This sidewalk slab size garden gives a whole new meaning to the words "vacant lot". Here is how it came to be.
The City cut down a tree in a tree well on the 14th St. side of Campos Plaza between Ave C & B. Not surprisingly, it got filled with various organic and inorganic trash.
Surprisingly, Tom, a resident of Campos Plaza, began planting and tending it for no reason. Tom passed away some time ago. Surprisingly again, Laurie, a resident of the brownstone row at the end of the block, adopted it. In the center are two sunflowers which are about to bloom, surrounded by an English Garden in a tree well. She calls it the Surprise Garden and so it is.
The garden is tended by a loose coalition of neighbors. On another day I met Lisa, a Campos resident, bikeriding with her dog. They were working on installing a fence.
The horticultural philosophy of Laurie and the Surprise Gardeners is leave no millemeter unplanted. This creates the colorful lushness that delights passers-by. It also discourages dog walkers and slobs.
Not surprizing in New York the idea is not fool-proof and it requires lots of upkeep to look so good. And water. Here is a photo of Laurie with the water bottles that she carried down the block.
