Jackson Heights Life

Word to the wise follow those garden rules or you too will become fertilizer for the perennials! 

It's for this very reason I never bothered stepping into any of the gardens Jackson Heights is famous for.  When I was apartment hunting a few years ago, I also noticed all the beautiful gardens that were barren of anyone enjoying them.  Even a lack of benches on the narrow walkways seemed odd to me.  It was probably around this time that I mentally dismissed these hidden, off-limits gardens as the personal space for the few people who enjoy gardening.  The few gardens that are visible from public streets do catch my eye and make it into my photos such as the festively decorated sidewalk gardens along 81st street near the library.

Elm Court also allows residents on the grass, and I think their garden is beautiful.  :smitten:

A nice compromise might be to have a portion of the garden to be (for lack of a better word) "interactive" where people could use the grass and children could play (quietly, or during designated hours) and the rest could be for protecting those delicate bushes. The Chateau has a section with kitchen gardens and a swingset, and I think it's a lovely use of shared space that meets a variety of needs.