Last growing season, we held an essay contest called “Dream a Little Green”. The grand-prize winner was Eleanor Justice from northern Baltimore, who tugged at our hearts with her tribute to Mr. Leroy, the neighborhood “gardening whiz” who inspired the community to bring gardens to their urban dwellings.
Mr. Leroy “turned the once-paved back lot of his home and an unused patch of ground in the alley into a verdant kitchen garden where he admirably grew the lion's share of his own food,” Eleanor wrote. When he recently passed away from cancer, the green seemed to go with him. But E
leanor is sure the inspiration to garden can return. “I dream of raised beds brimming with herbs and vegetables, and of sharing the bounty with our neighbors.”
This month, Eleanor’s green dream came true when the Burpee Home Gardens team showed up with her grand prize. Nearly $1,000 worth of gardening materials, raised beds and plants were installed in her backyard, and she is all set to garden and grow vegetables and herbs, and she even has a little extra to share with her neighbors!
A local CBS news crew was on-hand to film the event. And garden writer Susan Reimer with the Baltimore Sun stopped by as well. She wrote a fantastic article with our winner.
We just love the quote from Eleanor: “One more patch of green in a neighborhood that’s in need of green.” This is what gardening can be all about!