As more Americans try to adopt healthy lifestyles and environmentally friendly practices, the idea of growing their own food has become increasingly popular among city dwellers. That interest was evident at a recent urban gardening forum in Washington, D.C. Dozens of organizations and hundreds of residents got together to advance the local food movement.
越来越多的美国人在尝试更健康以及对环境友好的生活方式。对城市居民来说，自己种植蔬菜水果越来越受欢迎。最近，首都华盛顿特区举办了一次城市种植研讨会--“在华盛顿种植”。几十个绿色组织和几百名居民聚集在一起，推进地方食品运动。
Katie Rehwaldt, a coordinator for Rooting DC, says getting free seeds is one of the benefits of participating in the day-long urban gardening forum.
凯蒂·雷瓦德是“在华盛顿种植”研讨会的协调人。雷瓦德介绍，在为期一天的研讨会上，参加者能够免费拿到各种植物种子，而这只是很多好处中的一个。
“These are the seeds. We get about 36,000 pounds (16 metric tons ) of seeds packets a year donated to us, which otherwise are thrown away or destroyed. We distribute them to the civic garden projects all over the country.”
According to Rehwaldt, the purpose of Rooting D.C. is to bring community members together to learn about urban gardening and urban agriculture and to strengthen the community and develop more gardens all across the city.”
她说：“研讨会的目的就是把社区成员组织到一起，学习如何在城市里栽种植物，以及如何团结社区力量，在城市里开辟更多的菜园。”
More than 550 people attended the 4th annual event.
一共有550人参加了第四届研讨会年会。
“I think they recognize gardening as a way to bring fresh, local, organic foods into their lives, into their communities, into their schools," says Rehwaldt. "So I think the interest in gardening has spiked because of that.”
雷瓦德说：“人们意识到，栽种能够给他们自己、社区和学校提供新鲜、本地产的有机食物。我觉得，这些原因使人们对种植和园艺的兴趣一路飙升。”
She says growing concern about the environment has also boosted interest. “Because we do not just grow food, but we protect the environment through sustainable gardening practices.”
雷瓦德还谈到，对环境的日益关注也提高了人们对种植和园艺的兴趣，“因为我们不只是种植食物，我们还通过可持续的种植方式来保护环境。”
A cooking demonstration of simple but healthy meals using fresh vegetables was one of the highlights of the various workshops offered by more than 30 local non-profit organizations.
三十多家华盛顿当地的非营利组织为与会者提供了不同的学习班，其中一个亮点是在一个厨艺展示会上，厨师用新鲜的蔬菜做出既简单又健康的食物。
“I am really interested in environment and sort of reconnecting with food and nature," says Scott Verman, a student of the American University in Washington, who came with his friends. "Certainly how to find local food and how to cook it well, and maybe sort of hopefully to get involved on my own with gardening or inspire others to do so.”
斯考特·维尔曼是美利坚大学的学生，她和朋友一起来参加研讨会。她说：“我对环境很感兴趣，我觉得自己和食物及大自然有共鸣。我当然想知道去哪里可以找到本地产的食物，怎样才能煮得好吃点，还希望能够自己参与到种植园艺中去，或者鼓励别人这么做。”
Verman says his school has a community garden on campus. And for those who don’t have access to a large space, Dennis Chestnut of the urban gardening group, Groundwork Anacostia, says you don’t really need one.
维尔曼说，美利坚大学在校园里专门开辟了一个社区花园。城里很多人没有大块的地方可以种植，城市园艺组织“阿那卡斯提亚园艺活”的丹尼斯·切斯塔特说，其实人们并不需要大块的地来种东西。
“We can grow our food in as small a space as a flower pot, but we work with residents to use spaces as small as three feet by three feet (0.9 meter)," he says. "So that is what we consider an ideal size for a small space garden.”
“我们甚至可以在花盆里种瓜果。我们和当地居民就在那种一平米见方的小块地里种东西。这么大小的地块挺理想的。”
Several organizations that encourage school children to grow fruits and vegetables in creative and healthy ways also ran workshops at Rooting DC.
好几个鼓励学生用有创意和健康的方式种植蔬菜水果的组织也在研讨会上开办了学习班。艾琳·戈登是为孩子们提供课外活动的组织“孩子们的力量”的成员。
“We are making newspaper flowerpots," says Erin Gordon, who is with an after-school program called Kids Power. "And newspapers are biodegradable material, so students can make the pot and then either put it directly into the ground, or they can put it into another flower pot. Any vessel can be a vessel for growing vegetables.”
她说：“我们用报纸做成花盆。报纸是可分解材料，学生们可以用它做成花盆，然后放到地里或者放到另外的花盆里去。任何容器都可以用来种菜。”
Alexis Baden-Mayer came to get information for her six-year-old daughter. “Two years ago we started a garden together at her school. So I need to figure out what resources there are in DC to support school gardens and helping us learn how to put one together.”
艾力克斯·梅尔来参加研讨会，主要是为了帮6岁的女儿获得一些相关的信息。她说：“两年前，我们一起在女儿的学校里开出一块地。我想看看华盛顿特区有什么资源可以支持学校的菜园，或者帮助我们开辟一个菜园。”
Brian Stewart, a data base administrator, says gardening is a hobby that he can enjoy with friends. “I got some great tips from the seeds saving workshop for saving seeds for next year. I am looking forward to having some seeds and being able to trade with friends”
数据库工程师布莱恩·斯图尔特表示，园艺是他的一个爱好，他可以和朋友们一起享受栽种的乐趣。他说：“我参加了种子储存培训班，学习如何把种子储存到明年用，我学到了很多很好的小窍门。 我希望能够拿到一些种子，可以和朋友们交换。”
The organizers hope to launch a movement that will grow into a sustainable local food system for healthy communities in Washington, around the country and across the globe.
“在华盛顿种植”年会的组织者希望，这个活动能够在华盛顿生根发芽，让发展一个可持续的地方食物系统及健康的社区成为华盛顿、全美国乃至全世界的一个潮流。 |