Pennsylvania Horticulture Society plants garden among the building of Philadelphia.
My wife and I are always looking for inexpensive and fun family day trips. The other weekend we decided to check out the new pop-up garden in Philadelphia that was created by the Pennsylvania Horticulture Society. It is located at 313 S. Broad St. right across the street from the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts.
The site for this garden oasis had been a trash-strewn lot situated between two buildings. This is the third year that PHS has created a pop up garden in an underused or neglected lot in Philadelphia. These pop up garden venues are a way PHS increases the awareness of Philly’s vacant lots and how development can beautify and improve the quality of life for the city’s residents.
We walked along the sidewalk and entered the garden through a gate with a pergola that had been constructed out of recycled material from the Philadelphia Flower Show. On one side of the path was a grassy area, where the kids took off their shoes, stored them in a shoe rack and proceeded to dance around in the lush grass. Directly across from the grassy patch was a raised deck that had incorporated two wooden benches.
One of these benches was made out of a humungous piece of solid oak that was salvaged from a fallen oak tree at Meadowbrook Farms. The deck was surrounded by raised beds planted with unusual and lush plantings not normally seen in the typical home landscape. This was an ideal location to get ideas on plant combinations and to absorb the colors and textures of the garden while watching the kids.
Once the frolicking was over we proceeded further into the garden and entered a grove of honey locust trees that had twinkling lights intertwined amongst the branches. This shady area provided a respite from the bright sun, plus there were picnic tables placed throughout the grove for eating and carrying on quiet conversations.
An idea I thought was ingenious was the use of recycled material, such as taking two discarded shipping containers, converting them into concession stands, and placing them by the picnic tables. One concession stand had an upscale picnic faire menu that featured house smoked turkey with red onion marmalade, a South Philly hot dog, grilled veggie sandwiches and brisket with horseradish aioli. My family’s favorite was the dessert called pie in a jar. We tried all three of the offerings of pie in a jar desserts, and the overall winner was the blueberry lemon. The other concession stand provided liquid refreshments in the form of craft beers, margaritas, iced coffee, lemonade and cucumber mint water.
After our picnic lunch, we explored the back of the garden and were surprised to see wooden pallets arranged to form an impromptu amphitheater lined with assorted and colorful cushions. There was also a scattering of old fashioned lawn chairs that resembled chairs my grandmother use to have on her porch, arranged in small intimate groupings ideal for relaxed conversations. It is my understanding from one of the garden staff members that there are occasional performances of music and dance from the students of the University of Fine Arts.
If you are in the area or plan to visit Philadelphia, I would recommend you check out this outstanding community garden. You can find out more about the pop up garden project and its visiting hours going online to the Pennsylvania Horticulture Society website, phsonline.org.
“One of the most delightful things about a garden is the anticipation it provides.” —W. E. Johns, The Passing Show
Craig Dupée is a garden-design consultant. He lives in Ewing with his wife and daughters. Send him your email questions at hort1014u@aol.com.
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