Echiums

I planted the echium seeds today - Pride of Madera. They should be amazing!

Also put out the last of my surveyor's flags to try to prevent people and dogs walking on the flower beds... you would think people would avoid doing that, wouldn't you? But no, apparently not... *sigh*

Sunny day (on the) real estate

Today I bought a rake and hose, watered, moved mulch, added compost, sprinkled Nasturtium and Malcolmia seeds about with gay abandon, watered some more, made a sort of entrance defined with 2 planks so people don't walk on the new beds, watered yet again, and planted the spider plants we were given, even though I think of them as houseplants, because Matt says they are making the house feel too Sanford and Son-esque due to being potted in plastic drink cups, glass jars etc. Oh yeah - they needed some water too!

Anyway, I spent about 4 hours doing all that stuff in a nice relaxed* way, the sun was lovely, and I had a little chit-chat with Gary. All tickety-boo, as they say.

A pine tree has arrived at the garden, and it's hiding behind the compost heap with a label saying "Pinus t." which I think might mean it's a Torrey Pine. It's tall, and in a pot - I suspect Sage and Barbara might have helped it get there. I don't think Caltrans is going to allow it to live on the garden though... maybe it can go and live at the barn? Dilemma. Hopefully S & B will weigh in before someone steals it!

*For me this = hammer + tongs.

Holiday splurge

We went to Mendocino at the holidays and I was able to visit Digging Dog Nursery and go on another plant buying bender, enabled by my parents who gave me a $100 gift certificate to spend there! Of course by the time I had selected everything it cost twice that... it's amazing how much a tiny pot of sad-looking weedy stuff goes for... *mutter*

The people at Digging Dog are nice, and have a fondness for follies (we were interested to find that they are building some pyramids) and ornamental grasses, (which we declined to be interested in.) They did manage to get me to buy just the sort of self-involved, microscopically subtle, austere-looking plants that I despise through the cunning use of floral language in their catalog, which was annoying. However, I grabbed a few obnoxious plant cliches while nobody was looking, so - hah! Take that, modern gardening!

So here's what we hauled home - Matt's parents gave us loads of plants dug from their gardens too, so the car is pretty muddy now:

1 Kniphofia "Wayside Flame" (red hot poker)
1 Achillea "Walter Funke" (yarrow)
1 Buddleja
3 Crocosmia "Lucifer"
2 Euphorbia myrsinites
2 Euphorbia rigida
1 Thymus minor
1 Thymus "Latavin Lucy"
(both to be featured in a Matt-driven path project soon)
3 Eryngium planum "Sapphire Blue"
1 Aster "Bill's Big Blue" (It's a bit obnoxious already - I sort of regret this one. Maybe I should have got 3 based on Ikea display principles?)
1 Cordyline Australis "Red Sensation"
1 Salvia "Anthony Parker"
1 Sedum spectabile "Neon"
1 Yucca flaccida "Garland Gold"
1 Coprosma x Kirkii "Variegata"
3 Rosmarinus officinalis "Santa Barbara"
1 Phlomis (what the hell is this? Why did I buy it? Argh!)
1 Penstemon x Mexicali "Pike's Peak Purple" (Again, no idea how this ended up in the car)















From Matt's Mum and Skip:
Several Peruvian lillies (?)
1 clump of unidentified thing
Loads of iris, unidentified (will probably have to live at the barn where it's damper)
2 roses (ditto)
Watsonia clump (not sure on color)
(and tons of lamb's ears that we must have forgotten to bring home - such a bummer, as I really wanted them!)

Seeds from Matt's dad:
Echium "Pride of Madera"
Malcolmia
Yellow daisy of some sort
And something else I can't remember right now...

So anyway we had to get them all in the ground the minute we arrived home after our 4 hour drive (*mutter*) as they looked as carsick as I felt. Matt decided on a new bed, front and center (above), to showcase the kniphofia, euphorbias, yucca and cordyline, (which are my new favorites) and put anything unidentified on the outside edge by the sidewalk so we can monitor them in case they turn out to be (horrors) uncoordinated malcontents (left.)

Sage showed up and dammit, I had already planted the salvia (oh that would have been funny, right? Right??) but he got stuck in anyway, and he brought wine. Excellent. Mmmm!

Got to do some watering tomorrow...

Rubber arms

Today the recycling company came with a dump truck of organic compost for free (well I tipped the driver $20 but that was a bargain!) Steaming, oddly fragrant, and just what we need. Since he couldn't get the truck up to the top of the plot, the driver dumped at the bottom - about 2/3 of his 20 yard load!

Let's just say we're not going to run out any time soon...

Anyway, with a burst of caffeinated energy, Matt and I went to town removing mulch and applying compost to all the plants. Then Barbara showed up and planted crocuses and daffodils (all done!) and Annelle and Gary dropped in and set us up with their hose. In the next couple of hours we got ALL the plants fed and watered. Whew! Now grow, you ungrateful little buggers!

My arms feel like rubber. I could sleep for a week. But no - we've got to pack to go to Mendocino. *whine*...

In which I am rewarded for my efforts

I got a late start today, but made it out around 4pm for the last hour of light, determined to plant the last of the cannas and the jasmine that has been driven around in the car since Saturday. The cannas went behind the sign forbidding people from entering the freeway the wrong way, and the Trachelospermum jasminoides (Star Jasmine) went at the "entrance" to the garden, hopefully to bring a lovely scent to that area soon.

As I was pondering the patch of sandy earth I was digging for the cannas (the dirt ranges from regular soil, to rocky clay, to pure sand in some areas... construction dump?) a friendly lady with a Golden Retriever dropped by and we chatted about gardening, and dog rescue (hers was young, gorgeous, perfectly behaved, and a rescue.) She was keen to point out she'd be removing the dog poop, and thanked me for my work. I was chuffed!

Then came Annelle, who is the wife of Gary of Brickley Production Services. She brought two cups of Anna's cookies and chocolates and I am in heaven right now eating them - it has been many years since I've had these delicious butter cookies! Sadly/happily Matt was not there to collect his reward, so if you are reading this Matt, they were yummy... early bird/worm and all that! ;) Annelle and I chatted about horses in Golden Gate Park, homeless encampments and dogs, and I felt very encouraged by her.

Got everything planted with renewed conviction. Then realized there are 120 crocus bulbs and about the same number of daffs still to be done. Tomorrow!

Waterproof is a relative term, apparently

Today I discovered that some of my garments labeled "waterproof" are merely toying with me.

For example:
Riding coat: used to be waterproof, but not any longer. Evil.
Barn boots: still waterproof!
Jeans: never claimed to be waterproof... stop picking on them!
Atlas gloves: rubber on the palm side, but "breathable" on the other. Net result: not waterproof.
Fleece: hah... more like "sponge"
Tee shirt under it all: as above, but cold and clammy.
Socks: protected by boots, but no doubt dying to stick it to me and be wet and clammy at the first opportunity.

So I got soggy putting the cannas in, and by the time the Lowes haul was planted I was beyond wet. I made some rash decisions regarding plant placement due to aforementioned clothing conspiracy. Matt arrived a tad later and helped me, and our neighbors Barbara, Sage and Elijah dropped by to point and laugh at us (just kidding ;) )

Just the star jasmine and crocus bulbs remain to be planted; I'll do that next week.

"Let's build something together"

That's the Lowes motto, but it should be "We'll stay open late and lure you in to buy stuff after you've had 2/3 of a beer, you pathetic lightweight!"

And that's exactly what happened on the way home from South Frisky Town (aka South San Francisco), where we had gone to buy 8 clumps of Canna x generalis "Black Knight" from Ms. T. Corleoni, craigslist seller and very nice person.

So Lowes was beckoning from the freeway, all lit up and cosy looking (as cosy as a mega home improvement warehouse can look, I suppose) and in we went. Just can't get enough plants, I suppose, and the ones at Lowes are a) cheap and b) guaranteed for a year.

We got:

1 Pennisetum setaceum (purple fountain grass - yes, I like them. Nobody can stop me from liking them. Nobody!)
1 Trachelospermum jasminoides (Confederate, or star jasmine)
1 Juniperus chinensis ("Old Gold" juniper)
2 Thuja occidentalis ("Forever Goldie" juniper)
1 Euonymus japonica "Microphylla Variegata" (Variegated Boxleaf Euonymus)
3 Lavendula stoechas "Madrid Purple" (lavender)
1 Leptospermum scoparium "Red Ensign" (tea tree)
3 Stachys byzantina "Helene von Stein") (lamb's ears)
...and 120 mixed crocus bulbs (half off sale!)

So yes, we scored a few more massive Bay Area gardening cliches! Bring 'em on - it must mean they are virtually foolproof and can survive the kind of neglect that would shame a normal person to tears. My kind of plant!

We also got some mini greenhouses, rooting powder and perlite so Matt can revel in his self-appointed role as Cuttings Master, and provide me with more hapless plants to cast adrift on the mean streets of Frisky Town.

All in all a nice bit of consumerism and not a bad way to spend saturday night. Now, where to put them? It's not like we don't have room, but... the artistic arrangement is another whole ball of roots. To be decided tomorrow.

P. Garden gets an assist!

(Please note today's post title is a sporting reference that may be totally inappropriate to the situation, but I'm trying to interest the sports fans here!)

Today Matt and I went out in the lovely sun to plant the phormiums we got this week. Shortly after doing some watering Matt had to leave for his softball game, so I was going it alone. Suddenly I saw three people walking across the street with *gasp!* shovels... Were they rival gardeners itching for a spade fight? City employees come to turf us out? Nope. They were Barbara, Sage and Elijah who had seen our work from their apartment right across from the plot, felt sorry for us in the rain last week, and came to help today.

In no time they had planted maybe 8 Phormium tenax, watered them in, and rallied again to dig some trenches for daffodils (Narcissus). I am so happy they dropped by and "mucked in" - without getting sappy and sentimental this is a nice little slice of community action, and finally I am getting to meet my cool neighbors. Thank you for your cheerful help today, guys!

Tomorrow should bring rain. Good - I am soooo over dragging buckets from our apartment!

New plants, and compost on the way!

Last night we drove out to Glen Park to get some free phormiums that were being given away on craigslist by professional gardener Leah. I'm so excited to have some tenacious, spiky, fast-growing phormiums - if they behave as they're supposed to they should make a big impact! Leah was kind enough to give me about a dozen bare rooted specimens, and some potted ones, and I've covered their roots in mulch til I can plant them tomorrow. Come on phormiums - you can make it! Thank you, Leah.

Also exciting is another craigslist posting I saw advertising free organic compost - delivered! I got on the phone with Sanjay from http://www.sfrecycling.com and he said his guys will deliver a dump truck of the good stuff next Wednesday. I will need to direct the truck and will end up with a big mound of it, which of course will be backbreaking to dig in, but well worth it. If anyone needs some for their garden let me know - I can get extra.

Does anyone want to help plant phormiums, or daffodil bulbs on Saturday morning? Let me know!

More photos

Here are some pics I took this morning of the plants Mark from Oakland donated. They got nicely rained on. You can see the little rock garden of succulents that Matt put together, below. You cannot see all the daffodil bulbs I planted, but take it from me... they're there. I put long trenches of them parallel to the dietes (top row), in front of the geraniums and alongside the Agapanthus. I also put some individually around the base of the Princess Plant (Tibouchina)

I had a wacky idea to plant the bulbs in a giant smiley face shape, or spelling out something (something short...) but in the end sense prevailed and I went with drifts.










I'm a bit bummed that they will come up in multicolored drifts, and not groups of one color, but that's what happens when you buy bulk bulbs on the cheap! It'll be "a look" eh? And maybe if I am feeling extremely energetic in Spring I will take note of what colors came up where, and rearrange them. Or maybe by then the challenges of public gardening will have beaten me down and I won't care anymore - as long as they are alive!

What is this plant?

There are two unidentified trees on the lot with deep bronzy leaves year round. Maybe some sort of plum-type-thing? Anyone got any guesses?

UPDATE From my dad's friend:
"My guess is that it is the purple form of the Myrobalan plum (Prunus cerasifera var. either "Pissardii" or "nigra".) If it is that, it should flower in late winter/very early spring (earlier than blackthorn), but who knows in San Fransisco! With any luck it should produce fruit about 2cm diam, rather sour raw but make good pies. "

Storm's a-comin'!

Yesterday we went out and planted the following, kindly donated by Mark from Oakland:

12 Dietes bicolor
6 Agapanthus praecox
2 Crassula ovata (Jade Plant)
2 aloes and several assorted other unidentified succulents which Matt made into a rock garden involving some lumps of concrete and sandy soil dug from the only non-clay patch on the plot.
1 vine which I couldn't identify and am not sure will make it as it had a slight accident being removed from it's pot. Sorry, little vine :(

Mark also gave us 2 small oak trees and lots of spider plants which are in the house right now. I'm worried that the trees will be removed by CalTrans as they specified "no tree planting" but there are a few short trees on the plot so...? The spider plants are having all their babies removed and planted in potting compost today, so we'll have loads of them. Thanks Mark!

We also planted about 50 daffodil bulbs in trenches in various areas, added mulch to the Princess tree, watered, and noticed that homeless people hop the fence from the railway tracks at the back of the lot. Anyone got some barbed wire?

Today it's raining in a persistent, icy, miserable way... we are supposed to be out there putting more daffs in but for once in my life staying in and doing some ironing is actually appealing... *shudder*

Pics to come when I take them. Which will be after the rain...

But can YOU dig it?

OK, anyone who wants to get out in the somewhat fresh (?) air and work up a healthy glow this weekend, please join us!

On Sunday, Dec 14th at 10am we'll be out on the plot with our hundreds of daffodil bulbs, and a few new plants donated by Mark in Oakland, so come by, bring a shovel, and get involved!

What about dogs?

It has occurred to me that maybe dog owners are worried that they will have nowhere to walk their dogs if we plant the whole garden up. And since the dog poop/trash container has been removed, is the whole street and garden going to fill with poop?

Well gardens without dogs are no fun - I planned to leave the entire back area on top of the hill plant free for dogs, as well as the area by the Favorite Peeing Stump at the front. I doubt anyone lets their dogs loose there for a run, due to proximity to the freeway and no fences, so that ought to work for everyone.

There sure is a lot of dog poop on the area - it smells pretty bad, and there are flies. Several people have suggested installing a post with biodegradable dog poop bags on a holder. Great idea! Hopefully if we (someone? you?) installs one, dog owners will use the bags, and refill them. Oh, and I bet the plants would prefer not to be peed on ;)

Do you want to join in?

I bought a few hundred (!) mixed daffodil bulbs, and a guy named Mark responded to a craigslist ad I posted looking for free plants. He's giving me more dietes and agapanthus, as well as some spider plants and aloe that might make it.

I need help next weekend planting them!

I'll post what day we're planting later this week; maybe Saturday morning? Bring a trowel, shovel, gloves etc if you have them - we don't have loads of tools I'm afraid. And if you have more plants that will do well in the area, feel free to bring them too.

We can all enjoy the results next Spring.

I can dig it...

OK, Sunday morning. It's on.

1. Coffee from Farleys: check
2. Breakfast burrito from Hazel's Kitchen: check
3. Sunday paper: check
4. Truck full of plants: check
5. Buckets with lids for water on a handcart (because a hose running out of the window across the street is silly): check
6. One each of the following, suspiciously new and clean, from Ace Hardware: shovel, pair of gardening gloves, trowel: check
7. Carefully Photshopped aerial view of the plot (courtesy of Google maps) showing placement of each plant: check

We place the plants where we want them, and right away people with dogs, or local businessfolks, start asking what we're up to and giving encouragement. Nice way to meet the neighbors!

First up is Gary from Brickley Production Services which is right next to the plot. It turns out we could not have planted anything without his help because under 6" of mulch is rocky terrain. He lends us a pickaxe and another shovel, and agrees to let us use his hose for watering later on. Thank you Gary!

Next, Jim and Carrie bicycle up, and it turns out Jim is the one who planted a Tibouchina Urvilleana on the plot a few months back. I had seen the potted plant sitting on the sidewalk on 17th street, and a few days later it had migrated to outside the Bottom of the Hill

Later that week it crawled up the hill to 18th street, where Jim rescued it and planted it carefully, with a stake, on the Pennsylvania Garden plot. That was what pushed me over the edge into planning the garden. Pretty cool, Jim.

We also saw some of our neighbors in our building, and a lady with a cute dog called Emily (sorry, I'm so bad with people names!)

So, we start digging. As I said, 6" of mulch covering rocky, shaley clay. Ugh. Some areas are worse than others - Matt had a rough time getting his agapanthus in at the sidewalk edge, but I had fun putting the ceanothus, hakea and kunzea in in the meantime. But a few hours later we are done.

Final tally:
6 buckets of water
4 hands full of blisters
30 plants planted
Innumerable piles of doog poop removed...

Got garden?

I live on Pennsylvania Avenue with my boyfriend Matt. We have no garden, which is a bit sad. The patch of land that the Mariposa St exit curves around is up the street from us, and we though it would be an ideal spot to plant a few things on. It gets full sun, is in warm Potrero Hill, and the Department of Public Works shows up annually and just mulches the tar out of it.

I emailed DPW, and they said getting a permit from CalTrans who owns the land could take months or even years. But the woman I spoke to told me to just go ahead and plant stuff (no trees) and she would tell the works guys to keep an eye out and try not to demolish them... but it's at our own risk!

Yesterday I found myself at the Strybing Arboretum plant sale... everything half off! I went into a plant buying frenzy, and with the help of the friendly volunteers came home with a car full of plants for just $35! When they found out where I was planting them, they gave me a big discount and lots of encouragement - I'll be going back there, for sure!

The plants I got were (after dividing some of them up):

4 Dietes
8 Agapanthus
3 Hakea suaveolens
3 Kunzea baxterii
1 Coprosma australis (variegated)
2 Geranium maderense
3 Ceanothus "King Sip" (ground covering/low)
2 Geranium macrorhizum
2 Dianella Tasmanica
1 Aeonium

Next post: the planting adventure begins...

Buy a Tee!

Buy a Pennsylvania Garden tee shirt (sweatshirt, bag, etc.) and support P. Garden! The first design is ready to rock: "runs with pruners" tells the world that you're mad, bad, and dangerous to know - in the garden!

The second design, as suggested by my mum, is emblematic of P. Garden's landscape design strategy: "trowel and error" says you're not afraid to dig up that misplaced plant and stick it somewhere else up to five times in one year (I have never, ever done this!)

Many sizes, colors etc are available - have a peek. And remember - $5 of every purchase goes towards the garden. Hurrah!

If there are other products you'd like to see this design on, just say the word and I will make it for you. Any other comments and suggestions are welcome! Email me: djxjs2000_garden at yahoo.com

Contact

Comments? Suggestions? Got a plant that needs a new home, or an urge to help out in the garden one weekend? We want to hear from you!

Email djxjs2000-garden at yahoo dot com.

Donate

Building a garden takes a lot of sweat, and a bit of money too! Here's a list of things we need:

Plants
If you have plants you would like to donate to the garden, email me at djxjs at yahoo dot com. We can use plants for sun and shade, but they should be drought-tolerant once established. Trees and edible plants are not allowed per Caltrans rules.

Equipment
We need gardening tools, rebar for staking, compost, gloves, mulch, decorative rocks, pea gravel, sand, landscaping timbers... the list never ends! Got something you don't need? Email and let us know!

Cash
Some people have asked if they can donate money. That would be great - so far it's been a somewhat expensive labor of love. If you'd like to help out, you can PayPal us at djxjs at yahoo dot com, or email that address if you prefer to send a check.

Thank you
The garden would not be what it is without our generous donors, and you can be sure anything you give will help the garden to be enjoyed by a great number of humans and animals. :) Please see the link Thank You Sponsors on the right of the site!

About Pennsylvania Garden

For a long time we had wanted to clean up and beautify the Mariposa Street off ramp which lets onto Pennsylvania Avenue, and which is owned by Caltrans. We wanted to make it a relaxing and safe place for all sorts of people and animals to enjoy. In December 2008 we noticed that a Princess Plant (Tibouchina urvilleana) that someone had left down on 17th Street had somehow made it up to this area, and had been planted.

Inspired, we went to a San Francisco Botanical Garden plant sale and came home with a car full of plants. Pennsylvania Garden was born. As we planted those first plants, Jim and Carrie from across the street came over and introduced themselves - they had planted that Princess Plant!

Our plans
We plan to build paths and steps so that adults, children, dogs and wildlife can enjoy the garden. Our agreement with Caltrans means we have agreed to look after the garden for 5 years, and during this time we hope the plants will become established and the neighborhood beautified. We'll be blogging about our progress on this site weekly.

What's growing here?
The plants we are putting in are nearly all native species, or drought tolerant when established, so the garden won't need to be watered much after the first year or so. We've bought some of them, propagated some of them from seeds or cuttings, and had many donated by generous friends.

The labels on the right of this site show all the different genera of plants we have in the garden - click on one to read all the blog posts mentioning that plant.

Dogs
We encourage our dog owning friends to use the biodegradable bags from our poop station and deposit them in the city trash can at 18th street so that everyone can enjoy the garden. There is also a poop container by the light pole. This is emptied by dog owners periodically - if you use this container, please do your part and empty it every now and again.

It's worth noting that a great many common garden plants are poisonous if ingested - don't let your dog in the borders, and don't let them eat the plants!

Our hopes
Over the coming years, as they plants grow and fill out, we hope this work will provide habitat for wildlife, improve Potrero Hill, distract the eye from the freeway view, and most importantly provide a peaceful and beautiful meeting place for people in the community.

We have already met many of our neighbors and enjoyed great support from them all! We hope you'll join us in the garden if you're interested in helping out, and that you'll literally stop and smell the flowers every now and again.

Garden Map

Here's a map of the garden, in case you're wondering what I'm referring to in my posts. Each bed is labelled, and has a short description of its contents.

FAQ

You've got questions. I've got answers. If you have more questions, let me know. I'll answer them.

Who owns the land?
Caltrans. I am gardening it under the Adopt-A-Highway program. via SF DPW and the SF Parks trust's Street Parks Program. The latter two entities worked with Caltrans to make this possible!

Who is doing all this gardening?
My name is Annie and I live down the street from the garden. I'm helped by my boyfriend Matt, and by lots of our neighbors. See the list of names of donors in the right column, as well as all the names bolded throughout the blog.

How long has this garden been here?
Since December 2008. Read more.

Does Caltrans pay for the tools and plants?
No. They have been helpful in getting the water set up though! Matt and I have paid for almost all the tools, hoses and about half the plants you'll see in the garden. Some plants we have grown from seed, or from cuttings, in our house. Others have been donated by generous friends. Yet more have been the result of hours of digging in the gardens of various Craigslisters with plants to give away, as far afield as Sacramento and Pleasanton. Sometimes we drive to Oakland at night to pick up bags of plants left by anonymous donors. And very occasionally, plants appear in the garden mysteriously on their own!

Why aren't you growing food crops?
Caltrans doesn't allow edible plants, because the land is contaminated. Think runoff from the freeway since 1972. Think rusty batteries and hypodermic needles. Think years and years of dog poop... now go wash your hands!

Can I bring my dog into the garden?
Yes! We love dogs. We have specifically left the top area wide open for dogs: this is one of a ver few Street Parks in the city that has allowed a space for dogs, and we have set up poop bag stations and a poop trash can which dog owners empty. I don't advise off-leash romping though: First it's unfenced, and next to the freeway. Second, many common plants are poisonous to dogs. Third, dog pee kills plants, and dog paws can crush plants.

Please pick up your dog's poop, and stay out of the borders. Enjoy the garden respectfully.

Can I do some gardening too?
Yes! We could use some help here! Keep an eye on the section at the top of the right column for our next volunteer day.

Thank You Sponsors!

I've created this page to give thanks to all the people who have helped make Pennsylvania Garden what it is through their contributions of time, money, skill, plants and support. If I have missed anyone, I'm mortified! Please let me know so I can add you to the list.


• Kylie
• Dani W.
• Amy St.C
• Maria
• Josh S.
• Anna S.
• Channing H.
• Daniel S. (Canada)
• Patrick M.
• Alison and Rick
• Tim S.
• Bill of Beronio Lumber
• Max D.
• Amar P.
• Emily G.
• Jess, Adolfo and Sophia
• Lloyd & Marla G. (El Cerrito)
• Mandy and Bandit
• Steve L. of BoingBoing.net
• Jared (Pacifica)
• Julia C. (Berkeley)
• Shanti B. and Skip (Mendocino)
• Kendrick P. and Diana (Mendocino)
• Mark (Oakland)
• Anne G. (Pacifica)
• David, Julia, Mara and family
• Kepa A. of Studio Askenasy
• Deborah C. (Oakland)
• Emma T.
• Sage, Barabara and Elisha B.
• Max D. and Denise H.
• John P. and Harold
• Leah R. - arborist
• Joan B.
• Erin C.
• Jessica D. and Jeff M. of Caltrans
• Dorothy, Doug and Bella of Alterpop
• Gary and Annelle of Brickley Production Services
• Ron, Gina and Tank of Iron Maverick

In the News

Pennsylvania Garden has been mentioned in various print and online publications. I've rounded them all up here for your reading pleasure.

Pacific Horticulture, January, 2010
Guerrillas in the Fog: A Resource Guide
By Josh Schechtel

San Francisco Examiner, October 29, 2009
Community effort grows into garden
By Katie Worth

The Potrero View, September 2009
Caltrans Tries to Drive Over Pennsylvania Garden
By Anthony Myers

The Potrero View, August 2009
Resident Creates Garden at 280 Off-Ramp
By Mary Purpura

BoingBoing.net, April 10, 2009
How To: Garden What's Not Yours
By Steven Leckart

Sunset.com, February 17, 2009
San Francisco Guerilla Gardener
By Hazel White

Mariposa Center Garden

This is a new satellite of Pennsylvania Garden, located opposite Center Hardware on Mariposa Street at Pennsylvania Avenue (in other words, down the block from P. Garden)

in 2009 I planted sunflowers there. They did OK, considering! In 2010 I decided to plant some really tough perennials and make it look amazing. I recruited Emily and Denise to help, and asked Center Hardware to contribute: they gave us a store credit for supplies!

You will see all the posts related to this project by clicking "Mariposa Center Garden" in the right column's labels field.

If you live nearby and would like to help with weeding, watering and planting, please contact us. We would love your assistance in getting this little project up and running!