The 2020 Alley Garden Awards are now complete. A record number of 930 Gardens were awarded this year!
View the map of awarded gardens
Deter crime by gardening!
Planting a few perennials here and potting some plants there can make a huge difference in improving the aesthetics and safety of your home. In 1992, the Macalester-Groveland Community Council agreed that community beautification deters crime. In response, we started the Alley Garden Awards. Prepare your alleyside property in time for the Alley Garden Awards and help prevent garage burglaries and other crimes facilitated by unkempt property.
To qualify for an Alley Garden Award, the garden must meet all of the following requirements:
- The property must have an easily recognizable house number on the garage (or elsewhere in the alley if there is no garage).
- The garden must be along the alley and on the alley side of any fence.
- The alley garden must be well-maintained along the entire property line, i.e., minimal weeds, litter, etc.
- The garden meets the definition of garden as an area of land (which can also be contained within pots) used for the cultivation of flowers, vegetables, herbs, or fruit.
Read on with these resources!
Guide to Alley Garden Awards Criteria
Saint Paul Magazine’s feature of the Alley Garden Awards Program (c. 2017)
Was your garden missed during the judging period? Let us know! Send an email or give us a call. Be sure to include your name and address with your message.
Please allow our judges the full judging period – it take a lot of time to walk the alleys of Mac-Grove!
2019 Award Recipients
There were 798 awarded alley gardens in the Macalester-Groveland neighborhood in 2019!