Lexington Community Gardens!

1) Winburn Community Art Garden
Location: Community Action Council at 1169 Winburn Drive. The Winburn Garden begun fall 2007 is a collaborative effort between the Community Action Council, the Winburn Neighborhood Association, Russell Cave Elementary,  Sustainable Communities Network, Northeast Lexington Initiative, and other individuals and businesses in the community. Children and adults are working side-by-side to create a beautiful  and communal space. Our beautiful mural is the product of the UNESCO Art Miles Project coordinated locally by Jarah Jones and our native plants were furnished by Shooting Star Nursery . All art work and structures were completed using found objects as we stress the need to recycle and reuse to our youth (and ourselves!). We received pavers from kindred friends of the Dunbar Memorial Garden and placed these around trees to use as raised beds.  Last fall we planted bulbs and they are peeping their cute heads out of the ground! Peas and lettuce were planted the last few weeks.

SPRING GARDEN PARTY We'll be planting and creating art  This Saturday, April 5, 1pm -3pm. Join us!  Several volunteers from UK, County Court and others will be present to help.  Bring tools...donations of trees...veggie plants..flowers....seeds. The work will continue each Saturday in April and May 1pm -3pm.
For more information, contact: Catrena Lewis CLewis@commaction.org, Carloyn Benford, 221-9901,or jim embry  jgembr0@cs.com
You can see pictures at  Winburn Community Garden           http://sustainlex.org/winburn.html


2) Paul Laurence Dunbar High School Memorial Garden
Reason and purpose: In the Fall of 2006 our students mourned the loss of a fellow student and friend named Josh Shipman. Realizing that they needed to find a way to not only express their sorrow but to celebrate this young mans life, the Gay-Straight Alliance requested a location at the school in which to plant a garden. While still in the planning stages, one of the GSA's own members, Jesse Higginbotham, was involved in an auto accident on the way to school on April 18, 2007 that took his young life. Together with members of the school including several clubs and organizations as well as with the help of many members of the Lexington community, the garden design has been crafted and on June 25th received approval by the Fayette County School Board.
The aim of the garden is to provide a place of sanctuary and beauty to the students of Dunbar as well as to the many family members and friends of the young ones who are no longer among us. It will be an ongoing project that will grow and take shape in other directions-providing a place to not only honor these people but also affording a creative outlet and an educational experience. Students and adults will work together learning proper planting techniques and discovering the ecological benefits of using native plants.
SPRING GARDEN PARTY  Work will be begin in late April and continue through the summer and fall from 10am-1pm.
You can see pictures at Dunbar Memorial Garden  For more information, contact: Rebecca Woloch rwolochxxx@gmail.com. Join our “listserv” for updates.

3) London Ferrill Community Garden  *New in 08
Location: 8between the Fire Station and Cemetery on East Third St. Named for London Ferrill who is buried in the Cemetery.
SPRING GARDEN PARTY  This Friday, April 4th from 1 – 5 p.m.  At this time the plots will be tilled, participant application/contracts will be given out, and assign individual garden plots. As of this Saturday, individuals can begin planting.
For more information, contact: Sherry or Geoff Maddock :geoffandsherry@yahoo.com 559.3837
You can see pictures at  Photos from geoffandsherry http://flickr.com/photos/geoffandsherry/page2/


4) Southland Community Garden *New in 08
Location: The garden sits in Hill N Dale Park(LFUCG) off of Southview and Fairview Drs. near Southland Dr.
SPRING GARDEN PARTY  This Monday, April 7th from 6– 8pm  Garden plots will be assigned, compost will be delivered and placed in raised beds, seeds exchanged, and fun!. This past Monday 10 raised beds were constructed. With support from LFUCG City Council and Parks Dept., Neighborhood Association and community residents.
For more information, contact:Mason Colby mason.colby@gmail.com    You can see pictures at http://www.flickr.com/photos/politicalhero/

5) The Rock/La Roca (United Methodist Church)
Location: 1015 N Limestone; In 2007 La Roca had gardens behind Arlington Elementary, on Price Ave and Todds Rd. Members of the church and surrounding community planted th eir garden together in April 2007. Since the original work days dedicated to planting, the garden was tended by neighbors from the community and in the spare time of those who work at and attend La Roca. The garden contained a variety of vegetables: tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and beans. Church leaders harvested vegetables and distributed them to neighbors. Community members were encouraged to harvest and use the vegetables themselvesl. Rev. Aaron and his congregation invited other houses of worship to find God in the garden and to create Gardens of Eating.
For more information, contact Rev. Aaron Mansfield ;mansfieldclan@juno.com (859) 255-0712;
You can see pictures at Community Garden Tour 2007         http://sustainlex.org/cgt2007.html

6) Nelson Avenue ArtGarden
Location: 318 Nelson Ave off of E Third St and Midland Ave.
The Nelson Avenue garden was begun in April as a project of the Youth GreenCorps(SCN,NELI) in collaboration with the Nelson Avenue community. In the spring of 07 the YGC worked together on the garden on Saturday mornings. Compost and mulch were donated by the Great Mulch Company on Midland Place and two pieces of art from recycled objects and bicycle parts were donated by local artists. Since the original planting and work days of the spring, the garden has been tended largely by youth of the community. Rakim Baker joyfully accepts the responsibility of cutting the grass every week. The garden contains a variety of different flowers, herbs, and vegetables in addition to various art projects and a horseshoe pit in the back. The Nelson Avenue Artgarden is connected in spirit to the Isaac Murphy Memorial ArtGarden on Third St. and Midland, an idea that is still in the final design and capital funding stages but is intended to commemorate the contributions of Isaac Murphy and other African American jockeys to the history of Lexington and the horse racing industry, as well as be an active site for the community garden movement in Lexington.
SPRING GARDEN PARTY This Saturday, April 5, 10am-12 noon  and most evenings from 6-8pm
For more information, contact Contact: Bruce Mundy mundy46....@yahoo.com (859) 494-4883
You can see pictures at  Youth GreenCorpshttp://sustainlex.org/ygc.html

7) Booker T. Washington Academy
Location: 475 Price Rd. Booker T. Washington Academy school garden began spring  2007 and is used as part of school science curriculum. The school children have planted greens, lettuces, radishes and more...have eaten the produce in school and have taken some home. Last fall 07 100's of flower bulbs purchased from a kind donation were planted and these flowers are also peeping their cute heads out of the ground! Spring planting will begin soon.
For more information, contact  Alva Clark alvamc@gmail.com

8) Ballard Griffith Towers
Location: 300 West Second Street; part of Lexington Housing Authority. The garden at Ballard Griffith Towers was established around 1998 in conjunction with the building's most recent renovation. It consists of several raised beds and a very beautiful pond full of water lilies and other aquatic plants, as well as many large koi fish. The garden and pond are cared for by several of the Towers' residents, and the vegetables harvested from the beds are shared among the people who live there. For more information, Carolyn Smith, 859-281-5091  You can see pictures at Community Garden Tour 2007         http://sustainlex.org/cgt2007.html

9) West End Community Empowerment Project (WECEP)
Location: Black and Williams Center 498 Georgetown St
The Youth GreenCorps teamed up with the 70+ youth of WECEP's summer program the week of July 9th to re-establish a community garden and create art projects on the grounds of the Black and Williams Center. We planted flowers and tomatoes in existing beds and built raised beds for plants. Older students helped build a picnic table in the shape of a turtle using straw bale construction, and another group painted murals on pieces of plywood and a mailbox. The design of the turtle was selected in our desire to connect with the Native American tradition of referring to the North American continent as Turtle Island.
You can see pictures at Community Garden Tour 2007         http://sustainlex.org/cgt2007.html
For more information contact: Melvin Cowan wecepvista2@yahoo.com or Dora Hudson (859) 255-0926

10) Lexington Senior Center
Location: (Nicholasville Road/Alumni Drive)
The garden at the Senior Center has been in place for about 6 to 8 years. It is tended by the senior citizens who come to the center area. The produce that is harvested from the garden is shared among them.
For more information contact: Chris Strecker  chrisstrecker@hotmail.com or Bruce Burris (latitudearts@yahoo.com).
You can see pictures at Community Garden Tour 2007         http://sustainlex.org/cgt2007.html


11) Community Garden Tour 2008
Last year 2007 Sustainable Communities Network in collaboration with other community groups organized the Lexington Community Garden Tour that involved 5 garden sites more than 200 people and friends who attended from Bowling Green. This year the projected date is Thursday August 7....with a local foods meal to follow the Tour. Call if you want to participate or help organize for this event this year.  You can see pictures at Community Garden Tour 2007         http://sustainlex.org/cgt2007.htm


12)Other potential gardens: empty lot at 6th and Upper St (contact: Les Miller, Aumaine Mott at Al's Bar),  ......Cardinal Valley (contact: John Walker)

13) WHOLE FOODS 5% Day for SCN April 9
Sustainable Communities Network will receive 5% of sales at Whole Foods on Wednesday April  9  as a donation to our efforts at supporting the local community gardening movement. We say THANKS!! to Whole Foods and all who shop there that day. So if you you need groceries stock up on April 9 at Whole Foods and show your support of SCN.

Also Sustainable Communities Network will have a table in WHOLE FOODS on Saturday April 12 from 11-4pm with information on rain gardens, composting, fruit/veggie gardening, green design and other sustainable community efforts. Please join us this day and bring your information to share at our table.

14) Sustainable Ag conferences,
During March SCN members jim embry, and Andrea Tapia attended sustainable agriciulture conferences in  Frankfort with Community Farm Alliance , Community Asheville, NC with Heifer International, and in Kansas City with the  SARE 2008 National Conference - Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program

See UK document on Lexington Food assessment at Community Farm Alliance  http://www.communityfarmalliance.org/

15) Check out SLOW FOOD MOVEMENT  Convivium Leader Mark Williams 502. 303. 3760 www.slowfoodbluegrass.org,   www.slowfoodnation.com

16) BUGS, Bluegrass Urban Garden Society...interested in establishing BUGS???? contact SCN...inquire about BUGS document:
excerpt: The name of Bluegrass Urban Gardening Society (BUGS) was suggested by Bruce Burris of Latitude Arts, a few years ago as he attempted to create a local urban gardening movement.  This coalition NOT YET FORMED would seek to promote the "long-term protection and sustenance of community gardens" in addition to providing "training, education, support, and resources to groups interested in establishing community gardens and other neighborhood-scale green spaces" throughout Fayette County. (BUGS would become a non-profit 501(c)(3), organization dedicated to building strong, sustainable, local and regional food systems that ensure access to affordable, nutritious, and culturally appropriate food for all people at all times.  BUGS would seek to develop self-reliance among all communities in obtaining their food and to create a system of growing, manufacturing, processing, making available, and selling food that is regionally based and grounded in the principles of justice, democracy, and sustainability.)BUGS would be incorporated into a 501 C.-3 organization and receive funding from local, state and Federal governments (i.e., USDA and EPA), and foundations.  BUGS could evolve into a resource center that would provide seeds and seedlings for urban gardeners, flower bulbs, perennials and native plants, trees, raised bed materials, tools and a wide range of educational materials. This coalition would serve as the centralized organization for supporting community/school/faith gardening within Lexington.