Here’s the Dirt!

by Bonnie Anderson

“What will we do if we get bugs?” asked Lissa Hammit, one of the new Huning Highland Community Gardeners.  Committed to organic methods, Lissa’s question is a good one. On the corner of Walter and Coal, a once blacktopped lot next to the TACA Preservation Station has been transformed into a large irrigated garden with ten long rows surrounded on two sides by a xeric landscaped communal space that is being improved week by week.  Thanks to support from the Huning Highland Historic Neighborhood Association for start up costs and volunteer help from gardeners and their friends (a special thanks to Lee Spittler who donated hours and hours of brainpower, muscles, and tools), the garden became a reality.

The garden is planted with tomatoes, peppers, peas, beans, cabbage, brussel sprouts, carrots, radishes, spinach, eggplant, tomatillas, chard, onions, and asparagus.  Parsley, sage, thyme, basil, fennel, chives, oregano are interplanted, along with marigolds, zinnias, verbena, and a whole row of wildflowers right up by the sidewalk fence.  Sunflowers are coming up along the white fence on the north border of the garden and cantaloupe, watermelon, cucumbers, and pumpkins are planted along the edge where they can spread out.

Tired gardeners can rest on benches donated by two friends of the garden.  Kay Vinson, a garden advocate and journalist (kvinsonnm@gmail.com), donated an antique school bench and Hank Lerma, an artist who specializes in art from recycled materials (lhenry10101@yahoo.com), donated one of his own creations, a bench for two with a roof.  (You have to see it to appreciate it!) Two large flowers pots were donated by gardeners Kathy Grassel, Randi Beck, and Sam Tetangco.  A low table was donated by antique dealer, Penny Spittler.  Xeric perennials, bulbs, grasses and pecan shells were donated by others to fill the common area around the garden.

Our featured gardener this week is Randi Beck, the artist who created the welcoming sign for the garden.  After being a horse trainer and horse midwife for eight years in Oklahoma, she came to Albuquerque, to UNM, to study creative writing.  As Randi puts it, “I fell in love and decided to stay!”  Randi and her partner Sam were drawn to this neighborhood after visiting one of our yard sales a few years ago.  “Everybody was so warm and friendly,” said Randi , “and we loved the front porches on the houses.  You don’t see that in other parts of this city.”  Since settling here, Randi has displayed art work at Page One Books and is about to have her first pieces of fiction published in two national literary journals.  Sam added, “And she is an amazing vegan cook.  I was a meat eater and now I don’t even miss it!”  Randi and Sam have volunteered hours to help set up this garden and their contagious enthusiasm is a gift to us all.