Howard County has a new community garden, the county’s fourth and its first located outside of Columbia on Old Montgomery Road.
Howard County Executive Calvin Ball was joined by Nick Mooneyhan, director of Howard County’s Department of Recreation & Parks; the Columbia Gardeners; the Community Action Council of Howard County, MD Inc. (CAC); and community members for the official opening of the “Community Garden at Old Montgomery Road” in Ellicott City. The garden has 126 plots, aiming to expand access to fresh food for people in the area.
“Community gardens are about so much more than growing food … they’re about growing community,” Ball said. “The opening of our new Community Garden on Old Montgomery Road gives residents – whether a novice gardener or an expert, a place where they can come together, cultivate friendships, sharing knowledge, and enjoy the great outdoors, all while growing their own nutritious, fresh, and affordable foods.”
The garden is located on Old Montgomery Road, just north of the MD 100 overpass and Maryland School for the Deaf. It is a 16.22-acre community space with 126 standard-size garden plots. Howard County residents can grow fresh produce and flowers, and the space includes a parking lot and storage area.
“The foundations of communities are anchored through access to parks, open spaces, and community gardens,” Monneyhan said. “They create welcoming places where residents can gather, learn, and grow together. We are excited to expand these opportunities to Elkridge and Ellicott City residents while continuing to make gardening accessible through inclusive programming and partnerships.”
Of the 126 garden plots, 25 will be Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessible, with raised garden beds. This gives people in wheelchairs or anyone unable to comfortably bend down to the ground the chance to plant, tend, and harvest alongside their neighbors. Two of the plots will be dedicated to Recreation & Parks’ Therapeutic Recreation Division for their programs, and five plots will be dedicated to the CAC.
The CAC is Howard County’s designated non-profit anti-poverty organization. For over 60 years it has helped people overcome economic hardship to achieve self-sufficiency through its five core services: Early Childhood Education, Energy Assistance, Housing Assistance, Weatherization Assistance, and Food Assistance. The five garden plots reserved for the CAC will provide fresh produce to the organization’s Food Assistance program’s Howard County Food Bank in Columbia and future facility in Jessup.
“Access to fresh produce is essential to healthy living,” said Tracy Broccolino, president of the CAC. “The Community Action Council of Howard County’s Howard County Food Bank is proud to partner with Howard County Recreation and Parks to ensure everyone has the opportunity to grow fresh food, bring it home, and enjoy a healthy meal with their family—regardless of their economic circumstances.”
Recreation & Parks will partner with Columbia Gardeners to build the garden. Columbia Gardeners is a local nonprofit organization that provides gardening opportunities in Howard County. It will lease out the plots and handle much of the day-to-day activities at the Community Garden at Old Montgomery Road.
“This community garden will be our fourth site and the first new one in nearly three decades, a period in which Howard County’s population has grown by over 120,000 and our waitlist has grown with it,” said Amod Bhide, president of Columbia Gardeners, Inc. “It will provide plots to gardeners who have been waiting more than four years for a garden plot.”
The Cleveland Clinic is among the myriad top medical organizations that have touted the many health and social benefits of gardening. In an April 2026 article, the clinic cited Dr. Deborah Benzil, a neurosurgeon and spine specialist, who explained that gardening impacts nearly every part of a person’s health, from mood to brain function, to muscles and bones. The article also refers to a meta-analysis of studies that point to the mental health benefits of gardening, and how the activity has a “significant and positive” effect on a person’s overall well-being.
Susan Potts is a therapeutic recreation and accommodation services manager with the Department of Recreation & Parks. She thinks all members of the community should have the chance to garden.
“When we started talking about these garden plots, I kept coming back to one question: why shouldn’t everyone have the opportunity to garden?” Potts said. “These plots were designed to make that possible for people who need an accessible space, while also giving us the flexibility to see how the community uses them. I’m excited to see what grows here—not just in the gardens, but in the possibilities for our community.”
For more information about Howard County’s community gardens, including plot availability and registration, visit the Columbia Gardeners website to complete its “Wait List Request Form” online application. For questions about the online application form and/or the Community Garden at Old Montgomery, contact the Columbia Gardeners via email at columbiagardeners@gmail.com.
