Grain-of-Soil

Eugenijus Barzdžius
Visual research project on urban gardening

dedicated to
Walter Seiler
24.01.1931 – 22.04.2022

by Eugenijus Barzdžius
with support of Daniel Seiler
in partnership with:

Einführung
Die Art, wie Menschen arbeiten,
bestimmt ihre Lebensweise. Die
Art, wie sich Menschen ernähren,
prägt neben den klassischen
Landwirtschaftsflächen, die
es auch in einem städtischen
Kanton wie Basel-Stadt gibt,
vor allem Freizeitgartenareale,
Gemeinschaftsgärten, private
Gärten, als Anbauflächen genutzte
Dächer, Balkone, Vorgärten,
Hinterhöfe oder Zwischennutzungen
auf temporär freien Arealen.
Zumeist spielt neben dem Anbau
von Gemüse und Früchten auch
der soziale Aspekt eine wichtige
Rolle. Im Gemeinschaftsgarten wird
miteinander gearbeitet, die sozialen
Kontakte stehen im Vordergrund. Im
Freizeitgartenareal können ebenfalls
wertvolle soziale Netze entstehen.
Die urbane Agri-Kultur erfährt
derzeit einen neuen Schwung, der
auch in Basel zu beobachten ist. Dies
hat zweifellos mit dem stärkeren
Bewusstsein zur Rolle nachhaltiger
Ernährung in der Stadt zu tun.
In den letzten Jahren ist auch
im Kanton Basel-Stadt das
Bedürfnis nach nachhaltiger
Lebensmittelproduktion,
Transparenz und Rückverfolgbarkeit
gewachsen. Als Antwort darauf
sind neben bereits bestehenden
Gärten und Freizeitgartenarealen
zahlreiche Quartiermärkte,
Hofläden und Gemeinschaftsgärten
entstanden und diverse private
Akteurinnen und Akteure aus
der Gesellschaft, Wirtschaft und
Forschung engagieren sich mit
vielfältigen Initiativen und Vorhaben
für eine lokale und nachhaltige
Lebensmittelversorgung in Basel-
Stadt – zum Beispiel die Markthalle,
die Aktienmühle oder die
Meriangärten.
Besonders erwähnenswert ist das
jüngste Projekt «plankton – die
Gemüsekooperative aus der Stadt»,
das vom Regierungsrat unterstützt
wird. Das Projekt setzt sich für
eine dem Standort angepasste,
klimaverträgliche Landwirtschaft ein,
die städtische Biodiversität fördert
und die Teilhabe der Bevölkerung
am lokalen Ernährungssystem
ermöglicht. Konkret werden

bisher ungenutzte Stadtflächen
wie beispielweise Flachdächer,
Hinterhöfe und Rasenflächen für den
Anbau von Gemüse, Obst, Beeren
und Kräutern genutzt. Die Produkte
gehen entweder als Gemüse-Abos
zurück in die Quartiere oder werden
direkt vor Ort verwertet.
Ein weiteres Projekt, das Projekt zur
regionalen Entwicklung «Genuss
aus Stadt und Land» (PRE), will dem
Bedürfnis nach mehr Regionalität
und Authentizität mit einem
wachsenden Angebot aus regionaler
Produktion nachkommen. Herzstück
sind konkrete Teilprojekte, die in
den Bereichen Produktion, Logistik
oder Marketing investieren. Die
Investitionen werden zum grössten
Teil von den Trägern selber finanziert
sowie von Bund und den beiden
Basel mit Beiträgen unterstützt.
Eng mit dem PRE verknüpft ist die
Basler Genusswoche, die jeweils
im September stattfindet. Diese
fördert den Genuss, den Respekt vor
den Lebensmitteln, die Freude am
Kochen und am guten Essen.
Diese Bühne, die dem lokalen
Genusshandwerk geboten wird,
kann immer besser genutzt werden.
So wird Basel die Ehre zuteil,
Schweizer Genussstadt 2022 zu sein.
Ganz von ungefähr kommt diese
Auszeichnung nicht. Der Kanton
Basel-Stadt fördert mit einem
speziellen Massnahmenpaket
schon lange eine nachhaltige
Ernährung und hat mit der jährlichen
Unterstützung der Genusswoche
Basel und mit dem PRE die Weichen
für diese Auszeichnung gestellt.
Ein einfühlsames Portrait
verschiedener Akteurinnen und
Akteure (nicht nur) der Basler
Agri-Kultur steuern nun Eugenijus
Barzdžius und Daniel Seiler bei.
Es zeigt Menschen, es zeigt ihren
Lebensraum und es zeigt auch ein
Stück ihrer Lebensweise.
Es hätte zu keinem besseren
Zeitpunkt erfolgen können.
Lukas Ott,
Leiter Kantons-und Stadtentwicklung
Basel-Stadt

Foreword by the author
My personal interest in selfsufficiency
spans my whole life.
In my childhood, I have been
observing and slowly learned by
helping my grandmother at her
small farm. Parallel to that, my
mother cultivated an allotment for
our family, where my knowledge and
experience are also coming from.
In my late teens, I started to travel
abroad and see various gardening
and self-sufficiency activities in
towns, and villages. This experience
broadened my understanding,
that people are doing this activity
with what is available at their hands
everywhere I go.
Later in life, I moved from my
parents to Vilnius and subsequently
to Copenhagen where I spent more
than 7 years. I have also studied in
Newport, Wales, and in London, and
traveled in Europe and USA, where
I noticed that not only in allotments
but also on balconies, on rooftops,
or in backyards also young people
are cultivating various plants, and
that was a changing point in my
mindset, that urban gardening
activity is not only for middle-aged
or elder people. In the last 20 years
or so, with the changing economical
situation, and general attitude
towards the environment, more
people looked back to ecological
ideas, which are also bringing a
bigger meaning but a therapeutic
aspect to life in a city.
For this project, I was observing
different urban gardening activities
in Basel and Vilnius, which gave me
a wonderful opportunity to draw
parallels in the same activity field.
In both cities, I also had a chance to
meet people with different cultural
and ethnic backgrounds. Those
possibilities, even more, proved
to me that the will of producing
a harvest with one’s labour is
something in common for all
people, no matter of cultural, ethnic,
or economic background one is
coming from. The main difference
is the structure of allotments: in
Vilnius, they are becoming more
of a place to build a proper house
for living, since the municipality
gives such permits, and cultivation
is becoming less common practice
there, as a typical 600 m2 land plot
is just enough to build a house with
a parking space and a tiny space
for grass, a few bushes or trees.
When observing allotment spaces
in Basel, we can see how it is more
regulated for the initial purpose of
an allotment - to cultivate fruits and
vegetables for oneself.
The most impressive is the variety of
people’s interests in the cultivation
of mushrooms, berries, fruit trees,
herbs, root plants, bee-keeping,
flowers, and many more. Each
person finds one’s interest in
something specific, that answers
to one’s call in carrying out a joyful
activity, which is still requiring
manual labour, but is fruitful, giving
more in return, which is usually more
evaluated than harvest itself.
Eugenijus Barzdžius

Laura
In a suburban part of apartment blocks in Vilnius, she initiated a public garden
for people to come and grow whatever they would like in raised beds. In the third
year of this project, the initiative is receiving more and more involved people who
are willing to try to grow something for themselves but also to be more involved in
the urban gardening movement.

Laura
Living in an apartment block is not limiting Laura’s passion for flowers as she
cultivates quite a huge variety of them on a glass balcony throughout the year.

Thomas
The backyard gives a lot of space for experimenting since Thomas used to work
as a biochemist. In his garden is a huge variety of plants and fruit trees that are
pollinated by bees, which he is keeping there as well.

Greta
Before this Spring, she had never thought of sprouting seeds or growing anything
on a windowsill but when Greta started her first experiment, she said that it
brought enormous joy to observe progress each day.

Aurelija
Living in a tiny apartment in the old town of Vilnius does not limit Aurelija to
prepare seedlings until they will be ready for planting in her summerhouse
outside the city.

Agnė
One of the best things about the acquired house in the allotment was a huge
glass greenhouse that gives Agne enough space for experiments and plenty of
vegetables for her family to sustain themselves with vitamins.

A few grains of statistics
The majority of participants of this project answered that:
• They have been practicing urban gardening for
more than 10 years.
• And that this activity is relaxation for them.
• It takes up to 30 minutes to get to their garden.
• The most common transportation among the
respondees is a bicycle.

Vaiva
In early Spring, Vaiva starts preparing seedlings in her kitchen, where they sprout
light boxes and a glass balcony for later planting in her country house garden.

Stephanie
She is standing behind Die Sammlerei initiative (see further in this catalogue).
Stephanie is trying to connect: a therapeutic activity for a group of people with
citizens of Basel that are not collecting harvest from various plants or trees that
they have around their houses.

Ilona
Around here private house is enough space to try out gardening activities. A
newly built greenhouse for tomatoes, a few garden walls for cucumbers is perfect
for the start.

Evaldas
In the mornings, when it is still rather still in the city, Evaldas is coming to check his
bee houses that are on the rooftop of his gallery.

Andreas
With rooftop beekeeping, Andreas combines his hobby with his day job as an
organic restaurateur in the organic bistro.

Kasper and David
They got interested in mushroom growing more than a year ago and now there
is such a huge demand for their harvest in Basel that they are thinking about
expanding their supply.

Schlemmergarten
The garden is a meeting spot for unemployed people to meet up in small groups,
up to 9, and to cultivate their common land plot. They are trying traditional and
new varieties, which later they are also selling in city markets.

A few grains of statistics
The majority of participants of this project answered that:
• They have given most of their land plot space for
garden cultures; flowers; trees and bushes, and
for a greenhouse or a shed.
• And they are usually trying to use second-hand
materials for maintaining or building whatever is
needed.

Liudas
In a small shop of chilli souces, Liudas is also cultivating a few chilli plants there
as he does in his greenhouse outside the city.

Die Sammlerei
This initiative is bringing meaning not only for group of people that wants to
collabourate, to create something joyful and meaningful together, but is also
helping to citizens of Basel that are having unneeded harvest of fruits or berries,

which they make into chutneys, jams, and marmalades that are later sold back
to citizens of the city. Such a circle of circulation is giving chance to support this
initiative but also to reduce urban harvest turned into waste.

Istvan
For more than 15 years, Istvan with his wife was actively cultivating their allotment
plot, but in recent years it has become more than a cozy retreat place for Istvan
with his grandchildren.

Veli and Siren
The allotment plot is also the meeting place for their family, as they are coming
there every day in order to make it home cozy with
lush harvest of vegetables.

Yildiz
Together with her husband, they are cultivating their allotment plot for more
than 20 years, which provides enough vegetables to support their extended
family tables.

Peter
Kiwi plants in the backyard of the central Basel provide not only beautiful
decoration to the wall but also give enough harvest to make jams that are being
sold as souvenirs that are supporting Museum für mechanische Musikinstrumente,
which Peter is running in the same backyard.

Eva
In the allotment garden, Eva runs a kindergarten. This space is giving another
possibility for children to perceive this interconnected world.

Salvatore
The allotment plot has been in his extended family for decades, and Salvatore is
meticulously continuing to elaborate it as his family meeting place. His specialty is
tomato sauce, and a few other delicacies.

Tran Van Mur
In this allotment plot Tran Van Mur is cultivating for the last 7 years but working
with the land he was whole his life. He is coming every day to his plot in order to
take care of plants: to open and close greenhouses, to take away weeds...

Inesa
Very early in the Spring, when snow is still outside, Inesa starts sprouting
seeds in order to have them ready for being planted outdoors by her family
house outside Vilnius.

A few grains of statistics
The majority of participants of this project answered that:
• Their garden space is also for social activities with
family and/or community.
• Their chilkdren are coming and helping but at
the same way gathering knowledge from elders.
• The age of participants is between 30 and 80
years of age.

Raimonda
Living in an apartment blockhouse in Vilnius city, she has started cultivating the
land that is around the building, and it is already giving plenty of harvests.

Ute
Working in her allotment plot for almost 10 years, where she is coming often with
her two sons. It is a place for planting experiments, a playground for children, and
at the same - a place to rest.

A few grains of statistics
The majority of participants of this project answered that:
• They collect seeds from wherever they find them
available.
• The harvest is preserved for the table by:
pickling, making marmelades, chutneys, compot
or gelée, freezing.
• They nourish their soild by producing compost
by themselves.
• They usually share their harvest with their
neighbours of relitivives.

Tilla
She is a driving force in order to initiate open gardens for public purposes. Tilla
has already opened a few such places around Basel for people who would like to
learn and cultivate something for themselves.

Special thanks
To all of the participants of this
project, and everyone who believed
in it and helped me along the way.
To Daniel, who supported me right
from the beginning, when the idea
was just born. For his patience and
very structural approach.
To Ramona, who kindly accepted me
in Markthalle for the exhibition and
was always very open to my ideas.
To all of the sponsors who made this
project possible.
To Viktorija, that she always believed
in me and friendly motivated.
Last but not least - to my mother that
always did magic in her garden that
whatever she touched flourished in
lush liveliness. For the continuous
inspiration!
Eugenijus Barzdžius

Eugenijus Barzdžius
www.eugenijusb.com
2022