PLANT GANG

Plant Gang has had the privilege of being documented on a variety of media over the last four years.

It is with great thanks that we have been recognized as doing cool things around the city. We will continue to do our very best to help heal the earth and all its inhabitants.

x

http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/christchurch-life/9435029/Beautifying-Christchurch-one-plant-at-a-time

http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/christchurch-life/art-and-stage/9429178/Arts-infusion-adds-SPARK

http://thewireless.co.nz/articles/shake-up-liv-worsnop-from-plant-gang

PLANT GANG CHATS FROM 11:20 ONWARDS: http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/the-weekend/audio/20162883/community-gardening-part-2

OTHER WORK BY PLANT GANG ORIGINAL GANGSTER LIV WORSNOP

http://www.eyecontactsite.com/2014/07/liv-worsnop-at-the-physics-room

http://oculusjournal.com/sophiebannan/

Guerrilla Gardens are a worldwide phenomenon that has been around for time immemorial but has had a resurgence in the last few decades as a subtle protest of civic and municipal gardens that do not necessarily engage with nature nor people.

The gardens of Garden City remain, but with the fall of the buildings, a new kind of garden has emerged. The new garden has taken root in the unnourished soils of the empty lot. This new garden treats the eye with a different inner city scene. It is unordered and wild, yet offers colour & life. The flora is varied, from bright and floral to thistled and gnarled. There are noxious weeds and common garden varieties.

The Botanical Appreciation Project is a collection of plants that have grown in the Christchurch CBD over the last three years. Traditional medicinal, material, edible and spiritual uses are recorded and revealed in posters and online. This catalogue seeks to revive old knowledge and attitudes towards our environment, by bringing valuable plants uses into awareness. This change in attitude can reconfigure Christchurch city as a potential filled space where the urban and natural environments function fluidly, organically and in a mutually beneficial way.

A second wave of projects supported by The Social were implemented in 2013. Plant Gang took on a site where Concrete Club and Double Happy once stood, but which was now mainly Lupins and Gravel.

The intention was to transform the site through the simple shifting of materials to create a reflective and contemplative environment. This was an alternative approach to transitional projects, where often, things were brought in and plonked ontop of a 'vacant site' in an effort to beautify the city. Plant Gang philosophy deems that rather, through subtle actions, we can draw attention to what nature already has produced. These actions also act as an invisible, energetic balm of healing where time and attention can help to fix the people and the place. 

We built grass islands from truck tyres and broken bricks and cinder blocks. These were grassed with ready grass...a controversial material but one which served its function. A small rotation of people attended the watering for weeks on end. A water tap was located at Resene down the road and 60 liters were sprinkled over these patches for weeks on end.

Lupin was already growing on site. It is a pest along river banks of New Zealand but is a nitrogen fixer and has a range of material and edible uses. Its star shaped leaves mirrored that of a Japanese Maple tree. They were thoughtfully pruned to reflect these ancient Zen relics.

Numerous fences of Residential Red Zone homes were built from rock from the Halswell Quarry. We selected them on for their rugged edges and deep dark grey colouring. Those with Lichen & moss were revered. Liv & Becky somehow got an exceptionally large rock into their car by constructing a ramp of 2x4 found nearby. An amazing feat for two girls measuring 5 feet each.

The site existed for some months and the engagement with it was divine.

Whilst a group of us were at work on a scorching sunday, a lady near 70 inquired about our actions. We told her the plans and she offered her services picking up bricks for an hour or so.

Gary the Maori, Hope and some other street people found us working one day. They dug holes, broke a spade, regaled us with stories of their life on the streets, Puha as tall as a man and they made us laugh.

The Social, an artist run initiative that assists artist in realizing projects in Christchurch gave us the opportunity to complete another project. A sage garden was decided upon as a gesture towards healing with wisdom within our city.

When we began the garden, Gray and Liv were contemplating the huge task of clearing the site of the well established wild plants that had taken root when a lady in a high-viz jacket strolled over. We explained the task at hand and she got quite excited and laughed, with the knowing she was about to make someones day. She had arrived in the adjacent car park in a ute pulling a little digger and she offered to clear the site, for the price of lunch. The job was done in 10 minutes and Anna, of the Cakes by Anna variety luckily had a spare cake that was more than enough to feed herself and her workers.

She was the ultimate lady-boss and was running a lines work job with 3 male minions under her command. The ute was decked out entirely in pink tools. She had pink nails, pink gumboots, pink high-viz and we love her.

Roberto and Lucy helped with the planting. It was not the easiest to dig into the gravelly soil so we sat down and worked away slowly allowing for conversation and contemplation. Lucy was pregnant with wee Nina.

The Sage Garden or 'Foraye' as it was titled by Livs wordsmith sister, remained near the old site of Goodbye Blue Monday during 2013. The sage plants were then relocated to other gardens.

This garden was developed as part of First Thursday's an event held in burgeoning central suburb Sydenham that features art, theatre, music, markets, food and other such delights. The final iteration of 2015, held on 3rd December, Welcome to the Jungle was the perfect place for this Plant Gang project that sought to celebrate and grow the wilderness that is so lacking from 21st Century Urban Life. Over two weeks, we transformed a wonderfully overgrown landscape featuring broken conrete, old tiles, gravel, building foundations and plants into a rugged and complex garden. We wove hardy plants such as succulents, grasses, cactus and herbs, beneficial plants such as marigold, alfalfa, lavender and a miriad of flowers through the piles of concrete, rubble and small benches made from found materials.

The Rewidling the Redzone garden was also political by nature. It presented an alternative example of gardens that could inhabit Christchurch city, particularly in the residential redzone. Below is the text from the hand painted sign that was errected on site.

"This site will not be sprayed with toxic petrochemical derived herbicides or pesticides. It has been created to be biologically diverse. flowers, herbs, hardy plants and succulents have all been encouraged to take over this site as an exemplar of what we could do in our most valuable asset- the Residential Red Zone.

We could have nature play grounds, walkways, native bush, and even places to do sport...maybe of the gapfiller variety.  We could also grow our singular most important resource, quality, nutrient dense, organic food.

Spread seeds and spread the word, lets nurture our home."

The language used around the earthquake has been quite decisive. 'Empty lots', 'devastation', 'vacant lots', 'buildings erased', 'messy'. It has an impact on the way we see the post-quake spaces, it has morphed our view to the past being mourned, the current state being unsightly and to be fixed and the future to hold the hope and the end goal.

A general consensus that Christchurch was a wasteland turned it into just that. An abundance of waste from building supplies, cigarette butts (so many cigarette butts), food packaging, parking tickets and a multitude of different types of plastics added to public perception that this current state was ugly.

This was the first project completed after the invention of Plant Gang. It sought to subtly intervene in the urban landscape through action, with the intention of making the current state ever so slightly more acceptable. We tidied up the 'human accumulated rubbish' as appose to the 'earthquake made rubble', such as bricks, splintered wood and metal. We hoped that with this filter of a dump site removed, people could now see into these spaces and discover the amazing artifacts, plants, residue, building foundations, rocks and life that were present.

We completed so many of these, with our presence only marked by a sign on the fence and an interim clean site.

Cakes by Anna gave us cake. A lady bought us muffins from C1. One man saw Liv in a jump suit and thought she was doing community service, but decided that was not the case because she looked too happy.

We made many observations and learn't about and celebrated the current state of our land. One poignant realsiation, evidenced by what we found was that those that did not look after their bodies seemed to be the ones who littered the land. Coke cans, McD's wrappers, takeout containers and cigarette butts were in abundance.

Festival of Transitional Architecture has run biannually since 2011 when 20,000 people entered the streets of the newly opened CBD.

In 2014, Plant Gang participated. Slow strolls through the over grown gardens of the Residential Redzone were projected onto a uninhabited building on Manchester Street.

Beanbags and atmospheric beats created it into a dreamy place to hang.

This home was on River road and neighbored the Avonside Tennis Courts. It was home to the most lush lawn one could just sink into. Raya rescued cactus from here and carried them in her backpack home.

Still there are a lemon tree, a black boy peach, a greengage, kiwifruit, an espalier apple tree and another plum tree whos name we do not know. The lemon tree is suffering something hard. There are no plants growing around it, just grass. The lemons are the size of large marbles and have no juice.

In the summer of 2015, a few of us had our eye on the Greengage, waiting for it to ripen. Gray biked there one night and met a homeless man gorging himself on this green gorgeousness.

MANCHESTER STREET / GLOUCHESTER STREET

This was a stroll to scope sites to clean and sites to Zenify. The flowers were found near the soup kitchen site. They have been grassed over. The view is from the Physics Room and a building now covers the succulents that were Guerrilla Gardened there.

ST ASAPH STREET

The stuff stayed in place for years. It was nice to have residue from the richters that reminded us what we had been through. It is not always the right thing to make all shiny and new.

Joe's Garage was near here but was taken out by the EQ. Calender Girls inhabited a new building just out of the photo frame but it was recently (2016) bowled because it was in the wrong place. How rediculous is that? Such a waste of energy and resources simply to satisfy a city vision that the public doesn't want!

Across the road from here was an un-humaned lot full of plants and shingle that we stole for the Zen Garden. Countless wheelbarrows eventually colapsed Wheelie B! SVA kindly donated another one that was up to the rigours of moving rocks!

MANCHESTER & TUAM STREET

The building with the checkers has been replaced by glass and steel. Thankfully the Oaks that left its leaves on this floor have been integrated into the entrance of the new build. The result is a building that looks like it is supposed to be there. It is grounded and more integrated.

Coralie told me about this place, she lived there when the earthquake happened.

Rocket, calendula, artichoke, plantain, forget me not, plums, fennel, grew here around the outdoor bath.

A fig grew at the back of the garden. It did well because it was against a north facing concrete wall and soaked up the residual heat.

I was going to rent this Hereford Street home pre quake. It was beyond cute.

Someone else took up residence. This was not the first time I had seen a shed or similar dwelling lived in. It was so tidy and minimal.

Borage is a natural anti-depressant.

MANCHESTER STREET

Majestic Building. It is also gone now...alledgedly to expand the road 6 metres.

LICHFIELD STREET

Rabbits have been seen here regularly since 2012.

LICHFIELD STREET

Goodbye Blue Monday was right about here. These little babes were growing where a car park is now (2016). These photographs were taken when we were scoping sites for "Foraye", Plant Gangs Sage Field.

TOWN HALL

The wonky staircases are so nice.

Mira and Nick asked me to be in a documentary. We drove found this place and walked for hours. I talked for hours. Nick asked me where we were. I had no idea. Google tells me it is near Locksley Avenue.

I took home the artichoke and went back for the plums but they were all gone.

SYDENHAM

These photographs were taken on a stroll around Sydenham which was initiated by a trip to the opshop on Buchan Street.

It may have not been so badly damaged and henceforth was relatively occupied and lively. Still, feels of quiet life living under the noses of the humans existed. Maybe because aesthetic concerns are not high on industrial workers lists of priorities.

Clare and Liv lived near here on Springfield Road. One had to jump a fence to access the borage, rocket, mustard, oregano, carrots, parsnip, parsley, fennel, dandelion, freesias, calendula and nettle growing here.

One day whilst Liv was collecting from here for a Gap Filler / Alesha MacGilligan Spring Feast, an old man stared her down for five minutes. A wave did not deter him, only the temptation of calling the police made him leave.

The police turned up shortly after and demanded Liv jump the fence. This was the ensuing conversation.

COPS: "What are you doing?"

LIV: "Just collecting Parsnips"

"Really? Let me see. What are you going to do with them?"

"Cook them!"

"How?"

"I think I'll roast them and have them with this mustard and Parsley"

"Oh. Well, don't do it again".

They were not that upset.

Liv shared the soup with Heath, Clare and Hamish.

FORAGE WITH ROSALEE

As part of Gap Filler's inconvenience shop, Christchurch artist Rosalee Jenkins conceived and hosted a grocery shop where one would pay in minutes. The price was dictated by the distance the food had travelled to get here.

This fruit cost two minutes. My ginger from Asia cost me half an hour.

These plants were in the properties surrounding Bill Suttons home, near Fitzgerald Avenue.

ST ASAPH STREET / WELLES STREET / TUAM STREET

A stroll when the plants were lush. The rocks and bricks were endearing to Liv, they were the broken bits that had held up our spaces for decades. Now discarded to the rubble heap in Burwood.

We weren't sure where we were going but Raya directed us out east. It was close to New Brighton but not quite there.

We dug so many potatoes. The green house had a length of green string that Liv took home.

We dug a fern and succulents from one of these gardens which were planted on Cashel Street. The fern was sprayed by herbicide but the succulent survived.

We found these plants and homes along Avonside Drive, weaving through Maling Street and near to Sullivan Park.

There was one backyard with three types of apple trees, orange, mandarin, lemon and grapes. It had beautiful moss covered circular pavers.

We found a lot full of pansys near the greenhouse. It was from here that rocks were collected on another adventure for the Zen garden.

The building with the blue wall was once a buisness me thinks...it's owner was very feed up with both insurance and taggers. Ferns grew inside.

There was one backyard with three types of apple trees, orange, mandarin, lemon and grapes. It had beautiful moss covered circular pavers.

We found a lot full of pansys near the greenhouse. It was from here that rocks were collected on another adventure for the Zen garden.

The building with the blue wall was once a buisness me thinks...it's owner was very feed up with both insurance and taggers. Ferns grew inside.

COUNCIL BUILDING DECONSTRUCTION / TUAM STREET

This was the most beautiful skeleton of a building. Plant Gang wanted to develop it into a multi storied green house. The powers at be had other plans.

Jeff and I climbed over fences to get to some of these properties.

Miners Lettuce grew here but it was too dark to capture.

Workers or squatters had made a home in a lounge.

The photo of the pool got me a ticket to the last ever Minuit gig. I think Daegan visited this spot too.

CANON STREET

A bike ride on a Bobbin from the fabeled orchard of River Road to Louise's disappeared home. She had parsely, caldendula, bay tree, brassicas, spinach, and wilds growing in the back

CASHEL STREET

This building gave a wall to the Zen Garden. It is gone now and rabbits + gravel are its new occupants.