about the acquired house in the allotment was a huge glass greenhouse that gives Agne enough space for experiments and plenty of vegetables for her family to sustain themselves with vitamins.

A few grains of statistics

The majority of participants of this project answered that:

• They have been practicing urban gardening for more than 10 years.

• And that this activity is relaxation for them.

• It takes up to 30 minutes to get to their garden.

• The most common transportation among the respondees is a bicycle.

Vaiva

In early Spring, Vaiva starts preparing seedlings in her kitchen, where they sprout light boxes and a glass balcony for later planting in her country house garden.

Stephanie

She is standing behind Die Sammlerei initiative (see further in this catalogue). Stephanie is trying to connect: a therapeutic activity for a group of people with citizens of Basel that are not collecting harvest from various plants or trees that they have around their houses.

Ilona

Around here private house is enough space to try out gardening activities. A newly built greenhouse for tomatoes, a few garden walls for cucumbers is perfect for the start.

Evaldas

In the mornings, when it is still rather still in the city, Evaldas is coming to check his bee houses that are on the rooftop of his gallery.

Andreas

With rooftop beekeeping, Andreas combines his hobby with his day job as an organic restaurateur in the organic bistro.

Kasper and David

They got interested in mushroom growing more than a year ago and now there is such a huge demand for their harvest in Basel that they are thinking about expanding their supply.

Schlemmergarten

The garden is a meeting spot for unemployed people to meet up in small groups, up to 9, and to cultivate their common land plot. They are trying traditional and new varieties, which later they are also selling in city markets.

A few grains of statistics

The majority of participants of this project answered that:

• They have given most of their land plot space for garden cultures; flowers; trees and bushes, and for a greenhouse or a shed.

• And they are usually trying to use second-hand materials for maintaining or building whatever is needed.

Liudas

In a small shop of chilli souces, Liudas is also cultivating a few chilli plants there as he does in his greenhouse outside the city.

Die Sammlerei

This initiative is bringing meaning not only for group of people that wants to collabourate, to create something joyful and meaningful together, but is also helping to citizens of Basel that are having unneeded harvest of fruits or berries,

which they make into chutneys, jams, and marmalades that are later sold back to citizens of the city. Such a circle of circulation is giving chance to support this initiative but also to reduce urban harvest turned into waste.

Istvan

For more than 15 years, Istvan with his wife was actively cultivating their allotment plot, but in recent years it has become more than a cozy retreat place for Istvan with his grandchildren.

Veli and Siren

The allotment plot is also the meeting place for their family, as they are coming there every day in order to make it home cozy with lush harvest of vegetables.

Yildiz

Together with her husband, they are cultivating their allotment plot for more than 20 years, which provides enough vegetables to support their extended family tables.

Peter

Kiwi plants in the backyard of the central Basel provide not only beautiful decoration to the wall but also give enough harvest to make jams that are being sold as souvenirs that are supporting Museum für mechanische Musikinstrumente, which Peter is running in the same backyard.

Eva

In the allotment garden, Eva runs a kindergarten. This space is giving another possibility for children to perceive this interconnected world.

Salvatore

The allotment plot has been in his extended family for decades, and Salvatore is meticulously continuing to elaborate it as his family meeting place. His specialty is tomato sauce, and a few other delicacies.

Tran Van Mur

In this allotment plot Tran Van Mur is cultivating for the last 7 years but working with the land he was whole his life. He is coming every day to his plot in order to take care of plants: to open and close greenhouses, to take away weeds...

Inesa

Very early in the Spring, when snow is still outside, Inesa starts sprouting seeds in order to have them ready for being planted outdoors by her family house outside Vilnius.

A few grains of statistics

The majority of participants of this project answered that:

• Their garden space is also for social activities with family and/or community.

• Their chilkdren are coming and helping but at the same way gathering knowledge from elders.

• The age of participants is between 30 and 80 years of age.

Raimonda

Living in an apartment blockhouse in Vilnius city, she has started cultivating the land that is around the building, and it is already giving plenty of harvests.

Ute

Working in her allotment plot for almost 10 years, where she is coming often with her two sons. It is a place for planting experiments, a playground for children, and at the same - a place to rest.

A few grains of statistics

The majority of participants of this project answered that:

• They collect seeds from wherever they find them available.

• The harvest is preserved for the table by: pickling, making marmelades, chutneys, compot or gelée, freezing.

• They nourish their soild by producing compost by themselves.

• They usually share their harvest with their neighbours of relitivives.

Tilla

She is a driving force in order to initiate open gardens for public purposes. Tilla has already opened a few such places around Basel for people who would like to learn and cultivate something for themselves.

Special thanks

To all of the participants of this project, and everyone who believed in it and helped me along the way.

To Daniel, who supported me right from the beginning, when the idea was just born. For his patience and very structural approach.

To Ramona, who kindly accepted me in Markthalle for the exhibition and was always very open to my ideas.

To all of the sponsors who made this project possible.

To Viktorija, that she always believed in me and friendly motivated.

Last but not least - to my mother that always did magic in her garden that whatever she touched flourished in lush liveliness. For the continuous inspiration!

Eugenijus Barzdžius