Tucked away at the outskirts of Southside Park just before the freeway tangle of 80, 5 and 99, there is a little oasis: the Southside Park Community Garden.

The garden is bordered by an iron fence and located on the corner of 5th and W Streets. In that garden you can find a series of plots that gardeners rent out for their own private use. Some grow flowers, many grow food, and all share in the numerous gifts of the garden.

I met up with the Master Gardener, Bill Maynard, who is the Community Gardens Coordinator for the 5 community gardens in the greater Sacramento area.

I arrived at the garden just as Maynard and 20 volunteers had finished working on several large planters. I peaked around a bit while he finished loading tools into his truck, and then we sat down to talk about the garden; what it is used for, how it is managed, and where its headed in the future.

When I asked what purpose or function the garden serves for the community, Maynard replied, "It's about building community, it's about making sure people have access to food, supplementing their food budgets, making sure they eat healthily. It's family bonding with kids, it's a good healthy activity, it's educational, just everything."

The Southside Park garden was the first of the community gardens developed by the city. People rent out a plot which can be either 8 by 16 feet or 16 by 16 feet and cost only $25 and $50 per year respectively.

Particularly within the downtown area, demand for communities gardens is high. The high-level of shade and the limited outdoor space that characterize downtown living coupled with the affordability of renting plots makes community garden plots a sought-after commodity.

In fact, the Southside Park garden has a waiting list of about 20 people, and with a low turnover rate, that list translates into a 5-10 year wait, according to Maynard.

For the lucky people who do have a plot, it is theirs to do with as they please. There are, of course, some ground rules.

All of the community gardens are completely organic, so people cannot use chemical pesticides or herbicides on their plots. Also, Maynard encourages users to compost in the garden's compost bin, but people must abide by the composting rules so as to not contaminate the batch.

This works to clear out green waste while also providing rich, organic fertilizer for use in the garden. Water conservation and plot maintenance are also important parts of being a gardener at the community garden.

The Southside Park garden has some exciting plans in the works. First of all, the garden was awarded a grant from Organic Gardening Magazine which will be used to purchase a 550 gallon cistern that will be used to collect rainwater. But wait, there's more.

City Councilmember Rob Fong also got an art grant for the garden. They held a contest and now Larry Meeks is working on some functional art that will consist of 16 foot tall stainless steel flowers that will catch the rain water and funnel it into the cistern as it runs down the stems. The cistern itself will be concealed by a ladybug shell.

Other plans for the future include adding a windmill and perhaps a greenhouse. The iron fence will be replaced with a new one and the garden will be made more accessible for disabled community members in accordance with ADA regulations.

In response to popular demand, the city is planning on starting a few more gardens so that more people can enjoy community gardening.

Would you want to rent out a plot if it were available? Are there any community gardeners out there who want to share their experience? What do you get out of gardening in a community setting? Would you recommend it to a friend?