Community garden gets in on recycling

NORTHEAST GLENDALE — Gardeners with plots in the city’s first community-run garden were scheduled to undergo training today on using recycled water for irrigation — a first for a public garden in California, officials said.

The Monterey Road Eco-Community Garden at 870 Monterey Road, operated by the local nonprofit start-up Coalition for a Green Glendale, was approved by the City Council late last year and has since gone from a barren dirt lot to blossoming field for roughly two dozen local gardeners who pay about $80 a year per plot.

The California Department of Public Health authorized the use of recycled water for the garden in May after a lengthy application process. Crews on Tuesday began testing the water line in preparation for the training session today.

The ability to use recycled water for the community garden was a welcome surprise to coalition members, who said they only became aware that Glendale Water & Power had a reclaimed water line along Monterey Road after the site was chosen.

“We’re very excited,” said Alek Bartrosouf, co-founder of the coalition. “The whole recycled-water issue goes along with our mission statement.”

The recycled water, while not recommended for drinking, is already used to irrigate much of the city’s parkland after going through three levels of filtration, said Jaixen Webb, Neighborhood Services program specialist for the city.

It is also 25% less expensive than potable water, he said.

The garden, which is still in the final stages of construction as gardeners get settled into their plots, is scheduled to host a grand opening July 18. It has already hit capacity and continues to draw visitors and curious residents, officials said.

To go from dirt lot to community asset, “It’s big,” said Guillaume Lemoine, landscape designer and husband of Councilwoman Laura Friedman.

He was the lead designer of the 11,000-square-foot garden, which features communal fruit trees and dozens of raised plots.

“You feel it when you’re there, like you’re a part of something,” he said. “You feel like there’s a soul to the site now.”