Good point Pam, it's important to have a backup in case something happens to you, and this doesn't just apply to gardening, it could be any skill.

Don't have a garden at this time, unfortunately, but would like to start some container gardens on the back porch.

I have some experience in this in some areas of gardens and animal husbandry. In terms of gardens, it has taken me about 5 summer growing seasons to make a little headway into finding others to help me, and for me to help others share the daily tasks of looking after a sizable garden.
About 5 years ago I answered an ad in our local newspaper, an ad looking for a partner, or even just a person, to grow a community-oriented pilot project out here where I live. The project was based on SPIN-Farming (Small-Plot Intensive - Farming) methods. The basic concept is one that was intended more for urban areas, however where I live, there was a simple transfer of similar values, largely due to the fact that the average age in my general area is approximately 68 -70. There are many large acreages and gardens that have been untended due to an aging farmer, mobility restrictions, time constraints and, unfortunately, interest.

What my partner and I set up was a system of building community through connecting dots. The dots are the available -mostly fertile and overgrown - garden plots, and the people who owned them. We had several gardens that we developed in our area. We hired some younger people to apprentice in growing food, and also had volunteers to do the same. The abundance from the garden was first shared with us and the owners, and the surplus was taken to market: local farmers' markets, restaurants, and the rest was processed into products that would be sold through other local small farm or local food specialty outlets.

What I gained most from this experience was, and not necessarily in this order, first, how to grow food, second, the importance of the community building, third, how to organize food to be taken to market, and 4th, building more community at the market.

One of my lasting heart memories, though, was the profundity of connection to those involved in this grass-roots project, and the friends that I have made for life. My daughter, as a result, has made "grand-parents" out of these connections, and these grand-parents, often living alone, have community and someone to check in on them on a daily basis. This has actually saved the life of one of them in the hard winter months, an elderly woman who would otherwise be far too proud to ask for help, all of a sudden felt at ease to call, because she knew that we needed her too.

That's just the vegetable story. The next one is the animal husbandry and the dairy products of cows and goats. Chickens are there too. As for the dairy, we share. We call it "cow-shares". I will leave it at that.

But just to say, that there are other ways of inter-dependence that beckons mutual share and mutual care. This took me four years, but I think it could take one or two years with the right understanding, expertise, guidance, and cooperation.

My words to anyone with a large garden or animals would be to say please don't take on more than you can handle. Don't try to do it all on your own. Spend just as much time building inter-dependency during those winter months and get busy building all over in the Spring, Summer, and Fall harvest. Two is good, to start, but three, at least, is even better...what was that three's a crowd cliche?..... never mind

oh what a great story Alli!!!
that was inspiring to say the least.
what happened here was I got sick right when my neighbor was gone for a week!
if he'd been here he would have taken care of things.
I love what you did though Alli, it really sounds wonderful.

The really good thing about what we did, is that although we are not working together in the same way, we have all built community, and so through this initial process, we have made friends with people that have learned the skills needed to help out one another if a person has to be away or gets ill. I think that was a really powerful part of that project, and it really taught me how to build on those principles. Changed the way I relate to people.

I love your story allissun. I used to be a candystriper in high school ... one of those chicks in a seriously deformed looking pink striped dress that goes around the hospital running errands for the nurses (carrying poop to the lab, to be specific!), bringing newspapers and soft drinks to patients and their visiting families, and other do-gooder stuff. The elderly patients were always so lonely with infrequent visitors ... you could almost always cheer them up by chatting with them about their gardens. They ALL had gardens or at least potted plants in their homes. I seriously doubt that aging baby boomers will be the same.

That's a great story Alli, I really hope all of us can come to see something similar in our lives.