In Search Of An Urban Oasis: Nature in the city

While PVD is far from a concrete jungle, we do have our fair share of triple-deckers and cramped quarters. Tree-lined sidewalks are in no shortage, despite what neighborhood you’re in, but that doesn’t mean that it can’t feel like a metropolitan maze sometimes. This is when we need to remind ourselves that the creative capital is sprinkled with serene greenery and scenic strolls, only seen by those with a keen eye.
Our first stop is a hidden gem nestled behind the headquarters of the Providence Preservation Society (PPS). The Shakespeare’s Head Building on Meeting Street has recently been in the news when the PPS admitted to not being able to sustain it financially and sought to sell it. The sale, however, was paused when dated documents revealed a darker history behind the property. Built in 1772 by John Carter, he used it to house a printing press for PVD’s first newspaper, The Providence Gazette, until 1793. It turns out that the Carter family kept three enslaved African-Americans working at the house. Ingow and her daughter Fanny were believed to serve the family by preparing food, cleaning, washing laundry and caring for the children. An enslaved man named Primus King was an apprenticed laborer in the printing press.

This murky past has put the sale of the property on hold as the PPS considers how to move forward, while still showing respect to what is already declared a historic landmark. The real reason for our stop here, however, is the massive, well-maintained garden hugging the rear of the house in an enveloping L-shape. This covert green oasis is free and open to the public during daylight hours, all year long.
Just past the metal gate entrance, a plethora of plants wrap around the observer, offering colors and sights that capture the eye and command closer inspection. Bartlett Pear trees and Amur Cork’s dot five separate gardens for visitors to peruse as they travel up stone stairs and across pebble strewn paths. Lilac shrubs and hydrangeas add vibrant sparks of color. The budding botanist in all of us will also spot iris, fern and rose.

Admittedly, this may not be the ideal retreat during winter months, but keep this place in mind due spring. For something more weather-appropriate it’s necessary to circle back to the south side of the city, to the iconic Roger Williams Park. Tucked away in these serene surroundings is the Botanical Center. For a mere five dollars visitors can meander to their heart’s content amid a series of gorgeous green houses, surrounded by stunning herbaceous life at every turn. A Koi pond, numerous water fountains and ample seating areas invite the loiterer to linger and offer ideal table space for an impromptu work-from-home alternative.

Closer to the Elmwood Avenue entrance of the Park, the Rose Garden and the Japanese Garden are not to be missed, offering a myriad of marvels year-round whether you have a green thumb or not.
On the same topic of “organic workspaces,” it’s worth mentioning that RISD and Brown University have designed much of their overlapping campus with this natural aesthetic in mind. The semi-clandestine spots are best discovered unpredictably, during private strolls across the east side, but I can point you towards a few. Where Cushing and Brown Streets meet, there is a pristine garden with seating that is positioned quietly just far enough away from the buzz of campus. Numerous other discrete spots lie along Brown’s pedestrian path known as “the Walk,” slicing from Waterman to Angell Streets as well.
Closer to our urban core, the Southside Community Land Trust (SCLT) has made great strides by serving people in food deserts. “The SCLT owns or directly manages 21 community gardens in Providence, Pawtucket and Central Falls,” according to their website, “and partners with schools, housing and community organizations to manage another 37. SCLT was founded in 1981 when residents of South Providence and newly arrived Hmong refugees worked with Brown University graduates to grow culturally familiar, nutritious food. With the backing of a local philanthropist, they bought an abandoned lot in South Providence, cleared it of debris and created the area’s first community garden.”

Their website continues, “The oldest urban farm in Rhode Island, City Farm, is located at 168 West Clifford Street in South Providence. City Farm staff grow and sell chemical-free produce all season long, creating a revenue stream for SCLT. At the farm, hundreds of youth, volunteers and beginning farmers learn about planting, growing and harvesting food. Over the past three decades neighborhood children have learned about plant cycles and how food is grown there, and adults have benefited from gardening workshops and farm apprenticeships. City Farm produce is sold at weekly farmers markets and to area restaurants featuring hyper-local and organic vegetables, fruit and herbs.”

Providence is truly a prism of a city. When the lens of the viewer changes, so does the setting. Whatever it is we are looking for, it’s all within walking distance in PVD. Take advantage of the greenery offered. While it may not be blatant, or “post worthy,” it does remind us to breathe every once in a while. We may need that reminder over the course of the next four years. •

Photo: Lovers bridge at Roger Williams Park. Gina Montecalvo.