Wangari Gardens is a working urban farm located next to the Parkview and Pleasant Plains neighborhoods, as well as Washington Hospital/Children’s National Hospital/Washington Veterans Hospital. The land is owned by the DC Dept of Transportation, and managed through a MOA. Wangari is currently collaborating with Casey Trees to put a conservation easement on the property that would protect it from development in perpetuity by limiting impervious surface.
Wangari Gardens is an oasis surrounded by busy city streets. It includes over 100 community garden plots, public vegetable gardens and a fruit-tree forest garden, compost cooperative, and community programs such as free yoga classes and garden workshops. Wangari often hosts elementary school groups and service projects, and hold an annual fall fair for the community.
There is opportunity for the park space to be better designed and developed to serve the community. There is potential for benches, additional trees, a healing garden, and other features that would provide the community restorative green space. As part of the conservation easement development, Wangari is initiating a community visioning Nature Sacred design process for the park space to design a dedicated space for people to sit, relax, and reflect.
Wangari Gardens is inspired and eager to serve their people — they’ve already learned a great deal from reaching out to Crispus Attucks Park.
