Community Corner

Dedication, Devotion Planted U City in Bloom in Community

Volunteer group maintains gardens all over University City.

This weekend marks the culmination of weeks of preparation and planning for the many volunteers of U City in Bloom. The group's annual plant sale will feature over 4,200 individual annuals, perennials and herbs.

"It's amazing chaos when we start to move the plants," said volunteer Linda Fried. "But after 5 hours of work, the place is calm, clean and ready to go."

The event is U City in Bloom's most significant fundraiser, generating 84 percent of the group's yearly special event income. 

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 sends out its Girls on the Run group to assist with the sale. 

"They are great," said Helen Fuller, assistant to executive director. "They run plants out to cars or they act as plant sitters while people keep shopping."

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Vernon Park

The plants for the sale are organized at the organization's garden in Vernon Park, a strip of land leased to U City in Bloom by . The former vacant strip sits behind U City's Dog Park along Vernon Ave.

What was once just a dirt strip along the River Des Peres is now a community vegetable garden and holding area for U City in Bloom's flowers. 

Mary Ann Shaw, executive director, said the plans began in 2003, when the city leased the land for $1 a year for 10 years.

"At first it was just fencing and storage," she said. "We put in the sheds in 2009."

The lease for the land is only part of the cooperation between U City in Bloom and the city of University City.

"They are great to work with — we get so much support," Shaw said. "We provide the materials and equipment and the parks department is always ready to help with a big project. They mow around our gardens and help us remove dead trees."

Funding from a grant allowed the group to add an irrigation system and a pavilion in 2011.

This year for the first time the vegetable garden was opened up to volunteers and community members. Individuals are maintaining their 5 by 10 bed each week. Their only rent on the property is a few hours of work with the organization to pull weeds.

Decades of Growing

U City in Bloom was started in 1985 by three women who wanted to beautify University City by introducing community gardens. That year they planted 600 daffodils along Pershing Avenue near Jackson. The group gradually added more gardens and found more volunteers.

U City in Bloom now maintains over 325 public garden locations in University City. Those gardens include beds in public parks, outside city buildings, at buildings and in boxes along the Delmar Loop.

The group's hallmark gardens are the public gardens. U City in Bloom has designed as well as maintains and plants the flower gardens at , ,  and the Centennial Gardens at City Hall.

Volunteers in the organization work every day of the week and contribute approximately 6,000 hours each year to the community.

Annual Plant Sale

U City in Bloom’s Annual Plant Sale will take place at the on the corner of Vernon and Pennsylvania from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday and from 9 a.m. to noon Sunday.

This year U City in Bloom has expanded the variety plants it offers and added annuals, culinary herbs and vegetables along with perennials.


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