Community Gardening: A Great Way To Get Involved & Meet New Friends

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Burien News is celebrating its one-year anniversary! Today there are thousands of readers, but many of you may have missed some of the early stories we loved. Over the summer, we will be republishing a few of the best. Enjoy, and thank you to our loyal followers!

This article was originally published on July 28, 2022. 

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”2985″ img_size=”large” add_caption=”yes” alignment=”center”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Burien and surrounding neighborhoods have several excellent community gardens. Some are newer, while others have been in operation for several years.  For those of you not familiar with this concept, here is a brief explanation of what’s involved.

Often called P-Patch gardens, the original idea was to give people in urban neighborhoods space to come together to grow vegetables, flowers and other crops while at the same time getting to know each other and form a community bond. Individual plots are usually available for a small yearly fee and the rented space is available for use for the current growing season. Participants in  coops volunteer hours to help maintain shared areas on the surrounding grounds.

Some of the reasons people choose to get involved in community gardening include:

• One’s own yard may not be ideal. It might have poor soil or too much shade, for example.
• Some may not have a yard at all.
• The opportunity to become part of a larger gardening group and get to know other gardeners.

In Burien there are two organized gardens: Burien’s Community Garden known as B-Patch, and the New Start Community Garden’s Shark Garden.

Located on 144th street, the B-Patch, which is operated through the Burien Parks Department, is open to Burien residents 18 years and older. You get a 75 square- foot plot for a fee of $25 a year. The location is on 144th street. I personally have a plot at this location and have really enjoyed it. I’ve met quite a number of fellow- gardeners and am now starting to harvest fresh veggies and flowers.

For more information check out their website: Burien B-Patch[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”2984″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The Shark Garden is located at New Start High School on 120th Street. This is a learning garden for Highline students. It consists of P-Patch garden spaces available for rent, various theme gardens and sitting areas.Special events and activities are hosted throughout the garden season at this site. In June I participated in two events at the Shark Garden. There was a plant sale that included a great variety of starts all planted by New Start students. Also, there was a fabulous Art Market put on by the Burien Arts Association that included amazing local artists. This is a yearly event known by art lovers in the area, who make a point not to miss this event.

To learn more about this garden you can go to their site: The Shark Garden[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”2986″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

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