This is a small but very beautiful and charming community garden made up of over 20 plots belonging…read moreto individuals in the area who want to have a space for their gardening pursuits. It's open to the public but please only look and don't pick the flowers or vegetables that the gardeners work so hard to grow. It's located behind the playground at the Decatur Rec Center and immediately next to the tennis courts behind the building as well. If you need a small slice of nature amidst the hustle and bustle of an urban center, then you'll be rewarded by beautiful flowers, vegetables, and other plants to sooth your inner soul. Each plot is rented by a different person, so there's quite a variety of plants to check out. It's quite an education to learn more about how veggies are grown. Just ask a gardener if you see one tending to their plot! If you're interested in renting a plot, then walk into the Decatur Rec Center and ask the front desk for details! The garden is open all year but the winter is when many people let their plots rest before the early spring time starts in March for the new round of more robust plantings.

This is a nice community garden in Decatur (Oakview @ McDonough) that has multiple small garden…read moreplots, urban chickens, plants for sale, and mulch. We often will stop here while walking through Oakhurst as it is such a peaceful environment. I love to browse the individual garden plots to see what's growing, or find a seat under a shade tree for a few. I also love to see neighborhood kids learning about the basics of gardening in such a pleasant environment - signs are posted with info on getting involved. Check it out and support if you are able.

I bring my boys here quite often. It's a fairyland. It's so special. We bring treats for the…read morechickens. Search for the snake - the ones that eat the frogs. We look at the fish. Check out the outside library. Look at the new plants. They play in the sandbox and in the "playhouse" And stay far away from the bees. It's a magical place - that brings serenity and harmony. A simple community that feels like the way that life should be.

What a special place! This is a fantastic community garden located in the heart of downtown…read moreNorcross. The gardens are in beautiful, stone, raised beds and are rented yearly by community members. Community members tend to their own gardens, as well as the common spaces throughout the year. A number of events are held in the garden for the community, including cooking demonstrations (using the garden's cleaning station, grill, and green egg), gardening lessons, and celebrations. The garden includes a children's garden, where kids can enjoy digging in the dirt, too. This is a beautiful spot for frequent visits, as the gardens frequently change throughout the year.

Excellent little hidden nature preserve in the heart of Kirkwood. And it is definitely hidden,…read moreexcept from Google Maps and Atlanta magazine, which has an article on city parks. Following the street address will lead you to a short dead end road (Dixie). From here, the preserve is accessed at the very end and is unmarked until you get close, where you'll see a wildlife sanctuary sign as well as the standard Atlanta city park rules sign. There is limited parking here. However, the preserve can be accessed from several other streets and one large parking lot located behind the Dekalb Human Services Complex at the SW intersection of Warren St. and Hosea Williams Dr. Look for the parking lot access road off the one-way street coming from Warren St. It's behind the Dekalb Community Services Kirkwood Center building. That parking lot accesses a trail into a separate section of the preserve. The trail connects to the main property. You can also access the preserve at a number of trail points on various streets surrounding the preserve but you'll have to park on the street. Google maps is a pretty accurate guide. I'd go for the parking lot or Dixie St. Now that you're on the property, you'll find a community garden, a picnic area and a bunch of interconnected trails that go off into the property. The garden and picnic area are located near the Dixie St entrance. There's not much else here except walking paths, tree, mosquitoes and unfortunately, still a lot of garbage (I understand the garbage situation is getting better through efforts by the city and community). The trails are a nice walk but I think it might be better during colder months when it isn't so muggy and the bugs aren't so plentiful. Mind you, it rained heavily the day before I came here, so that didn't help.

I almost don't want to review this and let the word out. So SHHHHHHHH, keep this a secret mmmkay…read moreyelpers? :) I recently discovered Kirkwood Urban Forest and Community Garden, and couldn't believe this tiny green oasis existed hidden just a short walk from my house! What Kirkwood has done with this property, transforming a once nasty dumping ground into a tiny secret garden and lovely forest with trails and a creek is nothing short of miraculous. There is a raised garden with labels on all the plants, a frog pond, and then the park descends onto thick woods with trails and wood swings and mulch paths. At the top of the hill is a small but adequate grassy field, perfect for tossing a ball with the fido. The only thing that I did not enjoy, is the home directly in front of the garden has several large dogs that are kept in a very small pen, who bark their heads off at anyone or anything. I feel really bad for them, to be penned up like that. And I think it may keep dog lovers a little cautious, since it does seem to upset my beasts. . .but then wind seems to upset my beasts, so I can't really get too judgy. I only ask that users pick up after your dog. Leaving a steaming pile in the middle of the trail is not cool!

If you love flowers and plants but can kill one just by looking in its direction *raises hand in…read moreshame* the Metro Atlanta Urban Farm (MAUF) can give you a greener tomorrow. They've been turning brown thumbs green since 2009 at their operation in College Park on the MARTA line between the East Point and College Park stations. I'd passed by before without paying attention but I wish I'd known about them before today's MLK Day service project. During our orientation, Mr. Wilson explained that they teach people in the community how to grow their own food. Adults and children can get hands-on experience at MAUF that they can use to cultivate organic gardens of their own. They learn which vegetables to plant in each season and how to nourish the soil. They also get information about cooking and preserving/canning their produce. MAUF is focused on self-sufficiency and farming of high quality produce. Everything they grow is non-GMO and is free of hormones, synthetic pesticides and fertilizer and the majority of what they plant are heirloom seeds. They have a well onsite and they're in the process of going off the grid with solar power. They sell fresh, in-season fruits and vegetables to the public, including to several of the restaurants in the area. Low-income EBT and food stamp recipients can buy $20 worth of produce for $10 through their 2-for-1 discount program. I encourage everyone to support this organization's work to educate people in the Atlanta community and help them eat nutritiously. Today we pulled weeds inside the hoop houses, tended the compost pile and stained tables in furtherance of their mission. I plan to return (when it warms up) to learn how to grow some of my favorite veggies at home! To learn more about the Metro Atlanta Urban Farm, volunteer or make a tax deductible donation, please visit http://themetroatlantaurbanfarm.com.

If you are looking for God, this is a very good place to find Him! The church is small, extremely…read morediverse, and super-friendly. I guess you would call it "evangelical" but politics are explicitly banned (I say that because many churches seem to preach politics). The music is modern and the preaching is "expository" i.e. Bible-based. They do treat the Bible seriously as the Word of God. Right now we do not have anyone in the church who calls himself "pastor" -- the church is elder-led, I guess you'd say. If you have something to say, or want to do something, people will listen to you! Drop-ins are welcomed -- just show up at 10:30 any Sunday when we have a pre-service breakfast right in the sanctuary. Or come at 11 if you don't want to talk to anyone, lol. Dress is casual. This is a small church on purpose. If we reach 100 members, the church constitution requires us to split. So if you have never tried a small church, you might come see what it's about. There are quite a few smaller children (under 12) and we do have a program for them downstairs, although I think they call it Children's Church instead of Sunday School. I love this church btw.

It's rare to find such a welcoming and friendly group of people, let alone people at a church. But…read moremy wife and I felt like a part of the group from the moment we stepped into Midtown Church. On our first visit Todd, the pastor there, invited us to meet him and his wife for coffee later that week. And I don't recall a single person there who didn't welcome us and/or come over to chat a bit - though this is a smaller church (bout 30 to 40 people), so I guess that's not too unrealistic. My wife and I tried many churches around the midtown area, all of which seemed to focus on image. We never met the same person twice, never had any face time with anyone who called themselves a pastor. One church we attended for over 6 months and I can still say the same. We both plan to attend Midtown Church again. It doesn't have the image of some of the other churches in town, but it has the community I've always looked for in a church.