Riverside Valley Community Garden

Unique garden amongst the city jungle.

One of my favorite things about our neighborhood is this garden. The day we moved in, I took my son for a walk to try and show him that moving away from our old neighborhood wouldn’t be all bad. He was really sad about moving away from friends and all of the places he had grown up with. We happened across the garden, and seeing that a little kid looked really interested in what was going on inside, they asked us to come in… and loaded him up with fresh veggies. And gave us a tour! Whenever the weather is nice and we go by, we make sure to visit. I don’t know how Jenny and friends have so much energy, but they are amazing. This garden is such an unexpected, beautiful place. It’s a real treasure. A little bit of nature for city kids.

this swathe of land has ancient history
and secrets that will unfold in perpetuity.
let it be observed, in human time–
the kind we understand inherently,
that there was a long winter here once.
Jenny Benitez saw past the wasteland,
that even in the winter she was alive.
when tangled nestled earth roots were frozen in time
for a spell,
she could see her misted breath, as the sky mirror
was held up by silvery inextricable sky roots.
and thus the land became again.
now, when the elements and seasons conspire,
when the tiller women, tiller men, tiller children toil,
to embroider a glorious quilt,
of sun spilled peaches, plums, pears,
bordering the ever changing procession of square and rectangular patches.
stitching, embellishing, weaving a tapestry
of feathery asparagus, sweet potato, green beans
aromatic culantro, cilantro, parsley, basil
and
plummy bready eggplant
and
heathered slates of kale
and
sunday supper collard greens.
this swathe of earth has secrets, fabulous secrets,
revealed in leaves of humility and everyday.

A trip uptown usually involves running down 137^th to a gargantuan apartment building, making my way upstairs and entering a comfortable home where I’ll watch Jeopardy and eat AMAZING Puerto Rican cooking. Heavenly pasteles, chicken, ribs, tostones, the most flavorful rice and beans you’ll ever taste. Crisp salads with creamy avocado, eggplant parmigian…
I think for a little while, man, this lady (my boyfriend’s grandmother) knows how to cook! My face tingles with warmth after every bite. And then I remember. ALL OF THESE VEGETABLES COME FROM THE COMMUNITY GARDEN.
This review MAY seem a little biased, but let’s just look at the facts.
Jenny Benitez is a sprightly, vivacious and mischievous woman who along with volunteers and her husband, has done a HUGE amount of work on the Northern side of Riverside Park. You can watch a video all about her and her efforts here:
Anyway. She has devoted SO much time to this park and garden. Her huge, huge heart has been poured into it… it’s amazing how much of a difference one person can make, let alone all the volunteers!
The garden is the image of perfection. It’s nestled in the park, right next to the train tracks. Any vegetable you could imagine probably rests here, lying on the soil or beneath the ground, ready to be plucked up and utilized either in the home or for a summer cookout! There’s a peach tree, grape vines, flowers everywhere. It’s a sight to see, really. And tucked away enough that it feels almost like a secret.
Being a part of the community garden (having a plot) is not as easy as you might think. Because there is still so much work to be done for Riverside Park, and there is a constant need for upkeep, you may have a plot of your own ONLY if you volunteer for a year. It’s a system that helps keep the park beautiful, and gives you an opportunity to forget, for a little while, the limiting factors of living in a skyscraper on a grid.
Please, please, please… if you are in the area you absolutely MUST visit this spot! It’s incredibly special and fantastically inspiring.