Neighborhood and Community Gardens of Lorain County
2020
Last updated May 2020
Hello.
With help from local garden coordinators, the Creating Healthy Communities Program at Lorain County Public Health (LCPH) has compiled this directory. Use and share this to help increase awareness and to drive volunteer engagement with neighborhood and community gardens.
Starting community gardens is a popular project idea, yet we encourage people to help at an existing garden. Together, help our neighbors by increasing access to fruits and vegetables, increasing fruit and vegetable consumption and increasing opportunities for physical activity.
Last updated May 2020
Local Gardens A - Z Adam Joseph Lewis Center (AJLC) Garden, Oberlin Avon Lake Community Garden, Avon Lake Eastside Block Watch Garden, Lorain Elyria Garden of Plenty, Elyria J House Garden, Oberlin Legion Field Garden, Oberlin Lions Club Garden, LaGrange Lorain County Boys and Girls Club Garden, Lorain North Ridgeville Community Garden, North Ridgeville The Village Garden, Oberlin The People's Garden, Oberlin The Victory Garden at We Care We Share, Lorain YES Zone Kids’Garden, Elyria
If you know a community garden that is not listed above, contact Lorain County Public Health via email at: [email protected]. Include the garden’s name, address, contact information, short summary, and photo.
Last updated May 2020
Adam Joseph Lewis Center (AJLC) Garden
Description: Oberlin College's AJLC organic garden provides a model for successful and sustainable gardening practices. Student employees and an advisor manage AJLC. Community volunteers can get involved if interested.
Lead Organization: Oberlin College Environmental Studies Program
Location: AJLC for Environmental Studies, Oberlin, OH 122 Elm Street. Oberlin, OH 44074
Contact: Ben Hobbs 440-775-5307 216-407-1351 [email protected]
Last updated May 2020
Avon Lake Community Garden
Description: This volunteer-led community garden is supported through annual fees, grants, and donations. Rental for a 4’ x 12’ garden bed from March through October is $25.00. The mission of the Avon Lake Community Garden is to provide space for Avon Lake residents to garden. All gardeners are encouraged to donate a portion of their produce to Community Resource Services (CRS), a local social service organization. CRS then distributes free produce to their clients.
Location: 237 Belmar Blvd., Avon Lake, OH
Lead Organization: Friends at the Park at Avon Lake
Contact: Dale Cracas 440-785-8856 [email protected]
Last updated May 2020
Eastside Block Watch Community Garden
Description: The Eastside Block Watch Garden is a 55’ x 155’ garden located at the Lorain Community Senior Center. Block Watch volunteers supply the plants and maintain the garden. The mission of the garden is to provide vegetables to Lorain Community Senior Center members in need. Garden volunteers of all ages are welcome and encouraged to learn how to garden. Groups can get involved in volunteer projects each season.
Lead Organization: Lorain Eastside Block Watch
Location: Lorain Community Senior Center 3361 Garfield Blvd., Lorain, OH
Contact: JR and Nancy Lee 440-258-6014 [email protected]
Last updated May 2020
Elyria Garden of Plenty
Description: Grow a garden! Cultivate a community! Share the surplus! Feed our future! The Elyria Garden of Plenty is managed by community volunteers who get their hands dirty for a non-profit community garden. Anyone is invited to join and there are many ways to help.
Volunteers may request a plot (4’ x 8’ raised bed). Bring your own shovel, plants, and seeds. Donations are helpful, including plants (vegetable, flower, or herb), seeds, string, stakes, cages/fencing, trellis, old bicycle tire rims, old ladders, mulch, bird house(s), bird bath, garden decorations.
Lead Organization: Community Volunteers
Location: 442 Louisiana Ave., Elyria, OH
Contact: Barbie Blackhall 440-864-7331 [email protected]
Last updated May 2020
J House Garden
Description: The J House Garden is an Oberlin College student-run garden behind Johnson House dorm supported by Oberlin College’s Resource Conservation Team (RCT), Green EDGE Fund, and Office of Environmental Sustainability. The mission of the J House Garden is to educate students and community members about sustainable organic gardening and provide a space for collaborative gardening.
Students who work for RCT are paid for their work in the garden, and volunteers are always welcome! Open garden hours vary per semester yet are typically Saturdays 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. All produce is donated to Oberlin Community Services, a social services organization and choice food pantry down the street from the garden.
Lead Organization: Oberlin College, RCT
Location: 216 S Professor St., Oberlin OH
Contact: RCT 440-775-8996 [email protected]
Last updated May 2020
Lions Club Garden (LaGrange)
Description: The LaGrange Lions Club Garden is 14 beds and maintained by volunteers. Produce grown serves the Lions Club food pantry which occurs once per month. Leftover produce is given nearby service organizations and local church meals.
Organization: LaGrange Lion’s Club
Location: 240 Glendale St., LaGrange, OH
Contact: Roy Ebihara 440-935-2760 [email protected]
Last updated May 2020
Lorain County Boys and Girls Club Garden
Description: The garden is used for Boys and Girls Club educational programs.
Organization: Lorain County Boys and Girls Club
Location: 4111 Pearl Ave, Lorain, OH
Contact: Shelly Hill, Volunteer Master Gardener [email protected]
Last updated May 2020
Legion Field Garden
Description: The Legion Field Garden is open to anyone interested in learning and practicing sustainable gardening. There are no volunteer requirements or fees to participate. Legion Field Garden’s mission is to improve access to healthy fresh food and to promote sustainability of natural resources. Since 2010, Legion Field Community Garden has provided residents nourishing food and opportunities to acquire gardening skills that promote economic resilience. Hundreds of volunteers have contributed thousands of hours to transform nearly one-fifth of an acre into a sustainable garden and orchard. The seasonal application of organic compost has supported healthy vegetables grown without synthetic fertilizers and pesticide applications. Harvested crops are donated to Oberlin Community Services Food Pantry or other families in need.
Lead Organization: Our F.A.M.I.L.Y. (Fathers And Mothers Involved in Local Youth)
Location: Corner of S. Professor St. and W. Hamilton St., Oberlin, OH
Contact: Peter Crowley, Lead Volunteer 440-396-6237 [email protected]
Bobby Taylor, Our F.A.M.I.L.Y. [email protected]
Last updated May 2020
North Ridgeville Community Garden
Description: The North Ridgeville garden includes 100 (15’ x 20’) plots that may be rented for $20 per season. A tool shed is available onsite and a team of about 12 people help prepare land and manage the community garden each season. North Ridgeville City provides water. Residents as well as community organizations (local scouts, preschool parent-teacher associations, and special need adult groups) use the garden. Unwanted or unneeded produce grown by residents in the garden can be donated to the local social service agency, North Ridgeville Community Care.
North Ridgeville Community Care has its own section of plots (60’ x 140’) where produce is grown and then distributed at the Community Care food pantry. Community Care receives around 2,000 pounds of produce each year.
The garden season starts at the beginning of June and ends in late September or the beginning of October.
Lead Organization: North Ridgeville Garden Volunteers
Location: Intersection of Chestnut Ridge Rodd and Alternate State Route 83 just off the State Route 10 exit in North Ridgeville, OH
Contact: Leo Hill and Bill Ramsey, Co-Managers 440-823-0353 [email protected]
Last updated May 2020
Oberlin Village Garden (OVG)
Description: Oberlin Village Garden (OVG) was established in 2007 by a mostly black community, to engage youth and feed senior citizens. Now, OVG expands to build food security, economic development, and equity in town.
Cultural foods including cooking greens, okras, legumes, and sweet potatoes, are produced. Berries and melons (occasionally) are also grown. Food is affordable, and home delivery and pop up stands are available July through November, depending on frost.
OVG is administered by Oberlin Underground Railroad Society (OURS) and supported by the City of Oberlin, Pennsylvania Women in Agriculture, Lorain Metropolitan Housing Authority, youth and volunteers.
Lead Organization: O.U.R.S. PO Box 426 Oberlin, OH 44074
Location: Groveland Street & Spring Street, off the bike path Oberlin, OH 44074
Contact: Tracie L. Haynes 440-506-0324 [email protected]
Last updated May 2020
The People’s Garden
Description: The People's Garden is a free public garden at Oberlin Community Services (OCS), bordered on one side by a well-used bike path and on another by a public park. It is an important part of the OCS emergency food program, and it’s a perfect place to introduce people to the joys and beauty of gardening. Its purpose is two-fold: to supplement the fresh produce offered in the daily choice food pantry with locally and sustainably grown product, and to serve as an educational resource for clients and the community at-large.
Filled with edible flowers, vegetables, and aromatic herbs, the space aims to maximize production of nutritionally dense foods – such as broccoli, greens, and squash - to add to OCS pantry shelves. In addition, The People's Garden is home to a number of creative, small-scale pieces of farming equipment, including a hoop house, grey water tank, compost bins, wash station, and ADA-accessible raised beds. Enriching programs happen at the garden, including garden workshops and a children's summer gardening camp called Little Sprouts. We hope The People's Garden will continue to bring people together to celebrate and learn about sustainable food production, and to eat!
Lead Organization: Oberlin Community Services Location: 285 S Professor St., Oberlin, OH Contact: Food Programs Coordinator or Garden Coordinator, 440-774-6579
Last updated May 2020
The Victory Garden at We Care We Share
Description: The Victory Garden was established through a partnership with Lorain County Community College’s Sustainable Agriculture program and Lorain County Public Health’s Creating Healthy Communities program in 2014. Volunteers manage the beds and grow produce either for personal use or donate it to the choice pantry food distribution at We Care We Share.
Lead Organization: We Care We Share
Location: We Care We Share 1888 E 31st St., Lorain, OH
Contact: Bill Hurley 440-714-2690 [email protected]
Josh Pryor 915-208-5363 [email protected]
Last updated May 2020
YES Zone Kids’ Garden
Description: The YES Zone Kids’ Garden provides an opportunity for engagement with gardening, the arts, nutrition, and environmental education for children in South Elyria. Kids in grades K-5 can plant and maintain garden beds, participate in environmental arts activities, and use this natural classroom to expand upon the science, ecology and math lessons learned in school.
Lead Organization: Our F.A.M.I.L.Y. (Fathers And Mothers Involved in Local Youth)
Location: 1853 Middle Ave., Elyria, OH
Contact: Bob Taylor Sr. 440-387-2557 [email protected]
Last updated May 2020