Westminster Child Center

Community Garden – Los Angeles

The Westminster Child Center garden is the one that started it all; a one-time, 3500 square foot lawn of water-guzzling, invasive plants that we were challenged to convert into habitat for the Eagle Rock Presbyterian Church and surrounding community. This daunting task was our greatest teacher.

The existing site was a long-neglected matrix of invasive grasses and plants that had been establishing themselves since a fire took down the old church entrance 50 years ago. The earth was compacted and criss-crossed with brick paths. But with the combined efforts of our dedicated church & school volunteers, our indigenous plant educators Nicholas Hummingbird, Katherine Pakradouni, and the partnership of Angel City Lumber, Plant Material, and TerremotoLA , the garden has become a resilient and proud urban wild space.

The garden now showcases some of Southern California’s most iconic indigenous plants, and offers home to many species of wildlife. While the garden experiences all the same variables any open space does in an urban area, it continues to offer education in native plant horticulture, Indigenous plant uses, and prolific habitat, not to mention respite for dog-walkers and families looking for a breath of natural beauty.