Estelle Street

Trading Blackberries for Gardens
(submitted by an Estelle Street P-Patch gardener)

As the third grade class visited the Mayor's office, one of the children complained that his walking route to school was scary. There were people hiding in the blackberries, dealing drugs. And so South East Effective Development (SEED) started to clear the street right-of-way near John Muir Elementary School. Their landscape design required frequent care from the SEED crew. At the same time, residents of the adjacent tenant-managed apartment wanted a garden. The two ideas blended into one at the Estelle Street P-Patch.

In a few short weeks SEED crew built a garden which reflected the gardeners needs. The neighbors, who had gardened nearby and whose gardens were lost to development, were delighted to regain space for their greens, mustards, and onions. Estelle P-Patch is located behind John Muir Elementary in what used to be a carriage road onto Rainier Avenue South. Nestled between an apartment complex and residential houses, the P-Patch has the feeling of an old English garden. Estelle Street P-Patch features a diversity of growing techniques and styles, especially by our Asian gardeners.

The garden has blossomed with children and adults, tomatoes and garlic, basil and cilantro. The scary place became safe. Now the only drugs are in the occasional opium poppy seeds from the past. The heady smells and bright colors are a magnet encouraging passerby to come visit.