Kids & Family

Community Garden Started at Strickland House

Three ready-to-plant boxed plots available for rental now on the grounds of The Historic Strickland House in Duluth. More plots will be added upon request.

 

You’d like to have a garden but don’t have the space or the time and energy to prepare a spot for it. The Duluth Historical Society has a time- and labor-saving solution in its new Community Garden on the grounds of .

The society is initially offering three boxed plots for rent. The boxes are 12 inches deep, made of natural cedar, preservative-free, and filled with enriched dirt from Woody’s Nursery, according to Judy Wilson, president of the society.

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The large 4-foot by 8-foot planting box is available for $100. Two smaller 4-foot by 4-foot plots rent for $50 each. “We have done the hard work, now the community can do the fun part,” Wilson said. The ready-to-plant plots are suitable for growing flowers, vegetables and herbs.

The first three renters will be given free natural compost material donated by Sandy Asbill of Sangrit Enterprises. Asbill has been using and teaching about natural composting for years and will be the guest speaker at the 7 p.m. April 10 meeting of the Duluth Historical Society at The Strickland House, Wilson said. The Duluth History Museum is located in the historic house at 2956 Buford Highway.

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The plots follow the natural flow of the land to take full advantage of the watershed effect, she said. A water reservoir (cistern) has been installed that will use rainwater and city water to irrigate the plots.

More garden plots will be installed on the grounds upon request, Wilson said.

“Alice Strickland, the original owner of the house, was always very involved in her community and cared deeply about her town. She even gave a plot of land as a community forest for the children of Duluth to play in and enjoy,” said Wilson. “For that she was honored nationally as the Mother of the Year and had a tree planted in her honor. It is in that spirit that the Duluth Historical Society decided to start a Community Garden on the Historic Strickland House grounds to be used by those of us in her beloved town.”

Strickland was Duluth's mayor in the early 1920s and the first female mayor in Georgia. The house was completed in 1898 as a residence for Strickland and her husband Henry.

Junior Girl Scout Troop 1941 already had the grounds certified by the National Wildlife Association as a Natural Habitat. The Strickland House Community Garden seemed a logical next step, Wilson said.

To rent plots in the Community Garden, visit comgarden@duluthhistorical.org or call 770-232-7584.


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