More Images from Lafayette Square

Lafayette Square Community Garden

This garden sits near the corner of Park and Truman. The beds in this spacious lot are dominated by a trompe l'oeil painting on the western end.

The Community Gardens Project

I am currently documenting the community gardens which dot the St. Louis area. St. Louis, as a city, is comprised mostly of small neighborhoods. In certain areas, where there is a vacant lot and the will to do something about it, neighbors can come together and transform that lot from a potential eyesore into a beautiful and productive piece of land. This has the benefit not only of beautifying the area, but it gives the neighbors a chance to bond with each other, strengthening the ties that hold the area together.

So far, I have only been to a small handful of gardens in the south St. Louis city area, but each one of them shows a character that is distinct from all the others. Each one is reflective of the community that nourishes it.

Gateway Greening, a local non-profit, can partner with these neighborhood efforts. They can provide supplies, tools, seedlings and seeds as well as education, advice and other support for novice gardeners. Keeping up with one's own garden is sometimes hard enough over the course of a season, but there is added responsibility when you are part of a gardening collective.

In addition to the neighborhood efforts, Gateway Greening also works with schools and local branches of the YMCA to maintain gardens on their sites. 

The current gallery of my garden images may be found here. These photos come from 6 different gardens in the area.

First Post

Well, prevailing wisdom says one needs a blog, so who am I to argue? I can't vouch for my diligence in keeping up with matters here, but this should be fun.

Jeff