greening the granite block

having reached the halfway mark of 12x12, i have been considering the effects of the interventions so far. after leaving the site alone for almost a week, the only piece left was the marigold and strawberry plants i planted in the disused drinking fountain way back on may 1. the three watering cans, solar powered lights, chalk, and glowsticks have all been removed while heavy rain has washed away all of the chalk drawings on the site. aside from some sinking after the first heavy rain (due to the spaces between the rubbish in the base of the water fountain) the plants are doing well and have apparently been accepted by the community. so on saturday, may 16, i started "greening the granite block": i made a couple of posters and put up copies at the farmer's market (next to the booths which sell bedding plants), melville cafe and grand cafe, and at baird's supermarket (my source for plants for the site). i also taped a poster to the drinking fountain planter - which is the first time i have advertised directly on the site. i planted again myself: some peppers, cherry tomatoes, and snapdragons...this time in the existing planters with the prickly bushes. total cost was around $20 for the watering can, the soil, the trowels and the plants. (sponsored by mom&dad!) interestingly (as i noted in my "cleaners II" post) this morning for the first time the cleaners have passed through the site and left it largely intact (the only object removed was a broken trowel). i think i am building up to making a bench, notice board, or some other piece of "infrastructure" to add permanently to the site... i have also been toying with the idea of working on the other "parkette" in the "square": an abandoned corner at the south-east of the parking lot, behind the crazy bill's building. then again, i still have a thesis to actually write...