2017 Applications Now Open!

Now accepting 2017 applications! The weather is turning and we're thinking about growing. Check out our application here or email us for more information.

May 1: Applications Due / Garden Plots Assigned

May 14: Garden Season Opener, 2-5 PM (BBQ potluck to follow)

If you know anyone who'd like a spot to garden, please let us know!

Applications For The 2016 Growing Season

The deadline for Applications for the 2016 season has been extended to Friday April 22, 2016 at 4pm. Here's a link to the 2016 Application in Word and PDF. Please return the application in PDF form. If you want to drop off a hardcopy instead email therailgarden@gmail.com to make arrangements.

Ashdale Library: Lending books to people and gardens to plants

Hey Garden lovers!

I know it's been a great summer hasn't it?  A long cool slow Spring followed by a wet and hot summer. Remember way back in June when I told  you that The Rail Garden was planning a garden plant at the Ashdale Library?

Well it happened, way back in June!

The City of Toronto had kindly shared their plans for the tunnel rehabilitation project as early as possible so we knew that their construction was going to take out the small starter pollination garden we had going.

Since the Ashdale Library had already reached out to us about planting on their yard we thought it might be a great fit to transplant as many of our pollinators to their property!

A call out to the neighbours for any plants they were looking to split resulted in peonies, hostas and bleeding heart bushes from Jones all the way through to Coxwell.

Then a couple of well placed phone calls and our labour force was established .

Our plants are doing well in their new home and we are looking forward to splitting them and bringing them back to their original home in the Spring.  I love seeing the community beds spread through the neighbourhood.

And so it begins...

Most of you already know, the City of Toronto is going to be doing some much needed work on the Monarch Park Tunnel this summer.  This work is going to leave us with a resurfaced tunnel entrance to the Park - new lights and a new retaining wall around the East side of the path through the garden.

It is going to be lovely when it's done but it in the meantime since we won't be able to establish our community beds, The Rail Garden committee is looking for opportunity to grow 'satellite garden's around our amazing neighbourhood.

The first of which is in the little planter at Roden Public School.

 

Local parent Theresa Baillie helped to coordinate the effort with a few key members of the Garden - Miranda, Jen and Carly to put in some fresh flowers and greenery.

 

They planted some marigold annuals and some perennials.

 

Columbine

and of course, left the well established irises to do their Spring thing.

We will also be working with the Ashdale Public Library to build a perennial garden over the next month or so. 

If you know of a possible site for a satellite garden and would like to help us build a satellite garden please email us at therailgarden@gmail.com!   Keep in mind we're all working parents so give us lots of time to respond.

See you in the dirt!

This summer we will be...ubiquitous.

Hello lovely Rail Garden Supporters,

Thank you so much for joining us for dinner last month.

It was really the perfect kick off to the season.  It will be an interrupted and abnormal season without a doubt.  The City is investing heavily in our amazing community and will be doing a lot of really important construction on the tunnel leading to Monarch Park.

It means that we won't be able to invest in our community owned gardens this year and will be trying to maintain the personal allotment gardens through the construction.  Ambitious goals especially because the gardens will be surrounded by construction.

 We don't want to lose all the momentum and enthusiasm for the garden and our events during the summer so The Rail Garden Committee has made a shift in our priorities this year. 

We are planning and hoping to run more community dinners and local garden events with the sole goal of maintaining the excitement and investment of our neighbourhood in this important project.

 

Our first dinner met those goals perfectly.  130 neighbours joined us for dinner and we managed it so well we came out even financially.  Actually, that's not true.  The Rail Garden came out far ahead after such a long winter, we got to see our friends and supporters again in a beautiful space with beautiful food.

 

In the coming weeks you'll see us at Roden School and the Ashdale Library planting 'satellite' gardens.  If you know of an area that could use some garden love please let us know and we would love to help facilitate a 'garden party'.

 

To keep us running we will be running our one and only fundraising event this year.  It promises to be off the hook with some of the best comedians in Toronto.  We would love it if you could join us; it helps to keep us planting in the neighbourhood and running family dinners!

 

Please see the Lazy Daisy Café for tickets and the meanest Dirty Chai Latte you can find in the City.

 

Growing Community Dinner!

 

This post is a long time coming but we have been busy putting together a plan for the second year of The Rail Garden's existence.

 

It will be a bit of a challenging year due to some pretty great improvements that the City of Toronto will be delivering in 2013. We are working hard with the different City Departments to get a schedule and gain some efficiency through collaborative efforts (between City Departments :)

 

Until then, rest assured we plan on continuing the traditions of community dinners and cabarets! 

 

Please see the beautiful poster below for details and email therailgarden@gmail.com to reserve one of the few tickets left.

 

See you soon!