Community in the garden

Bright colors. Wind rustling through native grasses. Seeds popping up. Folks with a common goal.

These are all moments I have experienced while working at a community garden.

Oppressive heat. Vandalism. Disappointment. Folks with a common goal.

These are also experiences I’ve had working at a community garden!

Professional landscape design can be costly, there is no doubt about it. Design time, labor, materials, plants, etc. They all add up!

I have always cared about public spaces and the impact of beauty on our everyday life. It does make a difference in our mood, health and general outlook.

Community gardens represent pride of space. Devotion to bettering an ecosystem, other than just our privately owned yard. Fostering a space for teamwork, learning and immersion. These are all important aspects of building strong, relatable communities. We are fortunate enough to have a space that has been created for us by others, it's imperative that we respect that legacy, and contribute to its future.

Education is important to me. My grandfather was a social worker and my mother was a teacher. Helping others gain the confidence to garden brings me joy. Without a strong, positive and safe environment within the community garden, folks will not feel engaged or inspired to garden. They need to see a relatable and successful landscape to understand what they themselves are capable of.

I am proud to have designed the 2024 landscape plan for the Beacon Hill Community Garden, located in San Antonio, Texas. We have been awarded a grant from Green Spaces Alliance, and we will be completing the installation by late September 2024.

This garden will feature an extensive array of native and adapted plants. As our climate is changing dramatically, we must take steps to evolve with it. Native and adapted plants will also add to the sense of place. Nothing helps us appreciate and understand our USDA zone better than the plants that grow here, naturally!

Get out there and make the world a better place! If nothing else, do it for the little guys.

Community in the garden

Hoy Gardens