nothin Starr Street Goes Green | New Haven Independent

Starr Street Goes Green

DAVID SEPULVEDA PHOTOS

Brandi Marshall left, Tammy Chapman, Hailey Mulder, install bed frame Thursday

For Newhallville’s Brandi Marshall, digging in the soil at Starr Street’s Big Starr” Community Garden was an afternoon of firsts. Not only is this my first time at this community garden,” she said. This is my first time gardening — period!”

Courtesy Photo

Part of last Saturday’s demolition and clean up crew.

Marshall was among a group of around a dozen volunteers helping to inaugurate the new growing season with a robust garden clean up and installation of 10 newly fabricated raised garden bed frames on Thursday, the second part of the clean-up effort that began the previous Saturday.

Sepulveda Photo

Fleming, volunteer Tamara Panchevska.

Big Starr, one of two community gardens on Starr Street, is among the 50 or so community gardens spread across the city that are sponsored by New Haven Land Trust. The Land Trust provides the technical expertise and gardening supplies; each garden is led by garden coordinators and community garden members who are responsible for the labor and management of the gardens.

Chapman guides drill as Fleming looks on.

Tammy Chapman, a neighborhood homeowner and organizer, was beginning her second year with the community garden. Just as the garden beds require renewal and some refurbishing every season, Chapman noted, a goal of the community garden this year was to introduce new gardeners and help grow enthusiasm and participation at the large urban plot. Chapman noted the helpful mentoring of veteran gardeners: Some of the more established gardeners have been here for a while so we can learn from them.” Chapman said a friend who moved to Newhallville from the Bronx two years ago recently decided to join the community garden: She said she had never touched dirt; never touched a worm before.”

Big Starr Garden lot. Rife for development?

Chapman also expressed concern about the possibility that the garden property, which is leased by New Haven’s Livable City Initiative to the Land Trust, may be short lived owing to the new wave of development in the area. In the meantime, we are taking the knowledge about gardening back to our homes and neighborhood to teach others how to garden at their own homes.”

New raised bed frames ready for installation.

According to New Haven Land Trust Community Garden Manager Bradley Fleming, who offered hands-on instruction in raised bed construction and drilling techniques, construction of the 10 new bed frames started last Saturday (while there was still some snow cover) after the debris of older beds had been removed.

Harris.

As Thursday afternoon wore on, more volunteers began to trickle in after their day jobs. New Haven native Dishaun Harris who calls himself a farmer and was trained at Common Ground High School’s Urban Farm and Environmental Center, said he has a business start-up called Root Life LLC” that provides local businesses and groups with fresh herbs, salad greens, micro greens and unprocessed produce. This year, he said, he will be providing seeds for the community garden.

Chapman and Mulder plant bed frames.

Chapman — who together with another garden volunteer, Kali Marshal, lead the Newhallville Community Matters organization — said that produce from the garden is routinely shared with area neighbors. Some will be allocated to the organization’s annual coat and food distribution drive held in December.

Stalk removal on the clean up agenda.

Though many wilted stalks from last year’s harvest awaited removal …

Persevering greens.

.… a thriving head of collard greens had over-wintered and was pushing new growth. It seemed to signal the promise of community members working together and a reminder of the harvest to come.

On Saturday, April 8 from 10 a.m.-1 p.m., New Haven Land Trust sponsors its annual neighborhood community garden spring cleanup. Volunteers and visitors will find an open community garden at these participating gardens: Grand Acres, 47 Grand Avenue, Chapelseed,1592 Chapel St., Winchester Garden, 86 Winchester Ave., Field of Greens, 12 Arthur St., Clinton Avenue School Garden, 293 Clinton Ave., Garden in the Park, 90 Clifton St., Wooster Square Garden, 60 Warren St., Fair Haven School Garden, 99 Exchange St., Bristol Street Garden,117 Bristol St., Big Starr Garden, 226 Starr St., Martin Luther King Peace Garden, 24 Adeline St., and Truman Street Garden, 60 Truman St.

Tags:

Sign up for our morning newsletter

Don't want to miss a single Independent article? Sign up for our daily email newsletter! Click here for more info.


Post a Comment

Commenting has closed for this entry

Comments

There were no comments