Garden Ministry is a ministry supported by the community at St. Joseph  Catholic Parish. Our ministry is devoted to creating outdoor prayer venues throughout the grounds of the parish campus. These prayer venues encourage parishioners to enjoy the beauty and wonder of God’s creations in nature while in prayer, meditation, or reflection.

The St. Francis of Assisi Garden is designed with an emphasis on the balance of beauty and nature. This garden is one of the larger gardens on the church grounds, and thus, there is more space to add interest and natural elegance. Like all the gardens, this garden has a strong seasonal interest.

The Praying Hands Garden is aptly named after the praying hands birdbath nestled in the garden with variegated ivy and creeping sedum.  This birdbath is perfect for hummingbirds and if you look closely, you just might see one!  This garden embraces the front doors of the church and it welcomes those on their daily or weekly pilgrimage of prayer and community worship. 



 

The Stained-Glass Garden is the garden along the sidewalk at the front of the church where the stained-glass windows are located.  Hostas of various varieties, sizes, and shades are the dominant plants and the focal point, along with the nestling of wispy ferns and rush.

The Blessed Virgin Mary Grotto is a wonderful mixed garden of conifers, trees, shrubs, rocks, interesting seed heads, climbing vines, and religious statutes. This garden area has something for everyone! The Blessed Virgin Mary statue is framed by an arched trellis which unifies the blue clematises that bloom in the spring and the sweet white autumn clematis climbing on the opposite side. In September, the fragrance of the sweet autumn clematis encompasses the area of the Blessed Virgin Mary as if she were present in the Grotto. Many varieties of hosta surround the Blessed Virgin Mary statue with hues of green and yellow. Summer arrives in the Grotto with orange daylilies and peach-colored shrub roses.  


 

This garden is unique to St. Joseph’s parish as it is a garden dedicated solely to the rosary. This garden has five garden trellises and each one is handcrafted by a metal-liturgical artist that represents the artist’s interpretation of the five Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary. The Rosary Garden is filled with color and interest from spring into winter, and is, by far, the most popular garden on the church’s campus.

No garden would be complete without a birdbath. The Bird Bath Garden design is similar to an old-fashioned cottage garden complete with daisies, roses, hosta, and yes, a birdbath. Nothing speaks more to the elements of a garden than a bird taking a bath or cooling itself in water. Spring in this garden comes quietly with the fragrance of hyacinths. Variegated irises add beauty and vertical interest along with their purple grape scent.

The Ten Commandments Garden is an integral part of the prayer venues throughout the church gardens.  This garden was designed to encourage a passerby to pause and reflect on the Ten Commandments & their importance in our daily lives. The beauty of the garden itself encourages the viewer to slow down and study the plants that are in bloom. A stone tablet is mounted on a lectern, numbered I-X, and wrapped in clematis. Our journey begins with the Ten Commandments: “I am the Lord your God” This garden reminds us of our Judeo-Catholic history and the rules of personal conduct and morality.

This garden is dedicated to St. Michael the Archangel. Symbolism abounds in this garden as its design is interwoven with the prayer of this Archangel. The prayer to Saint Michael invokes images of Michael fighting evils in the world including Satan. The fires of hell are represented by plants that turn a vibrant red in the Fall. Virginia Creeper, a close relative to Boston ivy, covers a trellis directly behind the statue of St. Michael.