Southfield Veterans Outreach Community Garden

Located: 18th Street and East Main Street, Columbus, OH 43205

Southfield Community Veterans Outreach Garden is a neighborhood garden on Clarfield Avenue on the Southside, grown by neighbors for neighbors. For five seasons a crew of volunteers has planted, weeded, watered, and harvested together, and the food goes out through a shared harvest: the garden is open during posted hours, signs tell you what is ready and how to pick it, and residents take what their household needs. In the busiest weeks, community harvest days have volunteers pick, sort, and hand out produce on site, and anything left over is shared with neighbors and partner sites so nothing goes to waste.

Veterans are in the name for a reason. The garden was built as a place for veterans and neighbors to work with their hands, be outside, and be around people, and it has grown into a gathering spot for the block. Along the way it has become a classroom too, with workshops and weekly guidance on seasonal growing, soil health, composting, and simple ways to turn a harvest into a meal. Vegetables, fruit, and flowers share the beds, with elderberries and a three bin compost system among the newest additions.