CULTIVATING URBAN FOREST
Nursery proposal

This nursery is located on a relatively large vacant lot on 49th and Brown in Mill Creek neighborhood.
Sycamores, Red Maples, etc will be planted there. Trees will be planted at 3/4" caliper, and grow for about 5 or 6 years, at which time they will be transplanted onto the streets.



Nursery

The nursery layout recalls the topography of the Mill Creek neighborhood , with mound, path and fence.


Mound
Mound is made of earth and covered with ground cover plants such as ivy, which can hold moisture in the soil and also keep the weeds out. This ivy will connect with the edge explained below. The mound will enhance the nursery, protect it from the outside and create a cozy feeling for the school children working within. It also gives the nursery a less structured presence in the neighborhood.

Path
It path is below the street level. It will be covered with pebbles which recall the old Mill Creek when it was flowing freely over ground. It is now encased in a sewer pipe under ground. Students take care of and study the trees. When they do that, the topography of the Mill Creek and small trees will stimulate the imagination of the neighborhood-scape in the future.

Fence
The edge of the Main Nursery also implies the natural state of the Mill Creek area as the North Eastern Forest to be. Looking at the vacant lands around this area, it is obvious that the plants are trying to become a forest. Having the fence and creeping plants hanging down from it and spilling out onto the streets will give students a chance to think.



Strategy

Trees in the process
Trees are planted in the nursery and on the mound. The trees planted in nursery will be transplanted to the street in the future (in 5-6 years), and the trees planted on the mound will be remain there. Over the years, the trees kept in the Main nursery will finally fill it up and be replaced by a community garden (park). This will give the students the opportunity to compare the trees transplanted onto the streets and the trees kept in the nursery. The trees left in the optimal nursery conditions will stay there for years. Those trees will be the childhood memories of the school children who took care of them. Then one of the satellite nurseries will take over the part of the Main nursery.



Water
The rain gathered from the houses, which are attached to the garden facing Folsom Street, and the of street runoff will be collected in the pond and used for watering nursery trees. If that cannot provide enough water, access to water hydrants will be provided.







Last Update: 7 December 1996


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