New Garden Aimed at Introducing Families to Rich Textures

Susan Renard doesn't see the new sensory garden at in Clayton for what it is today. Instead, she sees it for what it will be in three years.

"It's just a work in progress," said Renard, the city's superintendent of parks, during a Tuesday celebration of the garden's near-completion.

The space featuring herbs, flowers, trees, winding stone paths and a waterfall. She proposed putting the garden where a playground once stood instead of covering the area with grass. A visit to the Chicago Botanic Garden last summer inspired the idea.

The garden is intended to complement . That facility is designed to accommodate all children, including those with disabilities. One function of the garden is to collect rain runoff from the play area.

Renard envisions parents exploring the garden with their kids. Plants will eventually be labeled so that visitors can learn about them and experience them through senses such as touch and smell. They will be able to feel the soft lamb's ear plant and and the coarse atlas cedar, she said. Herbs such as oregano, rosemary and chives already are accompanied by printed tags that describe the plant and tell how it's used in cooking.

"Cilantro has a very pungent odor and is widely used in Mexican, Caribbean and Asian cooking," the yellow tag for the plant states. "The seeds of this plant are called coriander and are used as a spice when crushed."

Raised stone flower beds are one of the features meant to cater to all visitors. The stone can serve as a bench, and the height of the beds allows people who use a wheelchair to reach out and touch the plants.

A wire tunnel will eventually be covered in vines, creating a cool and shaded space, Renard said. She points to her construction crew that includes parks supervisor Tim Hale, Frank Thomas and Jim Hicks as a major component of the project. They installed the bricks, garden bed walls and tunnel, among other work.

"I love this garden," said Patty DeForrest, Clayton's parks and recreation director. "It was really the brainchild of Susan Renard." The garden began as a path in the fall, and plants went in this spring.

Representatives of the Clayton High School Green Club and the Clayton Century Foundation also received recognition Tuesday for their sponsorship of . Just under 500 people participated in the event, which raised $7,000, said Nicole Miller, who chaired the run and serves as physical education (P.E.) and health coordinator for the .

Miller said organizers plan to work more closely with businesses neighboring Shaw Park at next year's race. Her goal is to attract past participants and new ones to future runs, and to get 2,013 participants by the time the .

"If they came the first time, I think it will just get better and better," Miller said.

Clayton High seniors Elizabeth Sikora and Monica Gierada, both 18, served as co-presidents of the school's Green Club. The group's goals include making the school more environmentally friendly and performing service projects, such as clearing out honeysuckle and other invasive species from the forest at .

The organization meets twice a month before the start of the school day, Sikora said. It has between 20 and 25 regular members and many more in its Facebook group.

The two participated in a check presentation Wednesday. The $2,800 given to the group from the 5K run will benefit Ecotrust. The organization works to "inspire fresh thinking that creates economic opportunity, social equity and environmental well-being," its website states.

They worked with the P.E. department to develop the run.

"It exceeded my expectations," Sikora said about the event.

"We wouldn't have been able to do it on our own," Gierada added.

The two plan to participate in environmental efforts after they graduate Thursday: Sikora plans to join the EcoAction student group at Georgetown University and wants to minor in environmental science, while Gierada plans to join an environmental club at the University of Michigan.

The remaining $4,200 raised at the run will benefit the Century Foundation, which provides financial support to civic initiatives and is bringing attention to the city's upcoming 100th anniversary.

Look for more photos from the garden and the celebration in Thursday's installment of View Finder.