Photo by Lars Nelson
Because the Old Oak Dojo serves as a gathering space for community events, we want to create as much capacity as possible to feed people locally. That’s why gardening is such an important activity at the Old Oak Dojo. Given the high lead content in our soil, we constructed four raised beds using materials already on-site or sourced locally. We created a layer of gravel as a water-permeable barrier between the new soil and the contaminated ground and then brought in 40 yards of locally sourced compost, leaf mulch and loam. We primarily plant crops that can tolerate cooler temperatures and shade, such as greens, root vegetables and herbs.