Founded in 1985 by a group of still-active community members, the Clinton Avenue Community Garden is dominated in the summer by 10-feet-tall corn stalks planted and maintained by an avid local gardener. This garden has been an integral part of this largely Hispanic community since its founding and is carefully tended by elderly neighborhood residents. To improve the space, in 2005, New York Restoration Project (NYRP) installed a steel picket fence, garden shed and vegetable beds, where community gardeners plant tomatoes, bell peppers, corn, cilantro, peas and papola. There is also a lovely and productive cherry tree on the site that provides shade for local residents seeking a cool, peaceful place to relax and enjoy the garden. In addition, community members often use this 4,994-square-foot space for local church and community gatherings, as well as workshops, picnics and barbecues.

In 2007, neighborhood residents worked in the garden with Bronx Green-Up to complete a composting certification program, which has since allowed gardeners and community members to utilize this open space for composting leftover vegetable foliage, leaves and garden debris. An outreach initiative of the New York Botanical Garden, Bronx Green-Up provides horticultural advice, technical assistance and training to residents, community gardeners, school groups and other organizations interested in improving urban neighborhoods through greening projects.

To help ensure the garden continues to serve as an active green space and engages local residents for years to come, NYRP staff and horticulture crews work with community members to remove trash and provide ongoing maintenance, building assistance and plant material for the garden – including wood for raised planting beds, gardening tools, compost and vegetable seedlings.

Located in the East Tremont section of the Bronx, this large corner garden is surrounded by one- and two-family homes and is within several blocks of three schools.