In August 1994, Kanawha County Master Gardeners helped install a children's garden at Celebration Station, which is a large community playground adjacent to an elementary school that draws children from a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds. The playground is maintained by Friends of Celebration Station, and summer activities are supervised by the Charleston Parks and Recreation Department. However, the garden itself is financed and overseen by the Kanawha Garden Club.
Designed by Lynne Schwartz-Barker as a Five Senses Garden, the space has aesthetic, educational, and psychological benefits. Young people have hands-on gardening experiences as they learn about horticultural and environmental aspects of gardening. For example, in the fall of 1994 children planted 300 bulbs, and the following spring they planted annuals. In 1996, kindergarten students sowed sunflower seeds provided by the National Council of Garden Clubs in conjunction with a nationwide contest sponsored by the Council. The last two summers, students have planted seeds and seedlings of annuals, perennials, and vegetables. Future plans include in-depth study of butterflies and their habitats.
There are several goals for the garden: easy maintenance, pleasing appearance, student access, plant diversity, and environmental responsibility. The landscape design fulfills all these goals. There are a series of raised beds surrounded by grass paths, and six beds are reserved for student use. One bed has a bird bath, one has herb plants for butterfly larvae, and one has a playhouse covered with vines. The remaining beds are filled with shrubs, roses, bulbs, and perennials all contributing to a joyous show of color and scent.
In 1997 two developments opened up new opportunities for working with students in the garden. The adjacent school, Piedmont Elementary, began scheduling year-round classes, and the James H. Paige III Learning Center opened. The latter offers tutoring to neighborhood children after school, and they have been eager participants in gardening projects.
This project is an example of a community working together. Support has come from such diverse groups as Friends of Celebration Station, the East End Association, neighborhood churches, garden centers, and students from local high schools and the University of Charleston ..., and, of course, the Kanawha County Master Gardener Association.
