Are you a home garden guru, or are you more of a community gardener? Both are great ways to start growing your green space in the concrete jungle. They each have their pros and cons, but which one best suits your lifestyle and space for a garden? Read on for a basic comparison of each:

Community Gardener

Pros

• More Space - Generally speaking, if you opt for a plot in a community garden, you're going to get more square footage for your plants. 
• Community - The name says it all here. With a community garden space, you'll be tending and caring for your garden within a community of other gardeners who you can swap ideas with, and maybe even some vegetables or flowers.

Cons

• Distance - There may be a community garden just around the corner, or the one you're able to get a spot in might be a few more blocks away, but it is a distance you'll have to travel if it isn't in, or connected to, your apartment/condo/really gorgeous loft that I'd happily take off your hands.
  
• Access to Tools - With your garden space farther away, you'll need to consider creating a tote bag for your garden tools and supplies, or creating a locker/space for storing the tools at the community garden plot. 
• Wait List - Every city is different, but in Boston, where there are over 200 community gardens that span nearly 50 acres of land, most plots are secured by lottery when an open spot becomes available.

Home Garden Guru

Pros

• Escape the City - Without ever leaving your place, you can escape from the presence of neighbors, obscure your view of other buildings or untidy porches nearby and cover your outdoor space and/or windowsills with pleasant greenery.
• Easy Access - Whether you're hosting a dinner party and want to grab some fresh, locally grown herbs, or don't feel like carrying supplies a few blocks to the community garden space, having a home garden will save you time (and potentially a few shoulder aches) and will enable you to regularly check on your garden to make sure it's growing healthy.
• Can Have Supplies Delivered - Really, it doesn't get much easier these days. Whether you're ordering online, using an urban gardening kit, or placing an order with a local nursery, becoming the neighbor with the lush greenery has never been easier when you can have everything you need brought to your door.

Cons

• Space - If you live in a studio or a building with limited to no outdoor space, you might not be able to start the garden you've always dreamed of. With the space you have, you might be limited to flowers, not flowers and vegetables.

If you're interested in learning more about the community gardens near you, a simple Google search will drum up a number of results. For those of you in Boston, like us, there was a recent roll call of the top community gardens. 

Let us know which expert garening style you are! Tweet at us @plantwaterbloom, or follow us on Facebook and find other urban gardening pros like yourself.