Mandy McManus | Lilburn Community Garden

Mandy McManus

Lilburn Community Garden

Lilburn, Gwinnett County

As the president of the Lilburn Community Garden, co-manager of the Lilburn Farmers Market, and a grower for over 30 years, Mandy McManus understands the powerful impact gardening can have on a community. “What’s really special about the local community garden is all the people that come,” Mandy explained. “We meet neighbors. It's all ranges, all ages, all people coming together, and we all learn from each other. It's a great growing place.”

Twelve years ago, the land where Lilburn Community Garden now thrives was considered unusable for development. With railroad tracks to one side and a stream near the back of the property, the site’s challenges with runoff and space limitations left few options for its use. The city saw an opportunity to use the space for something meaningful for the community. Today, the Lilburn Community Garden is a nonprofit that offers residents a vibrant garden and orchard to grow food, learn, and connect with one another.

Mandy welcomes everyone to the garden and donating food is a vital part of the garden’s mission to provide fresh, local produce to the community. The garden donates about 700 pounds of fresh produce every year to the Lilburn Co-op and other local food pantries. “We're not only donating to the food co-ops, but this is learning for people,” said Mandy, explaining that there are some residents who have never gardened before and find joy in having their own bed. “This is their chance to get in the dirt and learn about growing things.” The garden also hosts events and workshops throughout the spring and summer, furthering its role as a community hub. 

The Lilburn Community Garden also includes an orchard with apples, plums, pawpaws, persimmons, blueberries, figs, serviceberries, and hops. Many of the fruit trees were donated through the Food Well Alliance Orchard Project (formally ALFI, when the garden first received donated fruit trees). The fruit from the orchard is available for garden members to enjoy. 

The garden relies on donations to keep running. They are grateful for the Food Well Community Garden Grant and the orchard donations, which they have received several times. “Food Well has supported our mission from the very beginning,” said Mandy. “They helped us grow from 27 plots to over 58 plots and continually with their funding, we were able to repair and replace older beds.”