“One day we stuck a shovel in the ground, and we never looked back,” says Pastor Mike Mills of Advent Lutheran, Toronto, telescoping the church's speedy decision-making process into an even speedier description. “The congregation held a vote on Sunday. By Wednesday, we were mapping out plots, and by the following Sunday we were digging.” Nestled in an island of land — locally nicknamed the “peanut” — created by a split in Don Mills Road north of Sheppard Avenue in Toronto, the grounds of Advent in early spring look much like the grounds of the highrise apartments that dominate the neighbourhood. Yellow dandelion flowers poke up through the newly greening lawn; tiny blossoms on maple trees dangle from branches turning lush with leaves. But tucked among the traditional lawn landscape of this church are dozens of freshly dug garden plots. Some fan out in a circle, others line up in a neat soldier row. Some are lined with wooded dividers; others have narrow paths of grass between them. But come summer, all will be overflowing with vegetables, herbs, fruits and flowers.