The Garden Boys of Kinloch

If you drive on Hanley Road through Kinloch, you can’t help but notice the large vegetable garden that sprawls over several acres near Bradfield Drive. This tapestry of individual plots rests on land owned by Lambert Airport, but it has been meticulous maintained for decades by a group of locals who call themselves the Garden Boys.

Most are retired, and all produce a bounty of crops despite working directly under a very noisy flight path. Even in the winter months, the Boys meet at the site to play dominos and share a home-cooked meal, often inside the wooden shack they built themselves. They also donate much of the food they grow to needy families.

Photographer Deborah Weinstein has been documenting the group for several years and recently shared some of her photos with the St. Louis Beacon, for an article on how the NorthPark development was trying to bully the Garden Boys off of land that NorthPark doesn’t actually own. Nice.

Weinstein also produced a great audio/photo essay for CNN on the Garden Boys, who amazingly carry in all their own water! It’s a neat glimpse at a little NoCo slice of life. Don’t miss it!

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