Visit the Demonstration Gardens 

Open to the public, the Demonstration Gardens at Freedom Park and Independence Park are designed, planted and maintained by Mecklenburg Extension Master Gardener Volunteers for the purpose of demonstrating sustainable gardening practices.  These functional public gardens exhibit environmental stewardship and are beautiful too!  Please drop by to visit anytime.  You may see Extension Master Gardener Volunteers practicing gardening skills, performing maintenance tasks, teaching workshops and answering questions. 

Freedom Park Demonstration Garden

Freedom Park Garden










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Freedom Park Demonstration Garden  2435 Cumberland Ave. Charlotte, NC is located near the Mahlon Adams Pavilion at Cumberland and Lilac Avenues, Charlotte NC.
It features shade and sun garden beds with wide grassy paths near the main sidewalks and under the trees in Charlotte's busiest central park.  Tags identify plant names and growing information, making your tour an informative one.  The gardens make good use of undulating berms, providing structure and distinctly different planting strategies with sun or shade exposures.  Visitors easily view the sunny borders, pollinators paradise and shady gardens filled with native shrubs and perennials, vibrant color schemes and a multi-seasonal display. Check what's interesting and in bloom season by season in the gardens. 

Independence Park Demonstration Garden

Independence Park Garden














Independence Park Demonstration Garden 1418 Armory Drive 
Charlotte, NC ​ is located at the Cooperative Extension offices near Central Piedmont Community College, off 7th Street. The Entry Garden, planted in 2010, provides a dramatic plantscape design lending visual interest and color to a 1940s-era cinder block building.  The Sunny Side Garden shows how little space is needed to grow vegetables, which provide seasonal harvests that are distributed to nearby food pantries.   Surrounded by Independence Park, which features large fields, a playground and tennis courts, the Demonstration Garden provides a fitting example of how well sustainable design can serve commercial buildings.