In various parts of Spain, community and urban gardens are becoming established as a practical tool for bringing sustainability into people's daily lives. Beyond producing food, these spaces have become veritable open-air classrooms , where neighbors, associations, and schools share experiences, knowledge, and time together.
In both the CampiƱa Sur region of CĆ³rdoba and the Madrid municipality of Boadilla del Monte , local and regional authorities are promoting new community garden projects that combine educational, social, and environmental objectives. The underlying idea is clear: to utilize municipal plots and green spaces to create productive areas open to the community, where citizen participation is strengthened and healthier lifestyles are encouraged.
A regional program to fill the Southern Cordoba Countryside with community gardens
The Association of Municipalities of the Southern Cordoba Countryside has launched the "Development and Promotion of Community and School Gardens" initiative , which aims to ensure that each town in the region has at least one productive green space for social and educational use. This initiative seeks to revitalize existing municipal land and gardens , or create new spaces where none currently exist.
The program was launched at the Carmen Romero Primary School in Aguilar de la Frontera , one of the schools that will see its school garden enhanced . The event was attended by the president of the Commonwealth, Miguel Ruz, representatives from the Aguilar City Council and the school itself, as well as technical staff from the Mesto Association, the organization responsible for training and supporting the projects.
As Miguel Ruz explained, this project aims to bring sustainability closer to people in a practical and participatory way , using school and community gardens as a resource for fostering respect for the environment, teamwork, and shared responsibility. The idea is for the gardens to function as a meeting point where students, associations, and neighbors can learn together how food is produced and what it means to care for the land.
The Commonwealth has proposed a comprehensive intervention across the region, combining the creation of new facilities with the improvement of existing allotments. In some municipalities, land will be prepared for cultivation from scratch, while in others, existing spaces will be strengthened through training and technical advice , as well as the provision of tools, seeds, and other basic materials for their operation.
The planned actions include, among others, the creation of a school garden in Moriles , improvements to the garden at the Carmen Romero School in Aguilar de la Frontera, and various projects at schools in Montilla . Additionally, plans are underway to establish a community garden in Montemayor , develop another community garden in La Rambla , create an urban garden in San SebastiƔn de los Ballesteros , and prepare municipal land in Monturque for horticultural use.
The program also includes the revitalization of existing community gardens in municipalities such as FernĆ”n NĆŗƱez, La Guijarrosa, MontalbĆ”n, and Puente Genil. In these cases, support will come in the form of specific training sessions, ongoing guidance, and the provision of materials, with the aim of establishing these initiatives as models of community participation and environmental education in their respective towns. New calls for proposals and similar projects are driving initiatives in other parts of Spain.
For the president of the Commonwealth, the direct involvement of citizens is a central element of the project. The aim is for residents, associations, and schools to take charge of the community gardens, creating stable collaborative networks. In this way, the gardens are conceived as a tool to strengthen environmental education, social cohesion, and the building of more active communities committed to their environment.
Ruz also emphasized the symbolic component of āreturning to the landā in a context of fast-paced life. In his view, these community gardens not only provide fruits and vegetables, but also help build environmental awareness and a sense of community , and envision a more inclusive and sustainable future for the CampiƱa Sur region of CĆ³rdoba. Along these lines, the Mancomunidad (Association of Municipalities) insists that the gardens will be open to all kinds of groups, from schoolchildren to neighborhood associations and senior citizen groups.
The program's implementation is a collaborative effort with the Provincial Agricultural Center of the CĆ³rdoba Provincial Council , which will contribute various horticultural species. This contribution will allow for a wide variety of crops, both for consumption and for ornamental and educational uses, thus facilitating practical learning of the entire production cycle in community and school gardens.
Practical training: composting, pest control and a wide variety of crops
The training component is one of the cornerstones of this regional plan. The Mesto Association will be responsible for developing a program of workshops and activities in the various municipalities, with content tailored to the specific needs of each community garden and the participating groups. The aim is that anyone interested, with or without prior experience, can learn what they need to actively participate in maintaining these spaces.
The planned content includes introductory workshops on school and community gardens , sessions on home and community composting techniques , basic pest and disease management, and recommendations for using aromatic plants in the garden. Traditional sowing and planting techniques will also be covered so that participants become familiar with the tasks for each season.
The catalog of species to be cultivated is quite extensive. Among the aromatic and medicinal plants , lavender, rosemary, sage, oregano, and thyme will be grownāall of which are deeply rooted in Mediterranean agricultural tradition. These plants serve a dual purpose, as they are used for both culinary and medicinal purposes, and at the same time, they help attract pollinators and repel certain pests.
Regarding the flowers and ornamental plants associated with the garden, varieties such as basil, marigold, calendula, cosmos, cockscomb, and amaranth have been planned . These species contribute to increasing biodiversity in the growing areas and making them more visually appealing, something that is especially motivating when schoolchildren and families participate.
The most productive part will feature vegetables commonly found in the daily diet, including lettuce, tomatoes, zucchini, peppers, eggplant, and cucumbers . Alongside these plants, seeds of radishes, arugula, broad beans, peas, cilantro, parsley, amaranth, and butternut squash will be planted, so that the gardens in the CampiƱa Sur region of CĆ³rdoba can offer a wide variety of seasonal produce and become an educational resource for understanding food seasonality.
With this approach, the program transforms community gardens into authentic learning laboratories , combining basic organic farming, organic waste management through composting, health education, and a connection with the natural environment. The expected outcome is that participants will gain autonomy in managing the growing spaces in the medium and long term.
Boadilla del Monte proposes a new network of organic urban gardens
In the urban area, the Madrid municipality of Boadilla del Monte also wants to strengthen its commitment to shared gardening spaces. The MƔs Madrid Boadilla Municipal Group will bring a motion to the next plenary session for the creation of a new network of municipally owned organic urban gardens , which aims to respond to a growing demand from residents.
Currently, the town has 44 cultivation terraces located in the old orchards near the Environmental Classroom, managed according to an ordinance approved in 2019. Since the implementation of this regulation, four public calls have been made to allocate the plots, all of them with a very high level of participation from interested residents.
Data from the latest call for applications shows the extent to which demand exceeds supply : around 85% of applicants were left without access to a municipal allotment. This gap between the current capacity of the allotments and the real interest in community gardening is one of the main arguments used to support the need to expand the network of growing spaces.
The MƔs Madrid Boadilla initiative proposes not only increasing the number of plots but also diversifying the types of gardens available. Among the proposed measures is reserving some of the new plots for gardens adapted for people with reduced mobility , as well as for collective projects promoted by senior citizens' associations and educational centers.
Another key aspect of the motion is the promotion of community gardens managed by neighborhood groups , which would allow organized groups of residents to take on the shared management of specific cultivation areas. This fosters co-responsibility in the upkeep of the space, creates closer ties between neighbors, and multiplies the social and educational potential of the gardens.
Spaces for coexistence, community composting and health
The proposal registered in Boadilla del Monte also gives prominence to communal spaces within the cultivated areas . The idea is to create shaded areas, benches, and tables that encourage people to linger and converse, so that the allotments function not only as places for agricultural work but also as meeting points for everyday life.
Similarly, the plan includes incorporating community composting infrastructure to allow the use of organic waste generated in homes and gardens as natural fertilizer. This measure reinforces the project's ecological focus, reduces the amount of waste ending up in landfills, and closes the organic matter cycle within the municipality itself.
The proposing group emphasizes that urban gardens have added value that goes far beyond leisure. They are considered a genuine "investment in health and well-being ," insofar as they contribute to improved nutrition, reduce stress levels, promote mental health, and encourage active aging, especially when older adults participate, finding in these spaces a regular and social activity. This health and well-being dimension connects with therapeutic projects that use horticulture for social purposes.
The motion also emphasizes the balance between the project's costs and benefits. According to the text, implementing this new network of organic urban gardens requires a relatively limited investment , and the annual cost per user would be small compared to the social, environmental, and community benefits it generates. These benefits include improved air quality, community building, and enhanced environmental education.
For Marian GraƱa, councilor for MĆ”s Madrid ā Verdes Equo, urban gardens are more than just a place to grow food . In her opinion, they are places where relationships are forged, daily well-being is improved, and community is built. Expanding the network of gardens in Boadilla del Monte is thus seen as a way to address a real demand from residents and to strengthen the social dimension of these green spaces.
Taken together, the initiatives in the CampiƱa Sur region of CĆ³rdoba and in Boadilla del Monte demonstrate how community and urban organic gardens are becoming a versatile tool for addressing environmental education, health, citizen participation, and social cohesion simultaneously. In both small Andalusian towns and municipalities in the Madrid metropolitan area, the commitment to these productive spaces aims at the same objective: to reconnect with the land and transform it into a shared resource at the service of the community.
