Color comes to an alley

One gardener's abundance is a neighborhood's treasure.

Alleyways have a tendency to attract unsavory characters, things we'd rather our guests not see. Luckily for this Virginia neighborhood, one gardener's leftover plants helped to transform a typical alley into a flower-filled destination.

Calder Loth began taking care of the alley that runs beside his home shortly after he moved into Richmond's Fan District 26 years ago. He started by simply mowing the grass and picking up trash but was eventually motivated to test a psychological hypothesis: "If something is taken care of, people will respect it." Using plants he divided or removed from his own garden, Calder began reclaiming the space between his fence and the gravel alleyway. By plugging in cannas, hostas, four o'clocks, and lilies, he created a bustling border of color and fragrance and quickly replaced the stark emptiness that had been a magnet for trash and neglect.

After a few years of "guerrilla" gardening in the alley, Calder noticed a marked change in the way the space was used. Instead of avoiding the alley, dog walkers and garden enthusiasts made it a destination. A stack of letters from neighbors attests to this trend. A fellow alley resident has even provided the most sincere flattery by joining him in his project. Between the two gardeners' work, they now have nearly 100 yards of alleyway planted in perennials and annuals.

How It All Started

Like many gardeners passionate about plants, Calder utilized every available corner of his small Richmond yard. He then leased an adjacent lot to continue realizing his gardening aspirations. Eventually, this also became crowded with colorful plants and unique garden structures. So he began again to look for homes for his excess plants. With a firm belief that "people have a right to use open space," he began transplanting surplus plants into the alley.

This quickly became a spectacular border of hollyhocks, caladiums, and hostas. The majority of plants used in the alley garden came directly from Calder's yard either as cuttings, bulbs, or transplants. However, because the alley provided a location with quite a bit more sun than the inner garden, he has been able to add sun-loving plants such as ornamental grass and coneflowers (Rudbeckia nitida).

One of the advantages of using pass-- along plants is the relative lack of maintenance. While the soil on the edge is certainly not desirable, it has been just good enough to allow the plants to survive without much more than a spring dose of slow-release plant food, such as Osmocote, and some hand-watering during droughts.

The City of Richmond regularly grades and applies gravel to such alleys but otherwise lets the neighborhoods of the Fan District do what they please with the areas. A number of formal community gardens exist in Richmond, either utilizing open space as Calder does or making arrangements with the city to take over abandoned lots. Other neighborhoods are also taking note of his activities and planting alley gardens.

Calder's advice for those who want to reclaim an area through gardening is simple. The easiest way to keep an open space free of trash is to make it look beautiful. The rest comes naturally.

Plants That Make a Difference

While every region has plants ideally suited for its environment, Calder has found a number that seem to withstand Richmond's weather extremes and harsh alley conditions. Caladiums, hostas, and ferns create a solid border that seems to thrive despite neglect and competition. Then lamb's ears and perilla add texture and seasonal foliage color. Hollyhocks, cannas, and daylilies provide a big splash of spring and summer color.

All of these plants hold up fairly well with a limited amount of maintenance, and they also fit another of Calder's requirements-the ability to withstand community grazing. As in most public gardens, people act like insects, honing in on flowers with spectacular color and fragrance. Before long, the most desirable blooms find new homes in neighbors' vases. So start with plants that don't lend themselves to picking, or use reblooming flowers. That way you'll be more likely to keep all that spring color clear through summer.

The final suggestion Calder offers for an alley garden has more than a touch of irony. The transformation of a neglected alleyway into a spectacular public garden has increased foot traffic as well as the frequency of dog walking. However, what the dogs find attractive about the alley garden is a bit different from what the people find attractive. Therefore, he suggests using plants that are as dog proof as possible, avoiding annual bedding plants or edibles in the border. Because if you plant it, the dogs will come.

Copyright Southern Progress Corporation Spring 2003
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