A couple dozen individuals gathered on Saturday, armed with shovels, gloves, newspapers and mulch, to promote and produce a garden of the 21st century.
This year’s Leadership Manhattan Beach class will install a $20,000 water-conserving, sustainable garden, which includes circular pathways, climate-appropriate plants and seating in front of the U.S. Post Office on 15th Street and Valley Drive.
Volunteers placed old newspapers on the soil and covered them with mulch to prevent weed growth. The mulch will sit for about a month and a half, after which the group will continue building the garden by installing drought-tolerant, water-friendly plants.
“(We’re) learning how to work together and how to develop our own skills, how to flex from where we’re most comfortable to doing the thing that’s uncomfortable, so that we can accomplish great things together,” said Dave Harris, member of the leadership class and board member of the Manhattan Beach Botanical Garden.
The project will be supported by the organization’s fundraising efforts. None of the city’s general fund money will be used.
“The main reason for doing this is to create a demonstration so that people can do a lot of these same things in their own yards,” Harris said, adding that California is in a water crisis and people should learn to conserve water where they can.
