South End Lower Roxbury Open Space Land Trust

It is a member of the American Community Gardening Association, the Boston Natural Areas Network, the Land Trust Alliance, and a partnering grantee of the New England Grassroots Environment Fund.

The South End Lower Roxbury Open Space Land Trust works to acquire, own, improve, and maintain open space for community gardening and pocket parks in the South End and Lower Roxbury neighborhoods of Boston for the public benefit in perpetuity.

The legal incorporation as a non-profit organization with an elected board composed of neighbors created an entity that was able to partner with The Trust for Public Land to purchase the range of properties from a variety of owners, and set in place a process to use and care for the gardens in perpetuity.

In July 2012, after a year of joint planning, SELROSLT voted to merge into Boston Natural Areas Network (BNAN).

Members may vote at an annual meeting, participate on committees, and are required to maintain their plot in a clean and productive state.

Located in two diverse urban neighborhoods, a wide variety of food, flowers and plant material is grown based somewhat on ethnicity, ancestry, or if a gardener is a recent immigrant, their home country.

Funds have been used to provide water systems, decontaminate soils, to install consistent iron fencing and granite curbing, and to build gazebo community spaces in the local gardens.

The individual community gardens send plot fees to the Land Trust to pay liability insurance and water service.