6 Best {Gardens}
Gardens & Community Farms
Words By Erin McWilliams Photo courtesy Johnson’s Backyard Garden
It’s easy to forget that natural beauty within the city of Austin exists outside of the Greenbelt, but there are plenty of Eastsiders dedicated to keeping our city sustainable and beautiful. Some of East Austin’s hidden natural gems are right around the corner.
1. Boggy Creek Farm
Larry Butler and Carol Ann Sayle purchased East Austin’s Boggy Creek Farm in 1992, complete with a dilapidated farmhouse built when the farm was originally homesteaded in the 1840s. Since then, they’ve restored the farmhouse and taken the farm public, holding markets almost daily for restaurateurs and civilians alike. Come early for the best pickin’s and bring the kids for fun at the hen house! See their website to find out what’s being harvested weekly.
3414 Lyons Road | boggycreekfarm.com
2. HausBar Urban Farm & GuestHaus
HausBar Urban Farm is a sustainable farm that hosts day camps, workshops, and vacationers in their GuestHaus! It is home to two donkeys, hundreds of chickens, dozens of rabbits, a few ducks, three pet birds, two humans, and some geese, most notably Gustavo the Goose, whose personality is as big as his name.
3300 Govalle Avenue | hausbarfarms.com
3. Johnson’s Backyard Garden
Johnson’s Backyard Garden got its start within the Holly Street neighborhood in East Austin, where they harvested produce to sell at the Austin Farmer’s Market. When the farm began to grow past their small backyard, the Johnson’s purchased 20 acres east of downtown, with room for both a large farm and their kids to play freely. They host garden workshops, 5Ks, picnics, farmer’s markets, and pop-up markets. Visit their website to stay up to date on fun summer events! You can even volunteer for half a day to earn a share of fresh vegetables.
9515 Hergotz Lane | jbgorganic.com
4. Kenny Dorham’s Backyard
Named after legendary East Austin Jazz trumpeter, this eclectic garden is open to everyone and is a perfect spot to sit and eat a food truck meal from across the park. The garden has lawn chairs and tables, great for lounging, eating, or hanging out, and DiverseArts Culture Works hosts various events there throughout the year in the name of Kenny Dorham.
1106 E 11th Street | diversearts.org/KDB
5. Zen Garden
The Asian American Resource Center seeks to promote cultural understanding of Asian-American Pacific Islander culture. Their Zen Garden is a permanent exhibit that boasts features one would expect of a typical Zen garden: sand, stones, a rake, a wooden bridge and a single tree. The current exhibit in the Zen Garden is called Prayer Phone, a disconnected phone to call deceased loved ones: a common custom of many Asian cultures, commemorating loved ones and honoring their spirit world.
8401 Cameron Road | austintexas.gov/page/aarc
6. Festival Beach Community Garden
Spearheaded by the Multicultural Refugee Coalition, Festival Beach is a community garden that rents out plots to anyone who wants to grow their own fresh food. Although their original location serves the East Cesar Chavez and Holly Street neighborhoods, they have expanded their reach by adding a garden full of chickens and honey bees at Lanier High School. Community Workdays are held every second Saturday of the month, so get involved in the community and weed, mulch, and compost alongside your neighbors!
35 Waller Street | festivalbeachgarden.com
