The Community Recovery Garden Concept

by Stephen Kelly, LASN senior editor (really senior, ?EUR??,,????'?????<

This graphic concept design of a Recovery Community Garden is by Dennis Beach, ASLA. The play includes an accessible preschool play area, a three bay swing set and boundaryless playset. There are sheltered spaces for family picnics, sunny benches, quiet spaces, vegetable gardens and flower and herb gardens for attracting birds and butterflies. Infrastructure includes raised beds with retaining walls, arbors, gazebos, shade and shelter from the heat, harvest tables, benches and tables. Photos: Play Mart

 

Recently one of my fellow editors made an intercom announcement at work that it was time to sing ?EUR??,,????'?????<

Well, my Pa did take the family across the Great Plains?EUR??,,????'?????<

And yes, as a six-year old, sun or snow, I walked to school, through the woods, down a hill, across a creek?EUR??,,????'?????<

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What Makes an Outdoor Space More Appealing?

While many kids of my generation spent most of their free time out of doors, the general sense is the kids today are glued to the computer screen or TV. Along these lines, I recently received an article from Play Mart for consideration in LASN that asked: ?EUR??,,????'?????<

The article proposed a design called ?EUR??,,????'?????<

Can we build outdoor spaces to get kids away from the computer or game console and actually breath some outdoor air, feel the sun?EUR??,,????'?????<

Outdoor Spaces for All Ages, Abilities

To paraphrase the article, outdoor spaces require an infrastructure that supports people of all abilities and ages. A playground alone, even a spanking clean new one, without accessibility for all children or a bench for Ma and Pa to rest on or to gossip with the neighbors, is just not going to hack it. ?EUR??,,????'?????<

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The Growing Gardens, a community garden in Boulder, Colo., has a vision of ?EUR??,,????'?????<

The concept of a recovery community garden, the article points out, could help people act responsibly with their resources. ?EUR??,,????'?????<

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About Play Mart: ?EUR??,,????'?????<

Visit www.playmart.com for more info.