Bronx Gardens Grow Community

Tucked between two brick buildings in East Tremont, is a hidden oasis called Hornaday Community Garden. Cherry trees cast shade over a stone pathway, vegetable beds, and a colorful casita. 

About three blocks away at Krystal Garden, plants surround a rainbow mural and a yellow brick road, and many that enter are greeted with a hug. Chickens and quails live about a ten-minute walk away, at Miracle Garden. 

These are just a few of the over 550 volunteer-run community gardens in New York City. 

“People come around here,” said Freddy Velez, a volunteer at (and the unofficial president of) Hornaday Community Garden. “And we tell them, ‘You’re welcome here anytime you feel like it.’” 

Community gardens in New York City are often found in concentrated clusters, like those in Tremont. GreenThumb, the sector of NYC Parks that oversees community gardens, said this is because of the 1970s fiscal crisis. After buildings were abandoned, the leftover vacant lots transferred from private to public ownership.

“The community response, while 'white flight' was going on and so much disinvestment was happening, was for locals to come in and start clearing up lots,” said Alex Munoz, GreenThumb’s Assistant Director of Community Engagement. 

Those empty lots became today’s community gardens, which often give away fresh produce to locals. In the Bronx, where residents face higher food insecurity than in any other borough. “How much a head of lettuce is gonna cost you, or how much a tomato is gonna cost you, not to have that worry and to be able to share that with my community, that is very meaningful to me,” said Ivette Hernandez, who runs Krystal Community Garden. 

Community gardens also act as third spaces for Bronx residents. Some host free events, like barbecues or arts and crafts events. Hornaday Garden hosts bingo on Sundays for their older members. 

“ My gardeners, they love me. I love them,” said Lillian Reyes, GreenThumb’s Senior Community Engagement Coordinator. “They share the love that we all have together. It's like a family.” 

Back at Hornaday Garden, the sound of city traffic was muffled beneath lively conversation and people singing “Happy Birthday.” It felt like a neighbor’s backyard, in the middle of New York City.