We got our first donation for archop park!

.
It is very exciting that the endeavor to revitalize a Central Fresno park that began in March is becoming real. The story of how we got to the first donation is as interesting as the donation itself.

I had made the decision to propose building the park incrementally rather than all at once like Extreme Makeover: Park Edition as originally planned. While this does draw out the process, it also makes it more attainable.

James Collier approached archop about HandsOn Central California doing a Make a Difference Day at the park on October 24th. Now we had man power. So the challenge became, where do we start and what materials will we need?

Trees are a good start. We had developed concepts for plantings at the park with landscape architect Design Lab 252.

Those concepts are to make sustainable plant choices i.e. low maintenance and drought tolerant. We also wanted to change the atmosphere of the park. Currently, all the plant life is at the perimeter. Sounds of the road and freeway inundate the park. We want plant life within the park and to introduce nature sounds.

We propose placing a strip of trees in the break between the freeway ramps. This is one of the few locations that gets full sun. We also consulted with Fresno State professor of Biology and bird specialist Madhusudan Katti for trees that fit our parameters (low water, attractive to birds and wildlife).

We took Madhu’s recommendations to Intermountain Nursery in Prather. They specialize in drought tolerant native plants. After making our pitch to the nursery, we got our first park donation.

Owner, Ray Laclergue, gladly offered us five Desert Willow trees. Which are small with a beautiful flower. And 3 Valley Oak trees. They grow very large and can survive our intense summers.

With flowers and acorns from the trees, the park will be enlivened with bugs, birds and squirrels evoking a park feeling in this urban triangle.

Below is a view of the proposed changes to the park. A basketball court is in the foreground the trees are in the background. Thee trees we will be planting now are small (3-5 feet) but will grow over the years to fill the space nicely.

And a reminder, fall is the season to plant trees. If there is a hole in your landscaping, consider filling it with a native tree. Take a visit to Intermountain Nursery. Support this archop sponsor helping us improve the built environment in the San Joaquin Valley.