Plant a flower, pick up some trash.
Every little bit counts as Flower Bed-Stuy 2021 kicks off this Saturday with its 11th annual event.
Starting in the morning of May 1, residents and block associations of Bed-Stuy are invited to come out and join their neighbors for the first spring block clean-up of the year.
The event is run by the Bridge Street Development Corporation and Bed-Stuy Works Alliance.
The corporation invites Bed-Stuy neighbors to plant some flowers in their own yards, or around a tree. Sweep the sidewalk or pick up some trash. And talk to your neighbors and make new friends.
"Flower Bed-Stuy is a fun and exciting way to bring long-standing neighbors together, to meet new residents, and to contribute to the ongoing remediation and maintenance efforts of the Bedford-Stuyvesant community," the corporation said.
It said last year almost 30 block associations participated in a socially-distanced version of the annual event.
Block associations that registered online by last Sunday will each get Flower Bed Stuy T-Shirts, gardening tools, a water canister, custom "Curb Your Dog" signs, and breakfast to-go.
As of Friday morning, the corporation said 33 block associations had signed up to take part in Flower Bed-Stuy 2020, representing hundreds of Bed-Stuy tenants and homeowners.
Bridge Street Development Corporation Program Associate Shaquoya Pollock said she'd been receiving inquiries about this event since the beginning of the year.
She said, this year, the corporation was distributing one of her personal favorite flowers: Begonias.
"This bright and beautiful annual always gives gardens and sidewalks a beautiful appearance," Pollock said.
Not sure what you might plant? In Bed-Stuy, it's good to do a mix of perennials and annuals, Patch reported.
Start by putting in some plants that will rarely need replanting, like evergreens, sweet potatoes, hydrangeas. Then put in some flowers that stay in bloom for longer periods, but will need to be replanted yearly, like marigolds or petunias.
If you're really going for it this year, you and your neighbors have until June 1 to enter the Brooklyn Botanical Garden's 2021 Greenest Block in Brooklyn competition.
The competition has a range of different categories to enter, all around how beautiful and creative you can make your window boxes.
In 2019, the Stuyvesant Avenue Block Association gained 2nd place in the Residential category of the competition for its beautification of Stuyvesant Avenue between Bainbridge and Chauncey Streets, while the 400 Bainbridge Street Block Association took third.
