Manhattanville Houses Garden Is a Horticultural Homecoming for Harlem Sister Duo Annette and Arlene Wilcox

If Harlem-born sisters Annette and Arlene Wilcox could liken the aura and energy of the Manhattanville community to flowers, they would label it a vibrant collection of red roses and begonias.

"There are these flowers called knock-out roses, and they're hard workers," Annette told Columbia Neighbors. "Once they're in bloom, they are self-resilient and can't be held down."

"They’re hearty and bloom no matter what," Arlene added.

Within the Manhattanville Houses Garden—an urban oasis the Wilcox sisters started in 2017 as a retirement project—there's a story behind every shrub. The Uptown green space is a continuation of their horticultural family legacy. After moving into the then newly-built Manhattanville Houses during the early '60s, their mother cultivated a sprawling community garden.

The Manhattanville Houses Garden, which sits on West 133rd Street, started with donated daffodils and a dream and has grown into a treasured neighborhood gem. The space—one of over 500 gardens at New York City Housing Authority developments that is open to the public—has received support from NYCHA, Graham Windham, New York Restoration Project, Disney, and flower contributions from a local educational institution.

For the Wilcox sisters, it's a botanical representation of the beauty of the neighborhood. Columbia Neighbors spoke to Annette and Arlene about their passion for gardening, the inspiration behind the Manhattanville Houses Garden, and the importance of green spaces in neighborhoods like Harlem.

When did you discover your passion for horticulture?

Arlene: We love gardening and it’s something that’s always been a part of our family’s story across different generations. Our grandfather was a farmer in Georgia. Our grandmother was a horticulturalist. We spent our summers in the Catskills in the cow pastures and mountains. Our parents moved into Manhattanville Houses when it first opened during the early '60s.

Architecturally—from my perspective—it was one of the best neighborhood developments constructed during that era. We had views of Palisades Amusement Park right across the river. The terraces were nice. With the way the wings of each building were constructed, we had a nice flow of air and light coming from East to West. There was a lot more greenery.

Our mother, Bernella Wilcox, created a garden in front of one of the buildings within the complex and nurtured all of the plants from seed. It was in our mom’s garden that we began to see the creativity within horticulture. She led our local Girl Scout troop and arranged the plants in the shape of the organization’s trefoil logo. Every year she would create beautiful seed designs that were recognized in citywide garden competitions. She stewarded the garden until we moved to Queens in 1969.

Throughout our childhood and adulthood, Annette and I have lived in different neighborhoods in the city. We ended up moving back to Harlem nearly two decades ago. It’s full circle that we’re back in the community leading this project now. We’re really into nature and giving back to this community through the garden is nice.

What inspired you to return to Manhattanville and cultivate this space for the community?

Annette: Graham Windham—a nonprofit organization that supports local youth and their families—has a location Uptown called the Beacon Harlem Community Center. It’s where they lead after-school and summer programs for youth. We live close to the center and we noticed the tree wells in front of the building could use some care because, quite honestly, they were becoming doggy waste stations. We collaborated with a gentleman from the organization to revitalize the tree wells and worked on them for a few summers.

When he moved to Manhattanville Cornerstone Community Center, he saw a need for the beautification of the spaces surrounding the center. The entire space was literally empty. We started with a donation of daffodils from New Yorkers for Parks and kept going from there. When you’re a gardener, you always see the void. There’s always space and room to fill and grow.

Arlene: We’re both retired. Annette used to do textile research and I worked in finance on Wall Street. This garden is our retirement project. Coming back to Manhattanville wasn’t planned, it just happened. When the restoration project Graham Windham was working on expanded, we outlined our vision for the garden.

A lot of the materials and plant beds are donated. We knew we wanted to have the plant boxes form the shape of a flower. We have a gazebo for seniors and other people within the community to get shade. We’re slowly expanding the space. Our home is overflowing from front to back with plants. It’s just what we do. It’s like a big science experiment.

Can you share your thoughts on the importance of having green spaces in communities like Harlem?

Annette: I think it’s important for people to see—especially youth. When Arlene and I were growing up, we had the opportunity to travel to Upstate New York a lot to be around nature.

You realize a lot of kids here don’t have those same experiences. Some people don’t get downtown to see the Conservatory Garden in Central Park. Many of them don’t know what can be grown here. To say, here in Harlem you can have a green space is something the community embraces. With the changes in the community’s landscape and the creation of new developments and homes, community gardens are becoming few and far between.

I also believe it’s vital for people to have spaces like this one for their psyche. With the socioeconomic struggles, food insecurity, the housing crisis, employment insecurity, and a myriad of other issues, the stress levels in Harlem are high.

Coming to a place like this soothes you. It calms you down. It gives you a sense of the cycle of life. People love to see the evolution of the plants over time. I would encourage anybody to get into gardening even if it’s just putting a small plant in your window. It’s a really good psychological and emotional bond for people.

Arlene: Many community gardens focus on growing vegetables or have transformed into food scrap collection sites. We wanted our garden to center flowers and plants. We’ve created this beautiful viewing experience where people have shared they intentionally come down this block to view the garden. We’ve had tulips, begonias, marigolds, and perennials. We’re lucky to have the amount of space we do; it’s a variety of abundance. It does have a soothing effect. Sometimes, people need a little respite.

When we were kids, our mother would send us downstairs to tend to the garden, and we would run around the green space. When we were in the Catskills, we were running free and all we had was our imagination. We’re trying to bring that same energy here. It’s nice to see the local kids come into the garden, see what they gravitate to, and inquire about plants and flowers. I know there are horticultural education programs that exist, but I think that sense of freedom for youth is important.

During [the height of] COVID-19, we saw how much the garden meant to folks in the community. People would stop by and see plants that had been completely down grow back bigger and they were moved by the process.

There’s a book called The Well-Gardened Mind by Sue Stuart Smith about the restorative nature of gardening. People have passed by our garden to talk about their deepest family problems, health issues, and other things they’re dealing with.

There was one woman whose 16-year-old granddaughter passed away. She would come into the garden, eat lunch, and talk to us while we were working. So many people have stopped by to share what’s going on in their lives. There’s something about gardening and green spaces that open people up. You almost feel like a therapist sometimes.

What does the day-to-day look like when it comes to stewarding the garden?

Annette: Typically, during this time of year, weeds are proliferating, and we are trying new techniques to prevent them from crowding out the decorative plants. You want the plants to show at this point. In late October and November, all of the samplings we got from the Central Park Conservancy are in bloom. People often associate gardening with the spring and summer seasons but are amazed at all this color that comes up in the fall. Some of the things we plant are trial and error. We see what grows and what comes up.

When we work on the garden, we need to set a time limit because you get so mesmerized and you’ll look up and hours have passed. We have a bunch of plants that cost a dollar from Lowe's. We divide and spread them throughout the garden. It's where the element of creativity comes in. You learn you have to take care of new plants very vigorously, and as they grow, they require less maintenance.

What’s next on the horizon for the garden?

Arlene: Our dream is to have climbing roses along the wall of the community center. We’d love to incorporate a drip system. Since many plants are new and the sun can be intense, it’s important to keep them hydrated. It’s a lot of work, and we have a small budget. We’re focused on planting hydrangeas and roses. We’re trying to create somewhat of a shade garden that goes from light to deeper, intense colors. That’s the fun part of the process. Every year, we’re bringing in something different.

We also want to get more people involved. It’s just the two of us, and we’re trying to find other people we can mentor and are interested in keeping it going. We’ve connected with a couple who lives a few blocks away and are interested in working in the garden. There’s always work to do. Sometimes, you have to step back and take it all in which is hard to do since it’s something you’ve poured a lot into. There are days when I stand by the fence and admire what we’ve built for the community.