It's hard work starting up a community garden. Here in Bartlett Park we're so proud that our garden is one year old this weekend. For twelve months, more than a hundred volunteers have hauled dirt, mulch, water, compost, plants, food, chairs, fencing, pvc pipes and friends out to 1443 Highland Street South in St Petersburg to take a vacant lot from bare to bountiful, from scary to sublime, from dangerous to delicious.
We were guided by visions of fresh tomatoes, homemade pesto, beans and collard greens, as well as cookouts and gardening workshops. The concrete, garbage and weeds were all cleared with the intention of creating a beautiful space in the midst of a neighborhood that's seen a lot of hard times. We've worked every single Saturday for a year. You can check out Lara Cerri's cool photo montage about the garden in the St Pete Times here to see some of the action. [Editor's Note: And check out the garden's Creative Loafing Best of the Bay award here.]
This article appears in Feb 25 – Mar 3, 2009.