Garden Name: Norwood Street Garden (HOV Garden #2)
Organization: Heart of Vailsburg Block Club Coalition
Location: 65 Norwood St, Newark, NJ 07106
What to Know:
This garden has been open and flourishing since 2016. It is one of Heart of Vailsburg’s 19 active gardens in the city.
Heart of Vailsburg (HOV) is a volunteer organization that hosts community events for the neighborhood, raises awareness about various programs offered by the city of Newark, and works to bring the community together. This organization also partners with Unified Vailsburg Services Organization.
At this garden there are beds dedicated to herbs such as mint and basil, as well as produce like lettuce, peppers, and spinach. HOV leader, Amina Hylton, comments that their gardens look to provide produce that is plentiful in harvest and easy to care for throughout the year. Volunteer Ali Khawaja, student and co-president of Lifestyle Medicine, mentions also that planting a small number of seeds can yield a fantastic harvest, making the lot at Norwood a quickly leafy area.
After a harvest, leftover produce is given to neighbors or nearby grocers. HOV does this to spread the wealth and bring awareness to the greenspace in the neighborhood.
HOV also wishes to bring neighbors’ attention to different types of produce, such as tropical fruit like bitter melon. Amina mentioned that she’d never heard of some of the produce they’ve planted at the garden, but they’ve been a great success.
The 2020 pandemic greatly affected the very communities these gardens are made to provide for. Communities of color and low-income families especially suffered from lack of resources and access to sustainable food. Following the pandemic, the Norwood Garden has not been as active as it used to be, but HOV is working to keep it running for everyone.
Events Hosted at this Location:
Growshops – learn how to plant and care for different plants within the garden at one of these events
Growtainments – community gatherings to watch a variety of demonstrations
Turn Down the Garden – a yearly event that occurs between mid- to late-autumn where the garden is cleaned and turned down for the winter in preparation of the next harvest season
Want to get involved? Contact HOV at heartofvailsburg@gmail.com