John Rudy County Park
Demonstration Gardens

History of the gardens

The Gardens at John Rudy County Park began in 1999 to showcase Penn State's Gardener Selects Trials.   Flowering annuals, perennials, vegetables and woody plants were selected by Penn State and grown in the garden to determine how well they grow under local conditions throughout the state. The Gardener Selects program ended in 2006 and the gardens were redesigned, The Demonstration Gardens have grown to two-thirds of an acre. Today they include a thriving vegetable garden, a raised herb garden, perennial and annual beds and even a compost demonstration site garden. There are water gardens and container gardens.

Vegetable Growing - a Collaboration with York County Probation Department

The vegetable garden is a partnership between the York County Probation Department and the Penn State Extension Master Gardeners. Produce from the garden is donated to York County Food Bank. A new record 5538 pounds of fruit and vegetables were harvested and delivered to Food Bank during the 2007 growing season.  There were 12 varieties of vegetables that produced over 100 lbs., with tomatoes leading the way at 1,051 lbs.  In addition,  red raspberries were the leading fruit crop at 140 lbs.

Display Beds

There are 38 display beds at the Demonstration Gardens. During the growing season brochures are available at the gardens that describe the display bed's current contents. The brochures and plant labels enable you to take a self-guided tour of the garden.

Beds 1 and 2 contain annuals. These plants complete the their life cycle in one season. The plants are All American Selections. All American Selections was founded in 1932 to create a way for home gardeners to learn which new varieties were truly improved.

Bed 3 contains woody ornamentals.

Bed 4 is the 4-H Wildlife Club Native Plants garden.

Bed 5 shows off iris. These plants are one of the earliest blooming and easiest perennials to grow.

Bed 6 is native plants. Native plants have adapted to local conditions, are easy to grow and create wildlife habitats.

Bed 7 is used to showcase Perennial Plants of the Year. These plants are chosen by the Perennial Plant Association.

Beds 8 and 9 are plants that attract butterflies.

Beds 10 - 16 and 18 - 39 are vegetables you can grow in your garden.

Beds 17, 25, 27 and 33 through 38 are our fruit displays. They contain strawberries, cantaloupes, watermelons, raspberries, blackberries, grapes and apples.

Bed 22 is a raised bed. Raised bed gardens can be an asset in any location, but are particularly valuable to the elderly or physically challenged person.

Bed 23 is a raised herb bed. Most herbs can be grown successfully with a minimum of effort.

Beds 19 though 32 are All American Selections.

Compost Park and Native Grass demonstration

Here at John Rudy County Park the Master Composters invite you to learn how to recycle yard wastes by composting. The Compost Park was originally on display at the Springettsbury Township Park, 1501 Mount Zion Road, York, Pennsylvania. Funding was provided by Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. The Compost Park moved here to the Demonstration Gardens at the park in the fall of 2006. This was done for a variety of reasons. Much of the waste from the gardens can be incorporated into the different composting systems. The completed compost material can now be used to improve the soil for the garden beds.

An Open House is held each year in August

The Open House this year is Saturday, August 2nd.

Educational tours of the Demonstration Gardens are available through Penn State Master Gardeners, 112 Pleasant Acres Road, York, PA 17402. E-mail Master Gardener
Phone: (717) 840-7408

Directions:

From York, take Rt 30 East to the Mt Zion Road exit. Continue North on Mt. Zion Road/Rt 24 to the "T" in the road. Turn right, After crossing the creek. make an immediate left onto the Mundis Race Road. The garden is on your right, just past the park entrance.

The Demonstration Gardens are a joint venture of the Penn State Extention Master Gardeners,
the York County Department of Parks and Recreation
and the York County Probation Department.