The Story Behind the Flower Beds On Top of Art Hill
Patrick Greenwald planted his record of 1,100 plants in one day when staff was limited during the start of the pandemic.
Many people have taken to coming to Forest Park for a place of reprieve during COVID-19. One of the spots people have particularly admired due to the abundance of color are the beds at the top of Art Hill. The Forest Park Forever Horiticulturist behind the designs of these beds is Patrick Greenwald. (Patrick has authored several interesting horticulture-focused blog posts over the years — take a look.)
Patrick and Forest Park Forever Gardener Eric Hazley have been hard at work planting and caring for the annual and perennial display garden containing 94 different types of plants. Inspiration for the display design came from the natural plant communities of the Balkan Mountains, Ozark glades and the great expanses of colorful wildflowers of Texas. This organized chaos, “a floral rainbow” to quote a Park visitor, brought great joy and happiness to all who had the opportunity to stop and admire this vision of gardening. “It was designed as a habitat for people to enjoy and wildlife to flourish,” Greenwald says.
Before you pay a visit in person, let’s take a look at the process behind the renovation of the Art Hill flower beds:
