Creating And Cultivating An Ancestral Garden

I think one of my favorite things I’ve done so far is created an ancestral garden in my backyard. I am constantly inspired by how our people cultivated land – the practices, the choice of vegetables, all of it paved the way for modern agriculture to be what it is today. Creating an ancestral garden is very personal to its cultivator – there isn’t any rules to it – My ancestral garden is my ode to our ancestors in Africa and America and I’ll share how I planned and created it.

Who are you?

I asked myself- who do you want to honor? I am a child of the African Diaspora as well as someone who know where (some) her African roots are – I wanted to honor and grow two things – the food my people grew to survive as well as African cuisine I grew up enjoying. This is something you’ll need to define initially so you can think about typical gardening plans ( read more about how to plan a garden here) such as companion planting, seed starting, etc.

Seeds

I am treating this garden as sacred as an alter so I wanted to ensure the seeds were not only organic, but ethically sourced. Because of this, 90% of my seeds were purchased from True Love Seeds  African Diaspora Collection + our community. I choose this company for two reasons –

• they sourced their seeds from mostly black owned farms practicing culturally important methods and will give 50% of proceeds back to these farms
• their commitment to telling the story of each seed

As mentioned, I also sourced seeds from our community. lovely sisters shared seeds that they gathered from family in Africa and/or their mothers’ garden. This seed sharing act is a love language not often spoken about in our community and I’m grateful. This act of love plant so much more than food in your garden – it provide hope, love, joy, and unity. If you’re unable to find seeds directly from the land and ancestors you wish to honor, no worries. Use what you can get your hands on and cultivate an ancestral garden on your terms.

Sustainable Seed Starting Methods

Black Owned Seed Companies

Location

As with any garden, choosing the location of your garden is important for a few reasons. if possible, make sure you garden receives at least 6 hours of light, near a water source, and allows enough room for you to reach each plant. In regards to an ancestral garden, you want to think about whether you want your garden to be easily viewed or assessable. Planting this garden near your window or somewhere you wish to spend a lot of your time is ideal.

Research + Methods

Take your time to learn about indigenous practices. Fertilization, irrigation, companion planting etc all have roots in ancestral gardening practices. Take your pick on which method that interests you and try it out.