Before the High Line became the well known park it is today, it was a track that ran between 34th Street and St. John’s Park. However, after it was long abandoned, on 2005, the city agreed to preserve and reconstruct the area into a park. Today, it lies as a great strip in the Meatpacking District. Being at the High Line brought Marris’ idea of the rambunctious garden into perspective and made it more realistic than I thought it would be.
The High Line was a great example of what a rambunctious garden is, and to think that one was so close to us. While reading Marris’ book, I had a difficult time trying to completely picture a rambunctious garden. But I realized through my visit at the High Line what a possible and rational idea the rambunctious garden was. The park itself was created using the abandoned railway as the base. With pathways, benches, and stairs added, the High Line quickly became a popular site. Despite the High Line being a site of nature, it is still surrounded by the harsh conditions of the skyscrapers, noise, and constant human interaction. However it still thrives with no problem, meaning that nature isn’t as fragile as we thought it was. Pollinators in the park such as, honey bees, bumble bees, flies, and butterflies, help pollinate the area and keep it alive. The High Line was created for increase the interactions between humans and nature.
Stalter’s idea is also portrayed through the High Line. Stalter examined that the variety of species present in the High Line exceeded those of four other areas in New York City. The species present were not all brought in due to a plan. A lot of the species present were brought in through interactions, no matter how significant it was. Before the High Line became a park, people still entered the abandoned railway, affecting the environment as a whole. Stalter’s article gave me a better understanding of the High Line, and I was able to mesh together Stalter’s and Marris’ ideas.
This was my second visit to the High Line, but this time around I had a better understand and a larger viewpoint of what to look at. Although constant changes to the High Line is being made, the High Line is still a great example of what a rambunctious garden is. Such a “garden” in our own backyard of great skyscrapers and speedy cars would be unthinkable to many. I believe that with such a great example as the High Line, the idea of the rambunctious garden becomes more feasible and rational for many.
