The history behind a Minneapolis "secret garden" that's been growing for 80 years
MINNEAPOLIS – Tucked away in Minneapolis' Longfellow neighborhood is a bit of a secret garden.
At Dowling Community Garden, there's a lot to see. And a lot to taste, as Craig Hafferman explains.
"Sweet potatoes, tomatoes, husk cherries," Hafferman said.
He can identify just about anything on this 20-acre plot. Gardening is in his blood. He told WCCO about his first memories of gardening.
"I would have to say it would be my Grandma Ann at her garden because it was just lush and had all these things I liked. Snap peas and potatoes and carrots and all these things," he said.
He gets to relive his own history in this very historical place.
"I get goosebumps thinking about 80 years that this has been here, and hopefully it continues for another 80 years," he said.
The garden started in 1943 as a victory garden. There were 20 million of them in the U.S. Local gardening was encouraged so that people wouldn't run out of food while so many Americans were away at war.
"A lot of people in this area grew up on farms, and so they jumped at the chance to have these huge chunks of land that they could grow their vegetables on," he said.
And they are still jumping at a chance to be here. The Longfellow neighborhood greenspace is still thriving. People rent plots, and there are more than 250 gardeners tending to the land, including Craig. He lives a block away, and says community is the key word.
"Oh my goodness, you would not believe it. People love to walk their dogs, bring their kids over to play. People love to stroll through the garden just to look at the beautiful flowers," he said.
It's withstood threats of redevelopment, pollution, and time.
"My hope is that people can find a little solitude, peacefulness," he said. "It takes those things away from you, the work and the worry. I mean, just sitting here, I feel so peaceful."