Digging in at the South Park Theatre Site

Joan Kugler

Penn State Master Gardener

On behalf of the Penn State Master Gardeners of Allegheny County, I have the pleasure of sharing BIG NEWS!! After months of meeting and planning, we have a garden design which we can begin to implement now for 2023 and build upon over the next few years. Our new South Park Learning Garden will be growing throughout the Theatre site, an important space in the park’s design dating back nearly 100 years.

Formerly our space was called the South Park Demonstration Garden, located on the corner of Corrigan and McConkey. For over twenty years we invited the public to come enjoy and learn from us as we demonstrated much about what can be grown in home gardens with all the issues of soil, climate, and wildlife. Throughout the growing season, we maintained over a dozen beds which included both perennials and annuals on a field open to deer browsing and other critter visits. We were very successful there with each season culminating in a big event called Garden in the Parks. Then we learned of the opportunity to relocate and make our presence in South Park an even greater experience for the public with closer to year-round interest. We embraced a new beginning!

During this growing season, Master Gardener volunteers fearlessly waged an attack on tenacious invasives and forests of perennial grasses which threatened to take over our new corner of the world. As the summer season ended, our garden stood tamed and groomed, ready for the new beginning about to unfold. Phase One began in October within the fenced area stretching from the Theatre entrance.

When we polled the membership, and then the public, a theme emerged which we felt really captured the Theatre’s atmosphere. We visited the site at various times of day and evening when the site either bustled with performance activity or just quietly waited for the next show. “Under the lights” seemed particularly magical, so following the suggestion of many, we focused our plant choices on whites and silvers and blues to create a Moon Garden.

We then compiled a plant list of trees and shrubs that fit the theme, taking into consideration native and deer-resistant qualities. These will provide an inviting backdrop to a rustic path and bench arrangement with space left to add in perennials, bulbs, and a sprinkling of annuals. We’ll keep the containers going, too. They really dressed up the patio this year.

We planted this first phase in October. Several trees and a variety of shrubs are in place, a plan for the path has been marked and benches have been moved about to invite visitors to relax and enjoy. If we can get the perennials on our list, they will go in next. There will be plenty of tasks to transform this first space! And, YES, Garden in the Parks will return!

The site lends itself well to further garden development. The design team will continue meeting to build a long-range plan addressing garden expansion to additional areas on the site. We wish to include improved parking and pedestrian spaces, dedicated places for educational purposes and space to relax and enjoy nature throughout the seasons.