South End Gardens Win Mayor's Contest

John Walsh's plot in the Saranac Community Garden along the stands out in its formality. Unlike the vegetable gardens and wildflowers nearby, Walsh, a JP resident, has molded his small plot of land into a precise work of art.

Walsh, who has been cultivating the same plot in the South End since 1998, took home second place in the Mayor's Garden Contest in the Community Garden category. He'll be recognized for his efforts in a ceremony in the Public Garden later this month.

Walsh’s plot is a formal garden created in the French tradition - with specially chosen art objects among the carefully planned plantings. The aesthetic rests on geometric designs created through strict restraint and direction of the vegetation. Maintaining the garden requires careful planning and constant pruning, including the practice of topiary – the clipping of foliage and twigs of trees and shrubs to develop clearly defined shapes.  

Walsh, a librarian, has always loved formal gardens, whether pictured in books or experienced through travel, and the rectangular shape of his plot in the Saranac Garden gave him the chance to create one of his own. He began with the path and a circular area as a focal point, started to invest in boxwoods, and continued to add plants and artwork as budget and inspiration allowed.

At this point the garden is complete, though there is always work to be done to maintain the design, he said. While Walsh patronizes local nurseries for some plant material, he has sought out special growers for some of the roses that fit his vision of the garden.

The South End was also represented in the contest by gardener David Stein, who tied for third place in the Vegetable or Herb Garden category with Randolph Stafford of Dorchester.

Click here for a full list of winners.