A blooming future for New York’s community gardens

TUCKED AWAY in an unassuming corner of north Brooklyn is a 3,000-square-foot patch of open space. Keap Fourth, at the intersection of Keap and South 4th Streets, is a community garden established in 2013. It’s a well-known hub in this largely Dominican and Puerto Rican neighbourhood, perched at the edge of trendy Williamsburg. The sun is out, and “it’s nearly planting season,” says Crito Thornton, a volunteer who manages the garden, with a grin. After a long winter made worse by covid-19 there are finally signs of life in the daffodils blooming around the garden.