Buffalo Rising Online

Aug 13th 2007, 2:51pm By queenseyes

If this city had 100 more Patrick Cains we'd be golden. He's a guy who has been involved with the alternative theatre scene for years. Many of you may know him by some of the outrageous costumes that he makes and wears at festivals and events throughout the area. If you've ever walked alongside the Elmwood Festival of the Arts' children parade, then you've seen him.

These days Patrick is busy bringing back a community garden on Tenth Street. He's not a fan of asking for major handouts... instead he depends on friends to help out. The unusual piece to this gardening puzzle is that the plot of land that he chose to turn fruitful was once the home of two crack houses. The houses were demolished in 2001 thanks to neighbors like Linda Spoerle and John Shepard (Antique Man Antiques on Allen), who thought that the missing houses would take care of the neighborhood drug problem. In lieu of the houses, the derelicts chose to set up their illegal sales under the massive trees that were left standing. When even more neighbors decided that the only option was to take down the sturdy trees (that provided shade and cover for the dealers), Linda and friends decided to plant a community garden under the direction of Grassroots Gardens. Only then did the derelicts pick up their tables and chairs and vacate the premise.

Last year the gardens fell into a short period of neglect before Patrick, who lives on neighboring Carolina Street, decided to pick up from where others had left off. This summer he has literally transformed the gardens into a flourishing farm filled with a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, many of which I have never even heard of. We walked through his garden earlier today as he pointed out all of his prizes. Around every corner were turnips, pumpkins, mustard plants, cabbages, cukes, potatoes, beans, blackberries and raspberries, and dozens of other wonderful edibles.

Patrick has started to host neighborhood dinner parties in his garden, and one of the events drew 40 people. A compost has been added to take care of the leftover debris, and he has decided to take the rest of the edible remains to the city's soup kitchens in the future. He is also thinking about selling his field greens at urban farmers' markets. Some of the support that he has received has come from businesses like Rust Belt Books and Amy's Place. But that didn't solve the watering dilemma. Where would the water come from? Patrick has tapped into a neighbor's rooftop waterspout that takes the rainwater runoff and empties it into a reservoir. A watering can takes it from there. Oh, and he's also secured a permit to draw water from a neighboring fire hydrant that he will soon be able to tap into.

The city-owned property is yielding much more than plants and veggies. It is drawing in a community (close to Johnson Park) that has been in desperate need of a community evangelist (or two). As one neighbor said today, "This street has gone from hell to nice." That's quite a transformation. If you would like to help Patrick with his garden, send him an email at patcain81@gmail.com.

Photo: Pat waters his plants and shows off leftovers from a garden party.