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'''County Farm Park''' is a 141-acre public park in eastern [[Ann Arbor, Michigan]] owned by [[Washtenaw County, Michigan|Washtenaw County]] and operated by the county's Parks and Recreation Commission.<ref name=eWashtenaw /> Consisting of a mix of woodlands, fields, and gardens, the park is home to a wide variety of flora and fauna and is a popular local destination for [[gardening]], [[hiking]], [[jogging]], and [[biking]].<ref name=eWashtenaw /><ref name=Shackman /><ref>{{cite web|last=Daily|first=Shelley|title=Diverse residential neighborhoods, Burns Park, the Big House and The Arb are mainstays of Central Ann Arbor|url=http://ww.annarbor.com/neighborhoods/biography-for-central-ann-arbor/|work=[[AnnArbor.com]]|publisher=[[Advance Publications]]|accessdate=26 August 2013|date=5 February 2010}}</ref> The park has been county land since 1836, although for the majority of the [[nineteenth century|nineteenth]] and [[twentieth century|twentieth centuries]] it was used as the county's [[poor house]] (complete with a working farm) and then as its [[infirmary]].<ref name=Shackman /> In 1972, the site began transitioning to parkland with the creation of community gardens, and over the next couple decades various trails and a perennial garden were created.<ref name=eWashtenaw /><ref name=Shackman /> Since 2000, the park has experienced significant [[ecological restoration]] efforts, including the removal of [[invasive species|invasive plants]], [[prairie restoration]], and the creation of a [[wet meadow]] during the restoration of Malletts Creek.<ref name=Meader /><ref name="Brush" /><ref name="Biolchini" />
'''County Farm Park''' is a 141-acre public park in eastern [[Ann Arbor, Michigan]] owned by [[Washtenaw County, Michigan|Washtenaw County]] and operated by the county's Parks and Recreation Commission.<ref name=eWashtenaw /> Consisting of a mix of woodlands, fields, and gardens, the park is home to a wide variety of flora and fauna and is a popular local destination for gardening, hiking, jogging, and biking.<ref name=eWashtenaw /><ref name=Shackman /><ref>{{cite web|last=Daily|first=Shelley|title=Diverse residential neighborhoods, Burns Park, the Big House and The Arb are mainstays of Central Ann Arbor|url=http://ww.annarbor.com/neighborhoods/biography-for-central-ann-arbor/|work=[[AnnArbor.com]]|accessdate=26 August 2013|date=5 February 2010}}</ref> The park has been county land since 1836, although for the majority of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries] it was used as the county's [[poorhouse]] (complete with a working farm) and then as its infirmary.<ref name=Shackman /> In 1972, the site began transitioning to parkland with the creation of community gardens, and over the next couple decades various trails and a perennial garden were created.<ref name=eWashtenaw /><ref name=Shackman /> Since 2000, the park has experienced significant [[ecological restoration]] efforts, including the removal of [[invasive species|invasive plants]], [[prairie restoration]], and the creation of a [[wet meadow]] during the restoration of Malletts Creek.<ref name=Meader /><ref name="Brush" /><ref name="Biolchini" />


== Background ==
== Background ==
[[File:Washtenaw Co. Poor House & Insane Asylum, Pittsfield Tp. Mich.jpg|thumb|left|The County Poor House in 1874]]
[[File:Washtenaw Co. Poor House & Insane Asylum, Pittsfield Tp. Mich.jpg|thumb|left|The County Poor House in 1874]]


The land that now constitutes County Farm Park was bought by [[Washtenaw County, Michigan|Washtenaw County]] in 1836 from local resident Claudius Britton for $1,200.<ref name=eWashtenaw>{{cite web|title=County Farm Park|url=http://www.ewashtenaw.org/government/departments/parks_recreation/cfp/cfp.html|work=eWashtenaw|publisher=[[Washtenaw County, Michigan]]|accessdate=25 August 2013}}</ref> In order to comply with an 1830 [[Michigan Territory|Michigan]] law requiring every county in the territory to construct and operate a [[poor house]], Washtenaw County opened the County Poor House on the site in 1837.<ref name=eWashtenaw /><ref name=Shackman>{{cite web|last=Shackman|first=Grace|title=The County Poor House|url=http://aaobserver.aadl.org/aaobserver/13033|work=[[Ann Arbor Observer]]: Then & Now|publisher=[[Ann Arbor District Library]]|accessdate=25 August 2013|date=October 1986}}</ref> The Poor House was home to a diverse group of impoverished people, including those with physical and mental disabilities, injuries, illnesses, and those who were transient or simply unlucky.<ref name=Shackman /> The Poor House was operated by a "keeper", a local man with a background in [[agriculture]] who lived on site, while his wife was expected to cook for the residents.<ref name=Shackman /> The Poor House was intended to be a self-sustaining working farm on which the residents covered their living expenses by growing and selling crops and livestock, although such sales never covered all of its costs except for a few years during the [[American Civil War|Civil War]].<ref name=Shackman /> The farm consisted of gardens used for growing [[vegetable]]s and [[grain]]s, orchards of [[apple]], [[peach]], and [[pear]] trees, and livestock including [[pig]]s, [[cattle]], [[sheep]], and [[chicken]]s.<ref name=Shackman />
The land that now constitutes County Farm Park was bought by [[Washtenaw County, Michigan|Washtenaw County]] in 1836 from local resident Claudius Britton for $1,200.<ref name=eWashtenaw>{{cite web|title=County Farm Park|url=http://www.ewashtenaw.org/government/departments/parks_recreation/cfp/cfp.html|work=eWashtenaw|publisher=[[Washtenaw County, Michigan]]|accessdate=25 August 2013}}</ref> In order to comply with an 1830 [[Michigan Territory]] law requiring every county in the territory to construct and operate a [[poorhouse]], Washtenaw County opened the County Poor House on the site in 1837.<ref name=eWashtenaw /><ref name=Shackman>{{cite web|last=Shackman|first=Grace|title=The County Poor House|url=http://aaobserver.aadl.org/aaobserver/13033|work=[[Ann Arbor Observer]]: Then & Now|accessdate=25 August 2013|date=October 1986}}</ref> The Poor House was home to a diverse group of impoverished people, including those with physical and mental disabilities, injuries, illnesses, and those who were transient or simply unlucky.<ref name=Shackman /> The Poor House was operated by a "keeper", a local man with a background in [[agriculture]] who lived on site, while his wife was expected to cook for the residents.<ref name=Shackman /> The Poor House was intended to be a self-sustaining working farm on which the residents covered their living expenses by growing and selling crops and livestock, although such sales never covered all of its costs except for a few years during the [[American Civil War|Civil War]].<ref name=Shackman /> The farm consisted of gardens used for growing vegetables and grains, orchards of apple, peach, and pear trees, and livestock including pigs, cattle, sheep, and chickens.<ref name=Shackman />


[[File:County Farm Park August 2013 31 (Fitness Trail).jpg|thumb|right|The fitness trail, originally known as the Parcour exercise trail]]
[[File:County Farm Park August 2013 31 (Fitness Trail).jpg|thumb|right|The fitness trail, originally known as the Parcour exercise trail]]
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[[File:County Farm Park August 2013 32 (Britton Woods).jpg|thumb|right|Britton Woods]]
[[File:County Farm Park August 2013 32 (Britton Woods).jpg|thumb|right|Britton Woods]]


County Farm Park contains the Britton Woods Nature Area, an 18-acre forested area named for Claudius Britton, the last private landowner of what is the modern park who sold the land to the county in 1836.<ref name=eWashtenaw /> It contains both [[upland and lowland (freshwater ecology)|upland]] and [[floodplain]] tree species, including upland [[oak]], [[hickory]], and [[cherry]] trees as well as floodplain [[maple]], [[Fraxinus|ash]], [[ironwood]], and [[hornbeam]] trees.<ref name=eWashtenaw /> Numerous species of [[wildflower]]s grow in Britton Woods, but the [[Trillium grandiflorum|white trillium]] (''Trillium grandiflorum'') and [[Geranium maculatum|Wild Geranium]] (''Geranium maculatum'') are the most common.<ref name=Meader>{{cite web|last=Meader|first=Rick|title=County Farm Park's Britton Woods is a native plant must-see|url=http://annarbor.com/home-garden/county-farm-parks-britton-woods-is-a-native-plant-must-see/?cmpid=mlive-@mlive-living-a2|work=[[AnnArbor.com]]|publisher=[[Advance Publications]]|accessdate=25 August 2013|date=15 May 2013}}</ref> Other [[native plant|native flowers]], including [[Thalictrum thalictroides|Rue anemone]] (''Thalictrum thalictroides''), [[Viola pubescens|Yellow Violet]] (''Viola pubescens''), [[Smilacina racemosa|False Solomon’s Seal]] (''Smilacina racemosa''), [[Sanguinaria canadensis|Bloodroot]] (''Sanguinaria canadensis''), and [[Thalictrum dioicum|Early Meadow Rue]] (''Thalictrum dioicum''), are also part of the ecosystem.<ref name=Meader />
County Farm Park contains the Britton Woods Nature Area, an 18-acre forested area named for Claudius Britton, the last private landowner of what is the modern park who sold the land to the county in 1836.<ref name=eWashtenaw /> It contains both [[upland and lowland (freshwater ecology)|upland]] and [[floodplain]] tree species, including upland [[oak]], [[hickory]], and [[cherry]] trees as well as floodplain [[maple]], [[Fraxinus|ash]], [[ironwood]], and [[hornbeam]] trees.<ref name=eWashtenaw /> Numerous species of [[wildflower]]s grow in Britton Woods, but the [[Trillium grandiflorum|white trillium]] (''Trillium grandiflorum'') and [[Geranium maculatum|Wild Geranium]] (''Geranium maculatum'') are the most common.<ref name=Meader>{{cite web|last=Meader|first=Rick|title=County Farm Park's Britton Woods is a native plant must-see|url=http://annarbor.com/home-garden/county-farm-parks-britton-woods-is-a-native-plant-must-see/?cmpid=mlive-@mlive-living-a2|work=[[AnnArbor.com]]|accessdate=25 August 2013|date=15 May 2013}}</ref> Other [[native plant|native flowers]], including [[Thalictrum thalictroides|Rue anemone]] (''Thalictrum thalictroides''), [[Viola pubescens|Yellow Violet]] (''Viola pubescens''), [[Smilacina racemosa|False Solomon’s Seal]] (''Smilacina racemosa''), [[Sanguinaria canadensis|Bloodroot]] (''Sanguinaria canadensis''), and [[Thalictrum dioicum|Early Meadow Rue]] (''Thalictrum dioicum''), are also part of the ecosystem.<ref name=Meader />


Together, the trees and wildflowers found in Britton Woods are representational of the wooded areas that existed in the Ann Arbor area before it was extensively settled.<ref name=eWashtenaw /> Ongoing [[ecological restoration]] takes place in the woods, which includes activities such as [[prescribed burn]]s and the removal of [[invasive species]] such as [[honeysuckle]] (''Lonicera'') and [[rhamnus (genus)|buckthorn]] (''Rhamnus'').<ref name=Meader />
Together, the trees and wildflowers found in Britton Woods are representational of the wooded areas that existed in the Ann Arbor area before it was extensively settled.<ref name=eWashtenaw /> Ongoing [[ecological restoration]] takes place in the woods, which includes activities such as [[prescribed burn]]s and the removal of [[invasive species]] such as [[honeysuckle]] (''Lonicera'') and [[rhamnus (genus)|buckthorn]] (''Rhamnus'').<ref name=Meader />
Line 47: Line 47:
[[File:County Farm Park August 2013 09 (Fox Hollow Prairie).jpg|thumb|right|Fox Hollow Prairie]]
[[File:County Farm Park August 2013 09 (Fox Hollow Prairie).jpg|thumb|right|Fox Hollow Prairie]]


The County Farm Nature Area consists of the non-wooded remainder of County Farm Park, which was used for agricultural purposes before the park was established but has since been renaturalized with [[meadow|fields]], [[hedge]]s, and [[groundcover]].<ref name="eWashtenaw" /> The [[old field succession]] habitat is home to a multitude of different animals, including many [[bird]] species, [[rabbit]]s, [[pheasant]], [[woodchuck]]s, and [[skunk]]s, as well as the occasional [[fox]] or [[deer]].<ref name="eWashtenaw" />
The County Farm Nature Area consists of the non-wooded remainder of County Farm Park, which was used for agricultural purposes before the park was established but has since been renaturalized with fields, hedges, and [[groundcover]].<ref name="eWashtenaw" /> The [[old field succession]] habitat is home to a multitude of different animals, including many bird species, [[rabbit]]s, [[pheasant]], [[woodchuck]]s, and [[skunk]]s, as well as the occasional [[fox]] or [[deer]].<ref name="eWashtenaw" />


In 2009, the Fox Hollow area of the County Farm Nature Area was planted as a [[prairie]] through a partnership between the Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation Commission and the Buhr Park Children's Wet Meadow Project.<ref name="Brush">{{cite web|last=Brush|first=Andy|title=Fox Hollow Prairie Planting|url=http://www.wetmeadow.org/2009/04/fox-hollow-prairie-planting.html|work=Buhr Park Children's Wet Meadow Project|publisher=[[Blogger (service)|Blogger]]|accessdate=25 August 2013|date=5 April 2009}}</ref> The process of planting the prairie was straightforward, consisting simply of raking the ground, removing loose materials, and then sowing the land with seeds collected from [[Buhr Park]]'s [[wet meadow]]s.<ref name="Brush" /> A wide variety of seeds were used in the planting, including [[Yellow Coneflower]], [[Ironweed (plant)|Ironweed]], [[prairie dock]], [[Indiangrass]], [[sneezeweed]], and [[switchgrass]], as well as various varieties of [[goldenrod]], [[beardtongue]], [[Rudbeckia hirta|black-eyed Susan]], and [[milkweed]].<ref name="Brush" />
In 2009, the Fox Hollow area of the County Farm Nature Area was planted as a [[prairie]] through a partnership between the Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation Commission and the Buhr Park Children's Wet Meadow Project.<ref name="Brush">{{cite web|last=Brush|first=Andy|title=Fox Hollow Prairie Planting|url=http://www.wetmeadow.org/2009/04/fox-hollow-prairie-planting.html|work=Buhr Park Children's Wet Meadow Project|publisher=[[Blogger (service)|Blogger]]|accessdate=25 August 2013|date=5 April 2009}}</ref> The process of planting the prairie was straightforward, consisting simply of raking the ground, removing loose materials, and then sowing the land with seeds collected from [[Buhr Park]]'s [[wet meadow]]s.<ref name="Brush" /> A wide variety of seeds were used in the planting, including [[Yellow Coneflower]],{{dn}} [[Ironweed (plant)|Ironweed]], [[prairie dock]], [[Indiangrass]], [[sneezeweed]], and [[switchgrass]], as well as various varieties of [[goldenrod]], [[beardtongue]], [[Rudbeckia hirta|black-eyed Susan]], and [[milkweed]].<ref name="Brush" />


=== Malletts Creek ===
=== Malletts Creek ===
[[File:County Farm Park August 2013 11 (County Farm Creek).jpg|thumb|right|Malletts Creek within the park]]
[[File:County Farm Park August 2013 11 (County Farm Creek).jpg|thumb|right|Malletts Creek within the park]]


Malletts Creek is a [[tributary]] of the [[Huron River (Michigan)|Huron River]] and the most substantial waterway in the City of Ann Arbor at a length of {{convert|4.7|mi|km}}.<ref name="Malletts Creek Restoration Project">{{cite web|title=Malletts Creek Restoration Project|url=http://www.ewashtenaw.org/government/drain_commissioner/dc_webWaterQuality/malletts_creek/dc_mc_info.html|work=eWashtenaw|publisher=[[Washtenaw County, Michigan]]|accessdate=26 August 2013}}</ref><ref name="Berg">{{cite web|last=Berg|first=Nicole|title=Malletts Creek stream restoration and construction begins|url=http://www.annarbor.com/passions-pursuits/mallets-creek-stream-restoration-and-construction-begins/|work=[[AnnArbor.com]]|publisher=[[Advance Publications]]|accessdate=26 August 2013|date=30 September 2011}}</ref> It flows through County Farm Park, and in 2011 and 2012 a portion of the creek within the park was converted into a three-acre wet meadow with native vegetation.<ref name="Berg" /><ref name="Biolchini">{{cite web|last=Biolchini|first=Amy|title=Controversial restoration of Malletts Creek 'substantially complete'|url=http://www.annarbor.com/news/controversial-restoration-of-malletts-creek-complete/|work=[[AnnArbor.com]]|publisher=[[Advance Publications]]|accessdate=26 August 2013|date=9 May 2012}}</ref> The conversion was part of a larger Malletts Creek restoration project that cost $2.8 million and resulted in the accidental death of an [[excavator]] operator, although it was successful in mitigating the threat of [[erosion]] to the creek and reducing the amount of [[phosphorus]] that flowed through it into the Huron River by 25 percent.<ref name="Biolchini" />
Malletts Creek is a tributary of the [[Huron River (Michigan)|Huron River]] and the most substantial waterway in the City of Ann Arbor at a length of {{convert|4.7|mi|km}}.<ref name="Malletts Creek Restoration Project">{{cite web|title=Malletts Creek Restoration Project|url=http://www.ewashtenaw.org/government/drain_commissioner/dc_webWaterQuality/malletts_creek/dc_mc_info.html|work=eWashtenaw|publisher=[[Washtenaw County, Michigan]]|accessdate=26 August 2013}}</ref><ref name="Berg">{{cite web|last=Berg|first=Nicole|title=Malletts Creek stream restoration and construction begins|url=http://www.annarbor.com/passions-pursuits/mallets-creek-stream-restoration-and-construction-begins/|work=[[AnnArbor.com]]|accessdate=26 August 2013|date=30 September 2011}}</ref> It flows through County Farm Park, and in 2011 and 2012 a portion of the creek within the park was converted into a three-acre wet meadow with native vegetation.<ref name="Berg" /><ref name="Biolchini">{{cite web|last=Biolchini|first=Amy|title=Controversial restoration of Malletts Creek 'substantially complete'|url=http://www.annarbor.com/news/controversial-restoration-of-malletts-creek-complete/|work=[[AnnArbor.com]]|accessdate=26 August 2013|date=9 May 2012}}</ref> The conversion was part of a larger Malletts Creek restoration project that cost $2.8 million and resulted in the accidental death of an [[excavator]] operator, although it was successful in mitigating the threat of [[erosion]] to the creek and reducing the amount of [[phosphorus]] that flowed through it into the Huron River by 25 percent.<ref name="Biolchini" />


=== Gardens ===
=== Gardens ===

Revision as of 11:08, 30 August 2013

County Farm Park
The Outer Loop trail at County Farm Park
Map
TypePublic park
LocationAnn Arbor, Michigan
Area141 acres (57 ha)
Created1972
Operated byWashtenaw County Parks and Recreation Commission
StatusOpen all year
(daily 8am to dusk)

County Farm Park is a 141-acre public park in eastern Ann Arbor, Michigan owned by Washtenaw County and operated by the county's Parks and Recreation Commission.[1] Consisting of a mix of woodlands, fields, and gardens, the park is home to a wide variety of flora and fauna and is a popular local destination for gardening, hiking, jogging, and biking.[1][2][3] The park has been county land since 1836, although for the majority of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries] it was used as the county's poorhouse (complete with a working farm) and then as its infirmary.[2] In 1972, the site began transitioning to parkland with the creation of community gardens, and over the next couple decades various trails and a perennial garden were created.[1][2] Since 2000, the park has experienced significant ecological restoration efforts, including the removal of invasive plants, prairie restoration, and the creation of a wet meadow during the restoration of Malletts Creek.[4][5][6]

Background

The County Poor House in 1874

The land that now constitutes County Farm Park was bought by Washtenaw County in 1836 from local resident Claudius Britton for $1,200.[1] In order to comply with an 1830 Michigan Territory law requiring every county in the territory to construct and operate a poorhouse, Washtenaw County opened the County Poor House on the site in 1837.[1][2] The Poor House was home to a diverse group of impoverished people, including those with physical and mental disabilities, injuries, illnesses, and those who were transient or simply unlucky.[2] The Poor House was operated by a "keeper", a local man with a background in agriculture who lived on site, while his wife was expected to cook for the residents.[2] The Poor House was intended to be a self-sustaining working farm on which the residents covered their living expenses by growing and selling crops and livestock, although such sales never covered all of its costs except for a few years during the Civil War.[2] The farm consisted of gardens used for growing vegetables and grains, orchards of apple, peach, and pear trees, and livestock including pigs, cattle, sheep, and chickens.[2]

The fitness trail, originally known as the Parcour exercise trail

In 1917, the original Poor House building was replaced by a brick hospital known as the Washtenaw Infirmary.[1] In the 1930s, the advent of modern welfare led to a shift in institutional emphasis from sheltering the poor to serving those who needed continual medical care but could not afford it.[2] The Infirmary continued to operate until 1967, when it was required to either modernize or close.[1] In 1971, the Infirmary was finally closed after county officials concluded that it would be too costly to modernize, and the building itself was torn down in 1979.[2] After the closure of the Infirmary, Saint Joseph Mercy Hospital considered moving to the site, but eventually decided on relocating elsewhere.[2] The county then contemplated building a new courthouse on the grounds of the old Poor House before the land was turned over to the county's Parks and Recreation Commission for the creation of County Farm Park.[2]

The roots of the modern park itself go back to 1972, when Project Grow began gardening on eight acres of the site while the abandoned Washtenaw Infirmary building was still standing.[1] In 1976, the Parcour exercise trail (now the fitness trail) was constructed as a jogging and exercise trail in the mold of European fitness courses.[1][2] By the 1980s, the Project Grow gardens and the exercise trail had been joined by a woodland trail and a perennial garden on what was at the time 127 acres of park land.[2] In 1991, the Meri Lou Murray Recreation Center was built on the site of the old Infirmary, at the northeastern corner of the park.[1]

Features

Britton Woods Nature Area

Britton Woods

County Farm Park contains the Britton Woods Nature Area, an 18-acre forested area named for Claudius Britton, the last private landowner of what is the modern park who sold the land to the county in 1836.[1] It contains both upland and floodplain tree species, including upland oak, hickory, and cherry trees as well as floodplain maple, ash, ironwood, and hornbeam trees.[1] Numerous species of wildflowers grow in Britton Woods, but the white trillium (Trillium grandiflorum) and Wild Geranium (Geranium maculatum) are the most common.[4] Other native flowers, including Rue anemone (Thalictrum thalictroides), Yellow Violet (Viola pubescens), False Solomon’s Seal (Smilacina racemosa), Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis), and Early Meadow Rue (Thalictrum dioicum), are also part of the ecosystem.[4]

Together, the trees and wildflowers found in Britton Woods are representational of the wooded areas that existed in the Ann Arbor area before it was extensively settled.[1] Ongoing ecological restoration takes place in the woods, which includes activities such as prescribed burns and the removal of invasive species such as honeysuckle (Lonicera) and buckthorn (Rhamnus).[4]

County Farm Nature Area

Fox Hollow Prairie

The County Farm Nature Area consists of the non-wooded remainder of County Farm Park, which was used for agricultural purposes before the park was established but has since been renaturalized with fields, hedges, and groundcover.[1] The old field succession habitat is home to a multitude of different animals, including many bird species, rabbits, pheasant, woodchucks, and skunks, as well as the occasional fox or deer.[1]

In 2009, the Fox Hollow area of the County Farm Nature Area was planted as a prairie through a partnership between the Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation Commission and the Buhr Park Children's Wet Meadow Project.[5] The process of planting the prairie was straightforward, consisting simply of raking the ground, removing loose materials, and then sowing the land with seeds collected from Buhr Park's wet meadows.[5] A wide variety of seeds were used in the planting, including Yellow Coneflower,[disambiguation needed] Ironweed, prairie dock, Indiangrass, sneezeweed, and switchgrass, as well as various varieties of goldenrod, beardtongue, black-eyed Susan, and milkweed.[5]

Malletts Creek

Malletts Creek within the park

Malletts Creek is a tributary of the Huron River and the most substantial waterway in the City of Ann Arbor at a length of 4.7 miles (7.6 km).[7][8] It flows through County Farm Park, and in 2011 and 2012 a portion of the creek within the park was converted into a three-acre wet meadow with native vegetation.[8][6] The conversion was part of a larger Malletts Creek restoration project that cost $2.8 million and resulted in the accidental death of an excavator operator, although it was successful in mitigating the threat of erosion to the creek and reducing the amount of phosphorus that flowed through it into the Huron River by 25 percent.[6]

Gardens

County Farm Park has a wide variety of different gardens, including an octagonal perennial flower garden, a "native grasses display" on the Outer Loop trail, and a "Kids & Trees" nursery near the children's playground.[9] It also includes the Project Grow Community Gardens, which consist of 84 total plots in two sections available for rental by individuals.[10] Project Grow's gardens at County Farm Park constitute the oldest and largest part of its network, which in total consists of 15 individual sites and over 350 separate plots throughout the Ann Arbor area.[10][11] The Project Grow gardens at County Farm Park have been in existence since 1972, when they emerged as a direct product of the environmental and community gardening movements of the 1970s, although they were also substantially influenced by the world war-era tradition of "victory gardens".[11]

Gallery

  • Perennial Flower Gardens
    Perennial Flower Gardens
  • Perennial Flower Gardens
    Perennial Flower Gardens
  • Project Grow Community Gardens
    Project Grow Community Gardens
  • Project Grow Community Gardens
    Project Grow Community Gardens

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o "County Farm Park". eWashtenaw. Washtenaw County, Michigan. Retrieved 25 August 2013.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Shackman, Grace (October 1986). "The County Poor House". Ann Arbor Observer: Then & Now. Retrieved 25 August 2013.
  3. ^ Daily, Shelley (5 February 2010). "Diverse residential neighborhoods, Burns Park, the Big House and The Arb are mainstays of Central Ann Arbor". AnnArbor.com. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
  4. ^ a b c d Meader, Rick (15 May 2013). "County Farm Park's Britton Woods is a native plant must-see". AnnArbor.com. Retrieved 25 August 2013.
  5. ^ a b c d Brush, Andy (5 April 2009). "Fox Hollow Prairie Planting". Buhr Park Children's Wet Meadow Project. Blogger. Retrieved 25 August 2013.
  6. ^ a b c Biolchini, Amy (9 May 2012). "Controversial restoration of Malletts Creek 'substantially complete'". AnnArbor.com. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
  7. ^ "Malletts Creek Restoration Project". eWashtenaw. Washtenaw County, Michigan. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
  8. ^ a b Berg, Nicole (30 September 2011). "Malletts Creek stream restoration and construction begins". AnnArbor.com. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
  9. ^ "County Farm Park Gardens". eWashtenaw. Washtenaw County, Michigan. Retrieved 25 August 2013.
  10. ^ a b "County Farm". ProjectGrowGardens.org. Project Grow Community Gardens. Retrieved 25 August 2013.
  11. ^ a b "Project Grow's Mission Statement". ProjectGrowGardens.org. Project Grow Community Gardens. Retrieved 25 August 2013.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to County Farm Park.
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