Talk about multitasking -- sunflowers planted on previously blighted vacant lots are providing not just beauty, but it's hoped that they will also be able to remove contaminants from the soil and provide green jobs, plus – as a bonus – the seeds can be harvested and turned into environmentally friendly biofuel.
So far, the nonprofit group that's behind all this, GTECH, has partnered with a number of organizations – including Carnegie Mellon University. Their goals: reclaim vacant land, empower communities, and translate ideas into action.
Will Bradshaw of Green Coast Enterprise, a partner with GTECH in New Orleans' Project Sprout, told Living on Earth that sunflowers were chosen specifically for the project becauset they "create hope. People have a direction connection to them," he said. They remember their grandmothers or other relatives growing sunflowers. And they signal a brighter future.
But that's not the whole point of the project. "There's a real possibility," Mr. Bradshaw told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, "to help people envision their neighborhood and their spaces in new ways."
And that's a good argument for those who would like to see the sunflower considered for the national flower, as we discussed earlier this week.
You may also want to visit Gardening With the Monitor on Flickr. If you join the group (it's free), you can upload your garden photos (and possibly win a prize). Join the discussions and get answers to your gardening questions.
And finally, you can now follow us on Twitter.