Onondaga Master Gardeners beautify Southside Syracuse block with new gardens

Fresh compost, new plants and a morning of volunteer labor changed the 200 block of West Borden Avenue into a more colorful stretch of Southside Syracuse, where front lawns became new gardens and several properties got a visible lift. Homeowner Morgan Williams said the block had not looked this vibrant before, and the change made him feel good about where the street is headed.

The Onondaga Master Gardeners made the work part of their annual Blocks in Bloom effort, gathering Saturday morning to dig, plant and spread compost across the block. Cornell Cooperative Extension of Onondaga County described the event as its 8th annual Blocks in Bloom, a program that has now been running long enough to move from one neighborhood block to another while keeping the same basic goal: turn small patches of ground into something residents can see and use every day.

That local model was copied and adapted from Rochester, where Cornell Cooperative Extension of Monroe County has built a larger Blocks in Bloom program in lower-resourced neighborhoods. Monroe County says its version provides plants, compost, mulch and garden tools at no cost to participating blocks, with more than 29 Master Gardener volunteers helping serve 15 blocks and more than 130 households each year. The Rochester effort has also picked up recognition from the American Horticultural Society, the Garden Club of America and the Seneca Park Zoo Society.

In Syracuse, the biggest hurdle comes before the first shovel goes into the soil. Lewis said the challenge is finding enough homeowners willing to participate, since the gardeners need buy-in from the block before planting can begin. Once the volunteers arrive, though, the project becomes more than landscaping. Neighbors meet neighbors, talk through plant choices and start building a shared stake in the street outside their own doors.

The work also fits Cornell Cooperative Extension of Onondaga County’s broader gardening mission, which covers soils, site improvement, plant selection, plant care, integrated pest management and composting. Its Master Gardener volunteers complete training and then contribute 50 hours of service each year, a requirement that turns Saturday’s block-by-block beautification into part of a much larger civic education effort. On West Borden Avenue, that service translated into something immediate: a South Side block that looks more cared for, and residents who can see the difference right away.