rahelhegnauer

Rue Laghouat 7
View towards the street.
We were supposed to start in the middle of March instead we have to postpone the project to the beginning of June. Not like it was agreed in Rue Myrha, but in an empty plot in Rue Laghouat 7.

Rue Laghouat 7
View into the empty plot. We are waiting for the contract. I postpone the date of delivery of the soil.

Ecole maternelle Richomme
In the meanwhile I already purchased tomatoe and pumpkin saplings at the nursery of Ecole de Breuil at Bois de Vincennes. As we cannot start the project I have to find a place where somebody can look after the plants. I’m lucky – Christophe Poupon and his pupils from the primary school Richomme will do the job.

Pôle Santé, Rue Cavé
Another set of saplings I give to Pôle Santé (advice center for social concerns). Madame Sissiko and Monsieur Diop will water the plants.

To fulfill the conditions of the contract of the empty plot – it’s a Construction site – we have to find somebody who will act as a kind of caretaker of the plot. Somebody who will keep the key to the lock of the gate and will open and close it every day during the 3 following month. It’s Michel Theophil, our "guardian-angel" of the plot.

Anaïs. The youngest participent of the project.
In the neighbourhood the idea of the project has been made known. About 15 people are interested to take part.

Rue Laghouat 7
View from above.
It's now confirmed that we get the plot for a limited time. Not like promised from 2 June - December 2006, but from end of June to end of September 2006.

Rue Laghouat 7

SEMAVIP
Municipal planning department and building control office of Paris

The contract
On 30 June the theatre company Cie. Graines de Soleil who represents our project can finally sign the contract with the SEMAVIP: 1 July - 30 September 2006
(Djamila Aït-Aissat (SEMAVIP), Caroline Palacio-Boer and Katell Ano (CIe. Graines de Soleil))

Caroline opens the gate to the plot.

Christine and Caroline in the plot.

Ecole de Breuil, Bois de Vincennes
Michel, Lucien and the gardener Jean-Paul Serre. At a good price we get saplings of tomatoes, pumpkin, cabbage, pepsicorn, aubergines, maïs and amaranth, ...

... and flowers, too.

Point P., Alfortville
Because the plot is officially a Construction site I have to get 25 helmets.

Rue Laghouat 7
Inauguration of "our" plot (in french: friche) on 6 July 2006. With Michel, Christine, Myriam, Vincent, Philippe, Jean-Claude, Caroline, Lucien i. a.

7 July 2006
Ecole maternelle Richomme
The pupils of Christoph Poupon get ready for the moving of the plants.

The procession of the vegetable.

The procession of the vegetable.
(Photo: Caroline Palacio-Boer)

The procession of the vegetable.
(Photo: Caroline Palacio-Boer)

Class picture of Ecole maternelle Richomme.
With Caroline (Cie. Graines de Soleil), the principal of the school and the teacher Christophe Poupon.

We go one more time to the horticultural college Ecole de Breuil. This time we get flowers. It's the last day before the beginning of the summer vacation.

Sketches of the jardin temporaire
Originally we wanted to make 20 units of 6m2, but we decide to have 120 units of 1m2 instead.

Rue Laghouat 7
After 3 times of ordering - and cancelling - the delivery of soil, the first lorry arrives. It comes 3 times with each 15m3 of soil per load.

Beginning of building the units.
Material: Fabric, Wire, netting, Soil.

RUNGIS in Orly.
13 July, 4 am.
RUNGIS is a hypermarket.
Thanks to a cousin of Caroline who works as a florist and her boss I can get more flowers for a reduced price.

11 - 16 Juli 2006
We have just about one week to install the garden.

The flowers of RUNGIS.
Because the beginning of the project has been much delayed we cannot not use seeds, we have to start the garden by planting saplings.

I calculated for the depth of each of the units about 40cm. Because it was less we got too much of soil. Luckily - we got a hill that way.

The borrowed shrub.

(Following 10 photographs: Sabrina Roulet)

José lives in the same street. In exchange for soil he lends his bushes and shrubs for the summer.

14 July 2006

15 July 2006
We have the weekend to plant the remaining saplings.

16 July 2006
The garden is ready.

5 - 8 August 2006
3 weeks later I go again to Paris.
It has become much greener already.

People come together in the evenings to water the plants. There is no water tap in the garden. We have to carry the water from outside.

To be sure that all the units get watered we number them. But in the end it is not really important to whom the units belong.

Pascal Ferlicot decides to cycle to Zurich. He calculates 5 days for the distance. He is the webmaster and secret manager of the area "La Goutte d'Or". He knows all the people and helped to promote the project jardin temporaire.

Asma. She and her brother, sometimes also her younger sister came for the plantation almost every day.

Asma with the siblings Cisshoko.