Many of the world-famous cherry orchards no longer produce fruit, in part because the roads and black pavement in the area have raised the air temperature enough that winter months are never cold enough for trees to produce buds. Once, cool, clear water bubbled out of artesian wells at almost 50 gallons a minute, but now that water has to be tested for pollutants from gasoline and man-made chemicals.

"It's sad to see the orchards mowed down to make room for multistory buildings. It's not unexpected, it's just sad," says Dave Lazarus, a 36-year Sunnyvale resident who wants to help bring Sunnyvale agriculture back to life on a small scale. "This area was absolutely gorgeous when it was all cherry orchards. You would drive down El Camino and be in another world."

And as the last remaining orchards slowly bloom into mixed-use shopping centers and townhouse developments, a small group of Sunnyvale residents is fighting to bring the love of nature back to Sunnyvale.

A number of nearby cities have already started community-garden programs in response to the rapidly disappearing orchards and open space. Palo Alto has four within its city limits, and San Jose alone has 18.

"Making a dent in development should be the most important goal of a community," Master Gardener Josh Salans, 46, says. "Sunnyvale keeps giving up its soil for asphalt."

Salans—who attained the rank of Master by taking a six-month course with Master Gardeners of Santa Clara—is currently working with the city of Sunnyvale to take advantage of $55,000 in potential grants to build community-garden plots. The land would be divided into individual plots that are tended by residents.

"In this valley, we could be a model for sustainable living because the soil is so good and the people are so smart and so diverse," Salans says.

But Salans and his organization, the Sunnyvale Sustainable Gardening group—made up of residents looking to create organic, self-sustaining gardens—aren't the only people fighting to bring gardens back to the area.

In March, Lazarus, a board member of the Satterberg Foundation—a philanthropic organization founded by Elmer Satterberg in Seattle, dedicated to supporting children's programs, education and environmental work—proposed a $10,000 grant to Robert Walker of the Sunnyvale Department of Parks and Recreation, asking to build a 15-plot garden for Sunnyvale seniors.

Walker says his office and the city were definitely interested.

"We really should have something like that; most cities do. We don't; we're not on the cutting edge of that," Walker says. "We're not in the position to do that. We don't have the budget right now, so we need partners."

Walker went to the Sunnyvale Sustainable Gardening group to find managers for what could become Sunnyvale's senior garden. During the course of those conversations, it was revealed that Lazarus and the Satterberg Foundation had an additional $30,000 available for a 40-plot general community garden.

Salans—who owns a ranch near Ukiah where he goes to get away from the city and reconnect with nature—wants to set up the gardens to educate the community on the benefits of sustainable living. He also thinks it could offer therapeutic benefits for a stressed-out Silicon Valley.

"I have found that to be sane in this world, I have to garden," Salans says. "I have to come home from work and stick my hands in the garden. It slows my heart rate down, relaxes me."

Salans isn't alone in thinking that gardening and working with soil can help humanity.

Sister Jacqueline Graham, a Catholic nun and a 14-year Sunnyvale resident, says gardening can give people a chance to get back to nature and reconnect with the earth. She currently gardens in a small plot of land in her apartment complex—a rare opportunity in the area.

"It's just such a joy to do," Graham says. "I don't mind at all when my hands are stained with the dirt."

Beyond personal health and well-being, the sustainable-gardens group promotes gardens as a means of supporting the area—and world's—expanding population. Here in Sunnyvale, the group's members hope to use it to feed thousands of disadvantaged residents.

Pat Plant, volunteer coordinator for Sunnyvale Presbyterian Church, is working with Salans to get gardening space where she and other residents could grow fresh produce for Sunnyvale's hungry and homeless. She says she would like a plot of her own if the gardens go in, but would need help to grow anything other than zucchini, assorted beans and some tomatoes, the only plants she has successfully raised on her own.

"I think hungry people—not to mention my own family—would get sick of zucchini real quick," the aptly named Plant says.

But before hands get dirty, zucchini starts growing and grant money comes pouring in, the city of Sunnyvale and the sustainable-gardens group need to figure out how a community garden will be run, where it will be placed and who will handle the day-to-day workings of it.

The grant money can only be used for gardens, so the city must first find out if gardens are possible before applying for the money.

Walker says he hopes the gardens group could manage the plots, leaving the city to act only as property owners, to create a no-cost program for the city, so budget restrictions don't impede harvesting.

"That's ideal, because then we don't get into study issues and having to fight the budget as a roadblock," Walker says. "We're fully supportive of the concept, and we're going to work hard to make it a reality."

Salans and Walker have met to discuss how much space would be needed to build the gardens, either as two distinct plots or one combined area. Salans estimated that about 17,000 square feet are needed to build a 40-plot garden with 5-foot walkways between plots. Salans has his eye on a city-owned lot at Charles and Olive streets, but Walker says use of that land is up to the city council.

There is a possibility that the piece of land could be used for revenue generation—which could mean selling it to developers.

"Land is a valuable commodity, and available space can be used for a number of uses; community gardens are only one of those possibilities," Walker says.

He says the gardens could be built in neighborhood parks, old PG&E lots or other open spaces in Sunnyvale. He says the space is there; it's just a matter of finding the best location. Sunnyvale Baylands Park could also house the community gardens.

In the meantime, Salans and the Sunnyvale Sustainable Gardening group are going to meet with council members to rally support for the garden. The council must ultimately approve any city use of grant funding from the Satterberg Foundation, as well as approve the use of any city land for the gardens.

Lazarus says the foundation gives to education, environmental and family causes in Seattle, Sunnyvale and San Diego. It regularly gives out almost $400,000 a year. In the past, it has given about $100,000 to Fremont High School's band program. Lazarus, a Sunnyvale resident since 1968, married Elmer Satterberg's granddaughter and got involved in the foundation through her. He is an avid gardener and fondly remembers the Sunnyvale flora of the past.

According to Salans, Lazarus asked for the grant application by Sept. 15, and the city is working on getting a report to council through both the parks and recreation commission and the city council by then.

Everyone involved acknowledges the need for community gardening in Sunnyvale, especially now, as the last orchards are disappearing.

"Man cannot live on technology alone," Graham says.