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GG: 2236 Tampopo Dublin, Republic of Ireland: Tampopo has been guerrilla gardener for more than five years, and activity has included all manner of different horticultural interventions in neglected public space, including bulbs, seeds and large scale mulching, to suppress weed growth and feed the trees.  Tampopo writes more: “Beneath a tree near my house I have planted Nigella, Wallflowers, clematis, digitalis, crocosmia, forget-me-nots and another flower with a circular seed head, not a dandelion!” Tampopo got busy on International Sunflower Guerrilla Day on May 1 and reports of the planting: “Well, these four sunflowers were my pride and joy!  I’d watched them grow and grow. Luckily, this position was hidden in shadow at night time, so during the day was the time they were at most risk to vandalism. Unfortunately they were strimmed by the company that's responsible for maintaining this parcel of land. Pity....”  Tampopo has also been beautifying the light railway line:
Tampopo's guerrilla gardened sunflowers before they were cut down“For about 200 years till 1975 at Shirling's Walk there was a canal here (Grand Canal). For about 30 years there was a 'Linear Park' here. Now it is the Luas Line Red Line, between Rialto and Suir Road Stations. The land has been landscaped with ivy, cotoneaster horizontalis, vinca etc etc. some low growing plants and some trees. In September 2006 I planted about 150 or so bluebell bulbs given to me by a woman in the area. I planted them in 12 spots along the rail line. They came up
last spring. I also planted some daffodils that had been planted elsewhere by the landscaping company but had come loose of the soil. I replanted them in other locations for a spot of colour. For several weeks from November 2005 I planted about 10 chestnut trees in the vicinity and I checked on them recently and six are still healthy and growing, if still a little small. I grew them from seed/nut. This May, I planted about 100 sunflower seeds. About 15 came out of the soil. About 10-12 of these grew quite high and flowered, not fully, until they were cut in their prime by the company that has the contract for maintaining the area. In the last month I have spread wood chip on the open soil between the ground cover plants. There is a local man that owns a tree surgery business. He often has excess wood chip and has to pay to get rid of it. I got him to dump it and I spread it. The reaction from the public has been quite good. People are glad to see someone caring for the land. The smell from the woodchip is nice, a pine smell! (Evergreen trees) Plans are to plant a few more self-seeding trees. I have planted about 30 seed bombs with hollyhock and nigella seeds already. The seed bombs I planted are made of clay only. They set very hard when they were dry. I'll make new ones with compost/organic matter mixed in too.”
Mulching as a guerrilla gardener in Dublin
2903 Amy Raleigh North Carolina, USA. “Only one defiant sunflower from my maiden May sunflower bombing made it through a summer of drought, but pictured is the lone survivor standing proudly in a concrete and granite government office planter. Just wait until next May!”
GG: 3516 Greg Zurich, Switzerland: This report was posted by Greg 3516 in the GuerillaGardening.org Community forum: “Miryam and me would like to see more Guerrilla Gardeners in Zurich. So to make a start we invested half an hour of our time on Saturday night to decorate a traffic island. We got a lot of comments from passers by and sceptical looks of drivers stopping at the red light. One of them asked if we were about to nick the patch of grass. He seemed to be a bit pissed, hence the question, I suppose. A police van passed and, of course, stopped. 
One policeman said that he had never seen anything like that but he liked it. We should 
ask next time though. Yes, sure ;-). It was half an hour of pure fun. We will continue next spring. Promised. Budget. CHF 50.20
     1 Thuja
     2 Calocephalus
     3 Calluna
     5 Viola
     50 litres garden soil
     Some pieces of pine bark
GG 990 Sandy Portland Oregon USA: As she walked past America’s oldest Mercedes dealership Sandy could not help but accidentally confuse their three pointed star logo for the similar shaped fork logo of the international peace movement (designed by Gerald Holtom in 1958 for the Campaign For Nuclear Disarmament). So she decided to turn her imagination into reality by doing some guerrilla gardening. Matching the box hedge (Buxus semperviren) she added in an extra row late on Sunday 18 March 2007 which happened to be almost four years since the US invasion of Iraq. Her intervention remained in front of the car show room for three weeks until a gardener removed it. Sandy found where her bush had been dumped and put it back, where it lasted for another fortnight.  Eventually Mercedes had enough of it and cleared it away, and Sandy decided she had made her point. The images to the right show the logo before and after the dig.
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Troop 158Luc Forest the guerrilla gardener in Montreal, Canada
“Under a Burgess Park tree, in the bleak bit by Albany Road/Camberwell Road, on 18th November, at dead of night (10pm, and warmly street-lit), armed with an ice-cream scoop and 50 crocus bulbs.  Aim = glorious spring display.  Result = almost glorious spring display, golden crocuses cheering up all passers-by, surely.”
GG: 2585 Angela Milan, Italy Despite being known as a city of style and fashion there are of course neglected patches of public land in Milan.  Angela found a scrubby patch where a new tree had been planted and decided it could be made even better (and look how stylish the gardeners are clothed too!) We have started the attack around 11PM (just during the lunar eclipse). After removing bottles, paper and some more we have put in the flower bed 7 plants of lavender, 3 small box trees and 1 bulb and all around we have seed lavender and some alpin flower seed.  It was a great fun and I hope to find a next chance to do an attack.Guerrilla Gardening in Milan, Italy
A stylish transformation of public space in Milan by Angela and her guerrilla gardening friends
GG: 949 Ava
San Diego, USA:
“We started gardening in a draughtier than usual year. We have had 1.71 inches of rain this season (July 1 through June 30). Normally we get 4.32 inches. It's parched here. Despite that, we made seed bombs in December and DiAnne and I put in a tiny tree-well succulant garden which I've watered to get it started. We also (no pictures) drove down Imperial Avenue a 10 mile long street that runs through one blighted neighbor hood after another, and tossed California Poppy and Western Sunflower bombs at bus stops and verges, and some chapparell bombs on hillsides.  The flowers are all selfseeding.  Next week we plan to go back and see if anything is coming up. We bombed in advance of a rain, but then there hasn't been  another rain since then. Maybe next year will be wetter.Ava guerrilla gardening in San Diego
GG 013 Julia
Rosa Rose Guerrilla Garden BerlinRosa Rose Guerrilla Garden Berlin
Julia is a leading guerrilla gardener in Berlin, passionate, thoughtful, and experienced.  She has travelled the world researching the subject for a thesis and spreads her experience to all.  Rosa Rose is a huge vacant lot in East Berlin where once stood housing now grows a garden. Rubble was covered with imported soil, and little raised beds built to grow all sorts of beautiful flowers and veg.  Like the community gardens in New York, this big patch has something for everyone.  All sorts of gardening is encouraged where ever local people can find the space and a zone has been set aside for gathering to watch performances and films.  Even dogs are catered for.  A fence was purloined to protect the cultivated areas, and the rest left open for dog walkers to stroll in.  The garden is left open all day long, and whilst some plants go missing, Julia accepts this as a cost worth paying 
for in return for communal access. The guerrilla gardeners are constantly vulnerable to loosing this plot because the landowner periodically tries to auction it off.  But it is safe for now as large tax debts associated with the plot have put off anyone from buying it.  Meanwhile the Rosa Rose guerrillas garden matures and Julia’s activity round Berlin gathers momentum as she is invited to lead more public gardening projects all over the place.
GG David 2384 Standish
Sean is blind.  He is also a prolific guerrilla gardener.  Because of him his street is lined with blooming tree pits, and even the skies are in bloom because his has climbers running along telephone wires.  Through his fine sense of touch and the help of friends he achieves more than many with 20-20 vision.  It all began in 2000 when he moved to the house with no garden.  The concrete patch outside his front door was soon spilling over with pot plants into the pavement and he realised the great potential for planting the patches of ground beneath the trees.  He sprinkled seeds and prised up a few paving stones, and soon Osteo spermum, hollyhocks, marigolds sprung up.  He often gardens very early in the morning and late at night because there are fewer people to bump into.  Darkness is not an obstacle for him.  At first his plants were attacked by council cleaners but he struck up conversation and now works closely with their support.  They have even dug
up more paving stones for him. Watch a film about him here.
Esther moved into her flat in Rowstock
Gardens off the Camden Road in 2001. After a few months her guerrilla gardening action began as brief dawn raids 
on the very bare and neglected beds on her estate, starting with small plants raised from cuttings on her balcony and plants donated by friends with gardens. The sound of the spade and sight of flowers where previously there was just bare earth provoked the interest of neighbours who offered plenty of support, encouragement and the odd cup of tea!  At a resident’s meeting in 2002 Esther volunteered to take responsibility for improving the land-
scaping on the estate.  She now provides a 
general point of contact between Estate Residents, Greenspace (contracted to mow lawns, etc) and Housing Management.  
Greenspace decided to give the estate Pilot Project status and to hand over the planting and ongoing maintenance of the beds to the residents.  Rowstock Gardens Gardening
Group was set up and immediately awarded a small budget by Housing Management for a large scale planting project to re-green the empty flowerbeds at the base of the two tower blocks.  Greenspace provided some labour and mulch free of charge.  The planting has matured rapidly and in 2005 the estate was awarded 4th prize in the Islington in Bloom ‘Best Street / Estate’ category.  In September 2005 the Residents Gardening Group made a successful application to Groundwork for Islington and Camden for funding for further landscaping improvements including: the creation of two children’s gardens - miniature orchards including Apple, Plum, Pear and Cherry trees on dwarfing rootstocks, a mixed native species hedge along the Camden Road as well as general estate-wide planting of flowering shrubs.  The planting was undertaken on weekend workdays between January and July by residents (and friends) ranging in age from five to eighty-two!  In Dec 2006 Esther was invited by her local MPs to their House of Commons Christmas party for her ‘work in the community’.
Julia’s first guerrilla gardening was in the grounds of her university. Cars parking there were pushed back over several weeks by placing rubble mounds in front of their tyres, and fences made from recycling metal chairs.  Every day she cycled into college with a fresh bag of compost on her back, and carried boxes of young plants on the train from her parent’s garden in the south.  With the help of Fabien the garden took shape, and she turned to the university authorities for help and legitimisation.  They gave a big boost by providing a trailer full of compost.  That was back in 2002.  Since then they Julia has fought off construction works dumping skips on the site and secured succession of responsibility as the garden is no longer a local project.

I had told Becki (2232) all about guerrilla gardening in London, she was keen to get involved and I was
keen to bring the activity up north. I posted a note on the website for a date that suited Becki and would coincide with my next visit when I would be visiting for some friends for pre-new year festivities. It was a dark, cold and drizzly night in Leeds.  The evening began with Becki and I tearing around in her flatmates car, still deciding on an appropriate location for the night’s dig… all a bit last minute. After searching all of central LeedsGuerrilla gardening at Hyde Park Corner in Leeds
and a few surrounding patches, we decided on the original spot we’d passed a few weeks before; a triangle planter on the busy Hyde Park Corner… we were worried, it looked dead rubbley, was there enough soil under all that rubbish?  We were already armed with 40 bulbs donated from London by Richard, a few of our own tools and some seeds, but a trip to the B&Q sales was needed.  Without double-checking the spot we rushed off before it closed, texting the rest of the troops the confirmed location.  We picked up a large fork, another trowel, a pack of assorted gloves, 15 ‘on sale’ primroses and as much ‘special offer’ composting soil as would fit in the boot.  The soil was discounted, on account it was the last 4 bags and they were all ripped ­ lucky for us, unlucky for Becki’s flatmate.  Paddy (2233), Becki and I arrived at the spot early, we made a plan: 1. Clear littler.    2. Clear weedy growth   3. Turn soil   4. Add new soil   5. Plant Stuff   6. Go to pub The rest of the troops soon trundled along, John, Vici, Suzie and Pete.  Litter clearing was a bit minging, mostly beer cans, crisp packets and a few needles. It didn’t take long for everybody to settle down to work, forgetting completely that night time public gardening was not a regular activity we quizzically stared back at gawping passers by, a few stopped to enquirer, including the local vicar and a gardener, we were surprised at some having heard of guerrilla gardening and pleased with their encouragement.  As we were all now busy clearing we hardly noticed the large police van pull up along side wind the windows down and stare, with confused faces at what the hell we were up to on a Saturday night… Being the only one with previous guerrilla experience I strolled up to the van, fork in hand to explain. “What are you doing here?” the nearside lady officer asked accusingly, I replied calmly that we were gardening, that we were guerrilla gardeners that had now started work in Leeds.  “Do you know who this belongs to,” they asked, still wondering whether this behaviour required them to leave their warm van.  I told them I believed it was council property.  “Ah, and do you have permission?” the woman police officer looked like she’d finally stumped me.  I then explained that I didn’t but that I very much doubted they would object to a group of people clearing up litter, removing weeds and planting bulbs.  At this the driving officer decided to take my side and piped up, “well done, excellent work, great idea” the woman still looking dubiously at us vaguely nodded… and off they sped.  There were now 7 of us working so we proceeded at lightning speed.  We then all took a small orange and grape break, Pete spotted a skip across the junction and began ferrying the rubbish, unfortunately incurring a small glass injury, he was very brave and took one for the team without any tears. Suze distributed the soil and it was forked evenly.  John and Vici took on the role of the landscape architects and directed the bulb and flower planting, very satisfying.  The final seeds were laid down and covered over, as the Leeds sky opened up and began our watering for us in perfect timing.  The final stage was then completed as we muddy lot trooped into the Hyde Park Pub for celebratory drinks!
GG: 2286 Skye Swansea, Wales: It's a big area but I'm hoping to get it cleared and ready for planting by springtime.  I just spent an hour out there weeding and forking over and clearing away rubbish. (BTW that's my baby standing there... I'm making a gardener of him as we go).
GG: 1613 Anne
Hanover Avenue, Richmond, USA: “The hiss and scrape of shovels on the night of Friday the 13th: Who’s seen 
this movie? Three figures digging at a strip of earth next to a graffiti-marked cinderblock wall, lanterns throwing weird shadows. No corpses are coming out of the ground in this alley surrounded by condos between Hanover and Grove avenues, though. Instead, Anne Wrinn, Deane Truelove and Laura Usry are preparing the soil to plant bulbs — tulips, crocuses and allium — followed by some winter-flowering pansies. Strange, but not quite occult, this nocturnal
gardening project is Wrinn’s foray into subversion, into the rebel beautification that is guerrilla gardening. “There’s something a little, well, mischievous about planting things under cover of darkness,” Wrinn says. She’s been inspired by the green movement that has become popular in the urban centers of England, a kind of protest in which a group swarms an unused lot of patch of land and plants crops and flowers, often at night, because it is, technically, against the law.  “It’s very much for them a civil rights thing,” Wrinn says of those gardeners. But on this night, in this alley, where the small group drinks wine, eats Goldfish crackers and digs, it sure seems like a victimless crime.  Wrinn sent out flyers to the neighbors but got only a few loyal supporters: Truelove, who met Wrinn walking in the very alley they’re trying to spruce up, and Usry, who worked with 
Wrinn in catering at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, but, she says, “Never picked up a shovel in my life.” It’s chilly and dark and would seem a little discouraging, but they’re inspired by the Hanging Gardens of the Alley Across the Street, the work of a landscape artist who lives there. In that similar gravel lot, vines crawl up trellises near apartments, wine barrels sprout leafy winter vegetables next to SUVs, and long beds wait for their next instructions. It’s a long way from Goldfish and crocus, but for Wrinn, “This is the first step to try and make things a little better.” (Text from Styleweekly magazine who Anne invited to join her on the mission).
GG: 1044 Rachel Newcastle, UK: “I have now planted about 70 spring bulbs in neglected brick planters on the streets around my immediate area.  I have more bulbs still and have my eye on some more but these need a bit of weeding first, they aren't major jobs individually but they add up.  I have been going out in the early evenings and I've also got into the habit of carrying a handful in my pockets and putting some in as I walk home!  I'll have to wait to see the results in spring.
So far I've only tackled a long strip of land VERY near to my house,(on a housing estate).  It's practically right outside my house which makes it very convenient to go out and weed, (which I'm doing every 2 weeks).  Just trying to keep this patch of land under control and doing it by myself takes a lot of effort so I'm not searching for any other sites at the moment.  Once the weeds are under control and the plants have matured then I might be on the lookout.  At first I used to get up and go out at 5am but now I'll do my guerrillaing at any time of day.  I don't care who sees me.  Maybe it might encourage others to do the same! As for the plants I use, well mostly I use self-sown seedlings, plants that I've divided, cuttings from my own garden and things I've grown from seed (that have been collected from my own garden flowers).  If you don't have your own garden try asking friends or family for free cuttings.  I've used Japanese anemones, lavender, limonium, osteospermum, hollyhock, verbena bonariensis, poppies, rudbeckia and cistus.  All of these are planted and, although still very small, have managed to survive the dry summer we've just had.   Oh and I also planted about 50 daffodil bulbs,(only cost around £2), in the grass behind this strip of land.
Chicago, USA:
Date: August 28th Location: Wicker Park Budget: approx $50 US My wife and I spotted this neglected planter, located just a few blocks from where we live in Wicker Park, while on a run. It's in front of a Convalescent home. So I rounded up some friends, bought 150 or so pounds of soil (the planter only had three or so inches of soil in it) and some assorted perennials (on sale) at Home Depot. Troop Matt also told a local plant store up in Lincoln Park what we were up to and they donated a few plants, including some fine decorative grasses, to the cause. Our team started gardening just before 10pm, and made short work of the planter. We planted four sprawling juniper bushes, variegated feather grasses, a flowering potentilla, and a half dozen other perennials that, if there tags didn't lie, could withstand temperatures as low as -40 F. Which is good, cause it gets pretty darn cold here in the winter. At one point, an employee of the home came out for a smoke break, asked a few disinterested questions, and thanked us for doing what we were doing. That is cool! she said. My only 
regret: Next time I will bring more soil. 150 pounds seems like a lot, but it goes fast.
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