The Linden-Bushwick Block Association Garden was founded in the mid-seventies, when the city turned a vacant parcel of land (the interior, a.k.a. “Secret” garden) over to the care of the block association. It has been used to grow vegetables ever since. The corner lot came later, after the civil unrest and ensuing fires that swept though Bushwick following the great blackout of 1977.

The building that stood in this corner spot burned to the ground; after this, the area was used as a dumping ground by many thoughtless individuals. The block association stepped up to the challenge, and with GreenThumb’s help, cleared the lot of garbage and even abandoned cars - and turned it into a community garden.

Instrumental in all this has been Mrs. Avellar Hansley, stalwart Block Association President, who still gardens to this day. Many others were there in the beginning as well, including Mr.. & Mrs. Willard Watts, Mrs. Lillian Thompson, Audrey Simmons, and Mary Bradford. Also greatly deserving of credit is the Adipietro family, owners of the adjacent Krown Hardware store and the property on which the gardens sit: they have supported the garden and the neighborhood through thick and thin.

Now the garden again stands at a critical juncture: plans are underway to once again make the space an attractive and inviting garden, establish a farmer’s market to provide fresh, nutritious vegetables to local residents, and to restore the “wild” section at the far end of the interior garden, which has also repeatedly been used as a dumping ground by area construction crews. This section is a veritable miniature nature preserve, as it has never been built upon and attracts many varieties of birds.

The Linden-Bushwick Block Association Garden needs your help! Volunteers are now being sought to assist in many areas, from general garden maintenance, to flower and vegetable gardening, to restoring the “wild” area, to helping organize and run community events.

EcoStation:Bushwick is a project started in 2007 by Brooklyn resident and artist/designer Sean-Michael Fleming to promote awareness of and care for the environment through direct interaction with it. It began with educational tours of the Woodbine Street Block Association Garden, offered to area youth and also those attending Hope Gardens Community Center's Summer Camp. The tours, which are being offered again this year, touch on a number of "green" topics - from plant biodiversity and garden flora and fauna, to recycling & composting.

These garden tours end with individual, take-home plantings, and the taking of an oath to protect the environment - for which participants receive a "Friend of the Garden, Friend of The Earth" button and certificate.

For Earth Day 2008, EcoStation:Bushwick, with the aid of several local greening activists, held a day of events at Hope Gardens Community Center, where the staff were amazed at the kids' enthusiastic response.

EcoStation:Bushwick projects have also grown to include organizing the Secret Garden Project at the Linden-Bushwick Block Association Garden, where the efforts of many public and private organizations have contibuted to the revitalization of a community garden and the restoration of a natural wildlife area.

This summer, EcoStation:Bushwick will officially be a part of Hope Gardens Summer Camp youth program, where an eco-event, "NYCHA (New York City Housing Authority) Green Day @ Hope Gardens," is scheduled for August 8.