Capturing Rain for Community

As summer comes to a close, our project at the Greenfield Community Center is starting to put down roots and reach towards the sun.  The project developed in conjunction with Dietz Architects and the City of Greenfield, provides a new community center near downtown Greenfield.   Planting within the project pursues multiple strategies including foundation planting, rain gardens, and community gardens.  In addition, an arrival garden was designed and installed by the local gardening club.

Installation of the rain garden was a collaboration between Berkshire Design and Spring Valley Landscaping.  Designers at Berkshire Design were inspired after reading Post Wild World,  by Claudia West and Thomas Ranier.   Using native plants, the rain garden establishes several layers and levels of planting within its footprint: cover, structure, and seasonal color.  Our hope is that this area will not only be beneficial for cleaning up and slowing down stormwater, but it will also be helpful to our pollinator friends, as its blooms are staggered throughout the year.

Behind this rain garden is a large swath of community gardens for the community to tend.  A path bisects the rain garden and provides water connections for gardeners to connect hoses or watering cans for use within their own plots.