Newburgh Free Academy West Campus students and members of the Garden Club of Orange and Dutchess Counties joined together on Friday, May 3 for an afternoon of planting in Downing Park.

Students of NFA West campus had the opportunity prior to that day to study the landscape principles of Frederick Law Olmsted, adapting them to today’s community preferences and needs. Downing Park in Newburgh is one of Olmsted’s many credited works in landscape architecture. According to the Olmsted Network, Olmsted designed 100 public parks and recreation grounds during the course of his career.

Joining the students that afternoon was Dr. Linda Rohleder, who with her husband was able to take the students’ design concepts for the entrances and turn them into real landscape designs. She also assisted with plant selections for the entrances.

The plants chosen were low maintenance, native flowering plants and shrubs and were incorporated into each of the students’ landscape designs. The entrances were at the corner of Robinson Avenue and Third Street; Third Street and Carpenter Avenue; and Third and Dubois streets.

All plants were purchased from Devitt’s in New Windsor, and the land preparation was done by local landscaper Lynn Warren. Six hundred new plants were purchased for the project through an awarded grant from the Garden Club of America.

“I think, in any planting when you involve the community members, they’re more invested in the success of it. They want to see it succeed and I think that’s really important, especially for the long-term stewardship of the park,” said Rohleder.

Students and club members were stationed at the entrances and went about digging and planting new plants and shrubs. Each of the entrance areas feature different plants and landscape designs.

Garden club volunteer Martine Najork joined the students and other garden-club members to help in beautifying the park. “It’s great to see these kids wanting to do this and into it and it’s so cool that they were interested in this project and that they’re here all working,” said Najork. “They are the ones that are going to appreciate it most because they live here, and they’re gonna go by it and hopefully see it grow and thrive.”

Last October, NFA West students and the Garden Club joined together for the planting of various bulbs at several Downing Park memorials and the bulbs were anticipated to bloom this spring.