Have you heard of that little English town that has a vegetable garden at the police station, the schools, on the streets, in the cemetery and everywhere?
It's Todmorden (Tod to the Intimate) and I was there in December.

My visit was quick and it happened on a Saturday afternoon. That is, it ended at 4:00 p.m., when it gets dark at this time of year. The temperature was about 2 ° C, the streets empty, no one cultivating the flower beds. The sun was only a very weak glow.

On the one hand, I felt lack of life and heat. On the other hand, I realized that farmers in temperate climates have vacations every year and this gave me a certain envy. For some months, no one needs to water, rip out bushes and weeds, or care for the beds. The plants that survive are quiet sleeping, waiting for spring.

Returning to Sao Paulo I found the opposite landscape: a lot of heat, rain and vegetables growing madly from night to day. So, like every summer, I'm working twice, at my home garden and at the community Horta das Corujas (the Owls' Garden)...

Returning to Tod, it is in the north of England and has about 15 thousand inhabitants. Before the Incredible Edible project began, it was a decadent post-industrial town with self-esteem down there. Today is a worldwide case of urban agriculture, education, local economy, community life.

Who wants to know more about how and why this story began, see Pam Warhurst's TED presentation (London 2012)
ted.com/talks/pam_warhurst_how_we_can_eat_our_landscapes

There are also the site incredible-edible-todmorden.co.uk/ and the detailed and excellent book "Plant Veg, Grow a Revolution" (does not exist in Brazil and is quite difficult to order).

I did not schedule a meeting with anyone; and the tour only made sense because I was well informed about the project.
In 2014, I had the opportunity to talk to Pam Wharhurst, creator of the Incredible Edible project, when she visited São Paulo.
In addition, I was with my dear friend Juliet Hammond, who was a consultant to the project.

After the tour, what went on in my head was:

• It is lovely to see urban agriculture promoting a transformation that is both simple and radical in an entire city. It is certain that Tod is smaller than a neighborhood of São Paulo, but even so the reports that appear mainly in the book are impressive. It would not be possible to make an Incredible Edible in a big city at once. But if a Brazilian community decides to intensively “garden-sowing” its streets, squares, shops and houses, it will be incredible and revolutionary. And, block by block, you can change the world.
  
  
• The Incredible Edible project is supported by three pillars: community, education and economy. For years, I live immersed in the urban agriculture of São Paulo and I have a lot of contact with the professional urban farmers of the city. I see that in recent years we have evolved a lot. But I believe there is still a lot to walk, especially in the chapter on solidarity economy, fair and environmentally sound practices. I find inspiring Tod's experiences in valuing local producers and generating work and income around the project without discouraging the voluntary collaborators.
  
  
• I got the impression that they invest 50% of the energy in the planting and 50% in the signaling / disclosure of Incredible Edible. That makes all the difference! When I visited, the beds were empty, ugly and frozen. Even so, they gave no impression of abandonment because the paintings and posters around are beautiful, colorful, explanatory, well-made and durable. For instance: when arriving at the train station you will find a map of the city with all the horticultural attractions and a very friendly script.
  

I left Todmorden thinking that our communitarian gardens in São Paulo need to be more visible and signaled in its surroundings.

Thousands of people every day pass by unaware of them.

And I began to dream of partnerships among gardeners, painters and graffiti artists.

The rest, I tell along the photos (captions in Portuguese)

VISITA A TODMORDEN, A CIDADE-HORTA

• É lindo ver a agricultura urbana promover uma transformação ao mesmo tempo singela e radical numa cidade inteira. Está certo que Tod é menor do que um bairro de São Paulo, mas mesmo assim os relatos que aparecem sobretudo no livro são impressionantes. Não seria possível fazer um Incredible Edible numa cidade grande de uma vez só. Mas se uma comunidade do Brasil resolver “hortelar” intensamente suas ruas, praças, comércios e casas, vai ser incrível e revolucionário. E, quarteirão por quarteirão, dá para mudar o mundo.
  
  
• O projeto Incredible Edible é sustentado por três pilares: comunidade, educação e economia. Vivo mergulhada na agricultura urbana ativista paulistana e tenho bastante contato com os agricultores urbanos profissionais da cidade. Vejo que nos últimos anos evoluímos bastante. Mas acredito que ainda há muito para caminhar, sobretudo no capítulo economia solidária, justa e ambientalmente correta. Acho bem inspiradoras as experiências de Tod na valorização dos produtores locais e geração de trabalho e renda em torno do projeto sem estragar o voluntariado.
  
  
• Fiquei com a impressão de que eles investem 50% da energia no plantio e 50% na sinalização/divulgação do Incredible Edible. Isso faz toda a diferença! Veja bem: os canteiros estavam vazios, feios e congelados. Mesmo assim não davam impressão de abandono porque as pinturas e cartazes são lindos, coloridos, explicativos, bem feitos e duráveis. Chegando na estação de trem você encontra um mapa da cidade com todos as atrações hortísticas e um roteiro muito simpático. Saí achando que as nossas hortas comunitárias em São Paulo precisam ser mais visíveis e sinalizadas em suas cercanias. Milhares de pessoas todos os dias passam ao lado delas sem saber. Comecei a sonhar com parcerias entre hortelões, grafiteiros e pintores (alô povo da arte!). Já pensou se a gente consegue colorir a cidade não só com plantas mas também com lindos painéis e placas?

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