Durham, N.C. – In honor of one of Durham’s original neighborhood gardeners, we are excited to invite the community to participate in the new Hattie Meadows Gardening School at the Stanford L. Warren Branch Library in the new year. This free community learning project from the Extension, Durham County Library, and the Sarah P. Duke Gardens will have classes held monthly where residents can learn from local teachers and experts all about how to help your garden grow.

Classes will take place from January through June at Stanford L. Warren, located at 1201 Fayetteville Street. Sessions will explore a variety of topics, including soil health, seed starting, garden design, native plants, and all things vegetables.

“We're so pleased to work with such phenomenal partners to put together this gardening school for Durham County residents,” said Durham Extension Horticulturalist Ashley Troth. “It was important for all of the partners that we covered topics that would appeal to beginner and experienced gardeners alike, and that the sessions had a little something for everyone, from ornamental to edible. It's especially exciting to be able to name this after beloved Durham gardener Hattie Meadows and to share her legacy with current residents.”

After 30 years managing the home office cafeteria at North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Co., Year-round Garden Club member Meadows spent time every day in her garden. Her 60-foot by 40-foot backyard garden spread joy throughout Durham’s Linwood Avenue community with its “abundance of color and fragrance … accomplished by diligent care,” according to an April 4, 1953, article in the Durham Sun.

“The Gardening School at Stanford L. Warren is rooted in our commitment to community, education, and sustainability,” said Stanford L. Warren Branch Manager Larry Daniels. “By transforming our library grounds into a Gardening classroom, we’re not just planting vegetables – we’re cultivating knowledge, connection, and care. This space allows neighbors to learn together, grow together, and rediscover the joy of nurturing the earth. It’s a living classroom where gardening becomes a gateway to lifelong learning and community resilience.”

It was described in the article as “one of the most natural, compact and well-planned gardens we’ve seen in some time.” The garden gate, decorated by pink and white climbing roses, led to a rock garden, a circular pond with several species of fish and a neatly cultivated mixed border around colorfully meandering beds of annuals and perennials including over 60 varieties of roses, lemon and red bud trees, azaleas and more. The Year-Round Garden Club was part of the N.C. Federation of Garden Clubs, a black-led consortium of garden clubs, many of which are still active today in building community through spreading knowledge and joy of gardening.

Registration is highly recommended for all sessions as space is limited. Classes are open for registration for the first five sessions. Click on the class titles below for more details on each class as well as registration information. Classes for April, May, and June will be announced soon and posted on the Extension’s Eventbrite page here.

• The Dirt on Soil, Saturday, January 10, 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
  • Presented by Ashley Troth, PhD, Horticulture Agent, Durham County Cooperative Extension
• Seed Starting, Saturday, January 24, 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
  • Presented by Marcia Kirinus, Extension Master Gardener volunteer, Durham County
• Design Thinking, Saturday, February 14, 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
  • Presented by Stefan Bloodworth, Owner and Principal Designer at S3 design and former curator of the Blomquist Garden of Native Plants at Sarah P. Duke Gardens
• Garden Design with Native Plants, Saturday, February 28, 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
  • Presented by Sheldon Galloway, Owner and Head of Operations at Garden Environments
• Vegetable Gardening Symposium, Saturday, March 14, 9:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
  • For this special half-day symposium, we’ll feature three speakers with a little something for everyone, from beginner to experienced veggie grower. Click above to register for the full symposium.

“Duke Gardens is delighted to be collaborating to provide this free learning opportunity to gardeners of all experience levels,” said Kavanah Anderson, Sarah P. Duke Gardens Director of Learning and Community Engagement. “Through this kind of partnership, we are practicing the kind of collaboration that makes a garden thrive. In the same way a plant requires pollinators to be fruitful and soil microbes to provide healthy conditions for growth, learning from each other in community is a fertile context to learn about gardening.”

The gardening school was made possible by grant funding from the Durham Library Foundation.

To learn more about the Hattie Meadows Gardening School click here or contact Troth at ashley_troth@ncsu.edu or 919-560-7290.

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