Neighborhood Gardens on the Southside
An article in today’s RTD highlights the great work by Tricycle Gardens, Ellwood Thompson’s Local Market and neighbors in the Fan and Museum districts who came together to build a garden at Humphrey Calder Park, next to Patterson Avenue between Thompson Street and Interstate 195. While the article focuses on this one effort the bigger picture is to spread the idea of community gardens and J.R. Pope, city parks director mentions our area specifically.
“We’re trying to promote an adopt-a-park program,” he said. “I’ve got a lot of little areas we have to maintain, like triangles in the street.” A large triangle at McDonough Street and Forest Hill Avenue in South Richmond, for instance, may become an other garden spot if neighbors adopt the project.
The community garden has already taken root so to speak as a garden has been started on Semmes. I am not sure of the address but it is right next to the trailer park and is on a steep hill. A sign has gone up advertising the plots but I haven’t seen any planting or work going on yet. Anybody have any more details on this garden spot?
Well the plots next to the trailer park are garden plots “for rent.” So that does not say “Community Garden” to me, and it’s much further down Semmes East of McDonough street.
If there is a community garden going in at Semmes/Forest Hill at McDonough, I’ve got seedlings, compost and muscle to lend to the project. I’m all about gardening!
Nothing in life is free not even “Community Gardens”. The Richmond plots mentioned in the RTD article go for $50 a 8×12 plot and it also points out some Chesterfield 20×20 plots for $30 a season.
Oh, I thought this was like, an attempt to get richmonders to volunteer in creating … community … gardens. HA HA. Oh well. Fail.
Personally, I think the triangle at the corner of Forest Hill and McDonough is quite lovely as it is. It enhances the historic feel of the neighborhood, and as a neighbor who lives by it, I would rather see it preserved as a park than a community garden.