P-Patch Community Gardens

Evanston

There is Always the Garden

Evanston P-Patch is a refuge, a peaceful place for busy people to go when they have a few moments. The seniors come in the mornings; workers drop in at lunch time or on the way home; and families come in the evenings. There is often someone in the garden, enjoying the solitude, losing the day's worries by working in the soil, picking some of Helen's scarlet poppies, blue bachelor buttons or golden calendulas near her sign, which says, "Pick some of these to enjoy." The garden is filled with memories of past gardeners: white-haired gentlemen, like old Bruno and his meticulous garden, and John who carefully cut the grass and painted the shed. Their legacy lives on, even though the gardeners change from year to year, the techniques they have learned from one another keep reappearing; those new to gardening learning from the veterans. At Evanston, there is always the garden to bring peace, solace, and friendship.