A Courageous Boulevard Garden

In this small city in middle America, in the midst of productive agricultural land, at least one intrepid individual grows vegetables on the boulevard/curbside of the city's main street. Perhaps the person is a renter who is not allowed to grow vegetables in other parts of the lawn. I did not get a photo in 2009, but there were zucchini or squash plants grown there then. This photo is from July 29, 2010. Click on the photo to see the corn stalks.
Is there production? Note the pumpkin...

The plants literally spill out onto the busy highway, State Route 15 through Goshen, Indiana.
There is a mysterious blue sign "81". Perhaps that has something to do with permission to grow something other than grass in this spot. Does anyone know?

Strathcona Community Garden

Along with nearby Cottonwood Community Garden, Strathcona Community Garden also had an open garden on July 11. The sign pointing the way emerges from a thicket of blackberry bushes and morning glory.
This community garden has existed longer than the Cottonwood one, and the plots seem a bit larger. This plot is neatly cared for and productive.

Carpenter skills have provided a diamond-shaped structure for Swiss chard, all set in a larger plot with a low fence.

Vancouver's warm weather hadn't really begun, so milk cartons filled with water help warm up the tomato plants.

Gardeners are always changing things--this appears to be a plot under development. Or perhaps there are new gardeners for this plot.

An area given over to flowers--

I caught someone harvesting their garlic.

I had to severely restrain myself from picking these Alpine strawberries. They are the best!

Back to the wild, a space that runs alongside the gardens, this time a marshy area, rather than the blackberry bushes and morning glory that were near the sign to the garden. Retaining wild areas in an urban area is crucial in many ways.

Cottonwood Community Garden

I didn't really need this sign to the Cottonwood Community Garden open house on July 11. I knew that I was at the correct spot when I saw white fluff from the tree covering everything, in this photo adding more mulch to the straw mulch!
The garden is situated next to some non-green industrial land. Think about all those hot and barren roofs. The garden has recently developed a new section with "really" raised beds for persons using wheel chairs or otherwise having difficulty in bending down.

There were countless photo opportunities, but I'll limit this blog to a small selection. Here is a typical scene although nothing is typical in community gardens--too many strong gardening personalities!

Not all is veggie...flowers abound. I liked these poppies.

Oops, these are chicory flowers. Everyone is going to have chicory in their plot next spring.

What a relaxing spot! But perhaps it's a bit too relaxing...morning glories were twining all over the plot, likely not appreciated by gardeners in the neighboring plots. Community life, like gardening, can have its ups and downs.
Next blog will cover the open house on the same day at the nearby Strathcona Community Garden.