LEXINGTON PARK, Md. – Community members came together last week to prepare the Lexington Manor Passive Park Community Gardens for its ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Cherry Blossom Festival.
The Cherry Blossom Festival and ribbon-cutting ceremony for the community gardens will be on Saturday, April 6, 2024, from 12 – 4 p.m. at Lexington Manor Passive Park.
At the community garden’s ribbon-cutting, attendees are invited to paint a fence post that will decorate the pathway to the gardens.
The fence post painting will be hosted by Professor Carrie Patterson and the St. Mary’s College of Maryland Community Art Class. Supplies for painting the fences will be provided at the St. Mary’s County Arts Council table at the park.
The community gardens seek to promote health and exercise, provide fresh produce, and create a community gathering place, according to the garden’s website by the St. Mary’s County Community Development Corporation.
Communal gardening days, also known as volunteer hours, allow for anyone to come garden and help work the communal garden, according to Carla Wilson, garden manager at the Lexington Manor Passive Park Community Gardens.
“People will come in, and I the garden manager will be here,” Wilson told The BayNet. “I can guide people in certain tasks, whether that be watering, preparing the plots, planting or anything like that.”
Open hours for the community gardens will be from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Sundays and 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Thursdays, according to Wilson.
The community gardens feature ADA-accessible tiles and paths, as well as garden beds on legs to allow community members to garden while seated, according to the garden’s website.
Plots are also available to rent for those who want personal gardening and to get involved with the community gardens.
“It’s really great,” said Carol Faxon, a renter at the community gardens. “They’re providing all the tools for us, they did all this work for us … so we’re just coming in and planting.”
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