Gardening From the Heart at
Richmond Terrace Retirement Community
Garden Project

Local Seniors Share in Community Garden
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This spring the residents of Richmond Terrace retirement community-Laclede Station Road, joined together with members of the Richmond Heights Garden Club, neighborhood kids and community members to create their very own vegetable garden. After a successful first year garden the results are in with more cucumbers than they can pickle.
But pickle they did. It’s a recipe garden of sorts. Project coordinators Debbie Tolstoi, Maplewood and Cheryl Robinson, Richmond Heights, selected vegetables to grow according to recipes. Tomatoes for pasta sauce & salsa; cucumber & dill for pickling; basil & parsley for pesto and edible flowers: nasturtiums, marigolds and of course, the ole’ time farm favorite zinnias were grown in abundance.
Wonderful opportunities sprung up as the veggies ripened. Neighborhood kids along with community volunteers meet on most Saturdays to help residents prepare and preserve their fresh produce. It’s a wonderful opportunity that brings these folks to life as they rekindle the rewards of growing, cooking and tasting wholesome food together. It is a gratifying experience for all.

But growing is just the first part. Even though many of the residents are unable to physically join us in the garden activities, they’d gather around to monitor our progress, offer ole time gardening advice, and to simply enjoy the wonderful connection that happens naturally when people share in gardening.
As we look forward to next season our goal is to build taller raised-beds equipped with sitting benches and others that are wheel chair accessible as well as create hard-surface walking paths to the garden– everything to make the garden more user friendly and accessible to the residents. Our wish list includes soaker hoses and spigot timers, garden tools, garden gloves, hats, etc.

With this in mind we’re planning our first fundraiser a Home Grown Harvest Dinner on Friday October 15th. All are welcome to enjoy simple recipes from fresh produce harvested and prepared by the residents. Please let us know if you are interested in participating in any way, gardening, cooking, and/or fundraising. Please save the date and join us!

If you would like more information on how to volunteer or donate money for this wonderful project, please contact
Cheryl Robinson or Debbie Tolstoi or Dava Elias-Dotzenrod

Click on one or all of the following links for more information and photographs

Garden Project at Richmond Terrace
Cooking with Garden Veggies at Richmond Terrace
2010 Home Grown Harvest Dinner
Richmond Heights Garden Club
Richmond Terrace Retirement Community