1.  What is Lentol Garden? Lentol Garden is foremost a memorial garden dedicated to preserving the memory of Ed Lentol, a Greenpoint community leader. The Bayard Street entrance is home to the memorial portion of the green space, while the remainder of the garden is home to an assortment of trees, woodland shrubs and assortment of annual and perrienial plants. Four raised beds exist for vegetable gardening near the Graham Street gate.
 

2. Who does the garden serve? The garden serves the community and acts as a beautiful oasis of plant life in a desert of concrete.
 
3. What is Friends of Lentol Garden? Friends of Lentol Garden is the volunteer-run organization dedicated to advocacy and care for the space. We are lovers of nature, dedicated gardeners and community members. We work in conjunction with New York City Parks and Recreation, local elected officials and various community organizations to achieve our mission.
 
4. What's the leadership structure like?  While Friends of Lentol Garden has no official garden coordinator, Randy Sandlin and David Shanton have served as the de facto coordinators since founding the garden in the mid-nineties. Currently, Friends of Lentol Garden, with Mr. Sandlin and Mr. Shanton acting as stewards, is free to operate with a certain level of autonomy throughout the space. No specific executive committee exists at the current moment and many of the decisions made within the gates are made on the fly. Administrative and horticultural support is currently provided by Mr. Sandlin's nephew, Isaac Sandlin.
 
5. Do committees exist to accomplish tasks like Funding & Resource Development, Youth Activities, Construction, Communication, etc.? No. Instead, if a member of Friends of Lentol Garden wants to enact a certain program or project, said member is responsible for seeking support within the group and spearheading the effort-in-question.
 
6. Does Friends of Lentol Garden have a sponsor? While Friends of Lentol Garden has a plethora of support from community organizations and elected officials, the only organization that could perhaps be thought of as a bona fide "sponsor" is Partnerships for Parks. Partnerships for Parks contributes tools, seeds, fencing, soil improvements and other materials and services vital to our success. The annual fees paid by our members are managed through Partnerships for Parks.
 
7. Who owns the land that Lentol Garden lives on? The City of New York owns the land while Parks and Recreation ultimately responsible for its care.
 
8. Can I have my own vegetable garden in Lentol Garden? Isn't the soil contaminated? Lentol Garden currently has four raised beds for vegetable gardening with plans for several more before the Spring 2009. Vegetable gardening is a collective effort and the harvest is shared among the active vegetable gardeners. Because of the proximity to the BQE, it is imperative that all vegetables harvested in Lentol Garden be thoroughly washed. Additionally, all vegetables must be grown in raise beds using sterile, stable soil due to the possibility of contamination due to the massive oil spill which took place in the area in the mid twentieth century.
 
9. Has a soil test ever been preformed in Lentol Garden? No. No known soil test has been preformed in Lentol Garden. It is advisable that this task be preformed in the near future.
 
10. Is water available in Lentol Garden? Water is provided by the city through use of the fire hydrant located at the Graham Street gate. Cisterns and rain barrels would make a convenient and sustainable addition to the space. We are currently seeking options for obtaining these additional irrigation options.
 

11. Do I need insurance to work in Lentol Garden? No. Volunteers must sign a NYC release from liability statement before being approved as a volunteer.

12. Are volunteers allowed to further develop the design and landscape of Lentol Garden? It depends. The character and spirit of Lentol Garden must be preserved as a memorial to Edward Lentol, with Randy Sandlin acting as its steward. That said, projects accompanied by a detailed proposal and a concrete time line are considered.
 

13. How do I gather materials for Lentol Garden? We encourage our members to reuse or repurpose existing, free resources as the first step in material procurement. Friends of Lentol Garden is dedicated to becoming a model of sustainability and we feel that environmental education and awareness go hand-in-hand with running a successful green space. That said, members of Friends of Lentol Garden should strive to make materials such as water, mulch and compost within the gates, while relying on the City as a last resort. Other materials can be acquired through our vast network of community organizations, partnerships and elected officials. A good starting point would be to contact the outreach coordinator for North Brooklyn at Partnerships for Parks.

14. Does Lentol Garden have a volunteer work crew? Not really. Dedicated gardeners try to meet on Sundays from 1-4pm March to November. We do hold two mandatory work sessions every year, usually coinciding with It's My Park Day! in the spring and fall. Once members are given a key, they are permitted to enter the garden and work at their own pace and leisure. A white board with specific tasks will be located inside the shed, once it is delivered in December of 2008.

15. Does Lentol Garden have assigned plots? Can I adopt a plot? No. Upon its creation, it was decided that the memorial portion of the garden exist as a cohesive whole, rather than a patchwork. While this layout may not be ideal for many participants, we are always open to new ideas and encourage members to voice their opinions. Lentol Garden is a large space with many possibilities.

16. Where is the storage area for tools and other equipment? The compost area? While its exact location is not yet set in stone, a utility area consisting of a new shed, composting area and vegetable beds and native shade plant garden is planned for 2009. Both a compost pile and brush pile currently exist under the hawthorn tree near the Graham Street gate. The current shed is located under the hawthorn tree closest to the Bayard Street entrance.

17. Do we have a rainproof bulletin board for announcing garden events and messages? No, but we have ordered one.

18. What about land preparation? Who does the tilling? Projects of that magnitude are usually done collectively or at least have approval of the group and stewards.

19. Will the garden be organic? Yes. While Lentol Garden will never be 100% organic for many reasons, adhering to sustainable, organic gardening practices is of the highest priority for Friends of Lentol Garden. We feel that urban community gardening, by virtue, is the front line in the war for saving our planet and we exist specifically as a vehicle for direct action on this front. With that mindset, we strive to model that example for the community in every  possible way with very few exceptions.

20. What's the deal with the existing beds around the Bayard Street entrance? The garden beds grouped around the Bayard Street gate extending south comprise the memorial portion of the garden. These beds are to remain true to their original spirit and character. Digging up existing trees, perennials and bulbs, shifting beds, digging new beds or other major projects are expressly forbidden without proper consent. But don't let that language scare you, we simply want to make it clear that the memorial portion of the garden is to remain cohesive, with flowers blooming throughout the season. We're always open to new ideas and strive to keep the space dynamic and beautiful from year to year.

21. Are there conditions for membership (residence, dues, agreement with rules)? Membership in Friends of Lentol Garden is open to anyone. You can choose whatever role you wish to play once you become a member. The only steadfast requirements are the $20 membership fee, occasional "gate duty" on the weekends and participation in our twice annual park clean-up day. We also have a short set of rules to agree to. That aside, we like to maintain a laid back vibe within the gates and try to keep things as loose as possible.
 

22. How are plots assigned? Because Lentol Garden is a memorial garden, one of our highest priorities is to maintain cohesion among the established beds. Because of this, we do not assign plots. We feel that assigning plots would evolve the mature, existing garden beds into something apart from the original vision. We instead want to foster a sense of camaraderie and community within the gates, so we consider the existing garden spaces a collective effort with room for ideas in every corner. For instance, if you wanted to plant lilies or medicinal herbs, you would simply consult the group, procure your bulbs or seeds or cuttings and make it happen.
  
23. Where does my $20 annual due go once it is collected? Any money acquired by Friends of Lentol Garden, whether through annual dues, donations or grants is deposited in an escrow account sponsored by Partnerships for Parks. It is in turn released to us upon request for specific purposes. The reason for this is to ensure transparency.

24. Does Friends of Lentol Garden do certain things cooperatively (such as turning in soil in the spring, planting cover crops, or composting)? Friends of Lentol Garden is a loose collection of community members with a common goal. For certain projects we will try to "rally the troops" in order to reach certain goals, but the only specifically required cooperative activities are the semi-annual park clean-up days. From there, we encourage folks to take initiative with their own projects and garner volunteer support for completion.

25. How does Friends of Lentol Garden deal with possible vandalism? Unfortunately, Lentol Garden is, and probably always will be, a magnet for potential vandals for myriad reasons. However, one way to counter these acts is simply to maintain a visible presence within the gates and keep the space looking clean and cared for. Additionally, as a volunteer, you should go out of your way to make your presence known if working in the gates. Make sure to introduce yourself to patrons and neighbors and encourage them to sign up to become members of the garden. Common community gardening practices also include planning activities and events to help include members of the community to foster pride in ownership.

26. Do the gardeners meet regularly? If so, how often and for what purposes? Since Friends of Lentol is such an informal group, we have no set meetings aside from the semi-annual park clean-up days. However, volunteers often gather on Sundays to work on projects and meet afterward for coffee or drinks. We also encourage cook-outs, cocktail hours and potlucks to foster camaraderie among the members.

27. Do gardeners share tools, hoses, and other such items? Yes, the small amount of tools we do have are kept in the shed and are for collective use. Always return the tools to the shed once you're finished with them. We also encourage gardeners to bring tools from home and to donate tools for collective use. Tools are expensive, difficult to acquire, easily stolen, yet vital to the act of gardening. Please keep this in mind when using them.

28. How is minimum maintenance (especially weeding) handled? Ideally, there will be enough volunteer support to handle routine maintenance. The reality is, a minimum amount of maintenance will be performed at the semi-annual park clean-up days and the NYC Parks and Recreation Department will provide an additional amount of rudimentary maintenance to the space. Weeding efforts are usually realized by a group of volunteers who dedicate a certain portion of their time to making it happen.

29. Is there a set of written rules which gardeners are expected to uphold? If so, how will they be enforced? Yes, Friends of Lentol Garden does have a short list of guidelines members must adhere to. In addition, The City of New York requires all volunteers to sign its own set of guidelines and a permit. Although there is no possible way for us to enforce rules and we hope it never comes to that, any violation of park rules will be handled by NYC Parks and Recreation and could result in losing your volunteer privileges and key to the gate.