Digging In: Judy Kabodian's Creative Gardening

If you've ever driven down Alton Street, you are sure to have noticed Judy Kabodian's impressive garden. Many are stopped in their tracks by the site of the blooming expanse that occupies the entirety of her front yard. Even a CATA bus driver has paused her route to pay her compliments to the gardener. I visited Kabodian's home to learn more about the development of the garden, and to see this eye-catching attraction myself.

Kabodian's love of gardening began at an early age. As she explained, “When I was young, my mom gave me this plot and I just planted seeds. I'd plant, like, zinnias and bachelor’s buttons and things like that. She just said 'Here you go! Do what you want to do,' and I’ve always loved gardening since.”

This love was apparent in the bright blossoms that surrounded me as I surveyed her front yard, currently filled with phlox, daylilies, Knockout roses, lavender, snapdragons, cleome, alyssum and an assortment of other flowers.

A great deal of hard work and dedication is required in order to build a garden as abundant as Kabodian's. Her yard is a labor of love for the gardener, who stated, “It is a lot of work to maintain, but for me, I love it. It's like therapy.” She expanded further on the importance of gardening in her life, “It's a creative outlet. It's the creative aspect of it that I love. I'm constantly moving stuff around to make it look better.” The artistic nature of gardening makes the physical labor of its maintenance a much more enjoyable task to tackle.

The commitment that Kabodian has made to her garden is, in reality, a commitment to her own happiness. When discussing the decision to transform what was once a plot of sod into a garden she said, “Part of me is like, 'maybe that wasn't such a good idea,' because when we go to sell this house I don't know who is going to want to deal with that. But what you do in your house, you do for your own quality of living, this is how I want to live right now so I'm just going to do it and whatever for the future [laughs].”

In addition to being a constant source of enjoyment to its creator, Kabodian hopes the garden delights the general community. “I love this community and I love having this thing of beauty that the people in East Lansing can enjoy every time they drive down Alton. That brings me a lot of happiness to do that and to know that people are enjoying it and appreciating it and I know they do because they stop and tell me.”

In this spirit of community, Kabodian shared a few words of wisdom for those who emulate her prosperous garden. “Native plants are your friend, that's going to be better for you. And I'm going say this, but this is advice that I haven't really taken myself and wish I had – I wish I would have amended the soil better than I have.” With the right mixture of soil, plants, creativity and love fellow East Lansing residents can produce a garden as impressive as this one.