The Bog Garden at Booker T. Washington Park

Albemarle Garden Club will expand its collaboration with the Booker T. Washington Park in Charlottesville, Virginia. AGC has worked with the City of Charlottesville for over twenty years in the development of the Bog Garden in the park as members removed invasive, planted new natives, and picked up trash. With the CGC grant they will work with area teachers of middle school children to create interesting hands-on experiences of learning and exploration of invasive and native plants of the area and learn more about the insects living in their pollinator hotel. The AGC will further develop a middle-school curriculum to teach local children about the native flora and fauna of the wetland space. This is one of the few centrally located city parks with a densely populated and racially and economically diverse surrounding community. The AGC will work with two collaborating organizations: Wildrock and the Burley Restoration Initiative. The Burley High School, now Burley Middle School was the first segregated high school in Charlottesville. This school site connects to the Booker T. Washington Park, which was the first Black public park. The AGC will also work with the equity Center of the University of Virginia to continue the improvements to the park and host listening events supporting the mission of the Burley Restoration Initiative.