Beyond the hungry mosquitos and tons of compost, the Crosbie Heights neighborhood community garden offers Tulsans a third place to gather and connect.
For years, Crosbie Heights neighbors advocated for a garden. And for years, it would die off because of dwindling volunteers, hot summers and, most recently, a lack of irrigation.
In February I wrote about the many community gardens sprouting up around Tulsa. At the time, Crosbie Heights neighborhood association president Fletcher Stewart was gingerly hopeful the garden would finally work out. The neighborhood had just received city funds from the Vibrant Neighborhoods Partnership to install a water line.
Over the next eight months, I kept going back. The garden was growing into what can only happen when neighbors and resources come together — a space where people can build community around their common interests.
Finding third places in Tulsa
This story is part of the Tulsa Flyer’s series on third places around the Tulsa metro — spaces and groups where people are creating community outside of home and work. Help us write more stories on the third places that already exist and where they should be by filling out the form below.
“I appreciate this weird commonality that we’ve found,” Stewart said.
With the help of locally catered food like Wildflower Cafe and donated seeds, garden beds, driplines and labor, the garden survived its first summer.
Now, Stewart says they’re preparing to plant onions and garlic for winter. They still have work to do, like setting up a greenhouse and turning food scraps into compost. He says now they’re in the housekeeping phase.
“We are reaping what we sowed,” said James Taylor, a volunteer known for his work with the sustainability nonprofit Kitty Gang Family Foundation.
Gold Spring Valley performs a live acoustic set at the Crosbie Heights community garden in Tulsa, Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026. The street was closed for a block party, where neighbors ate hamburgers or Trenchers Delicatessen and shopped at a popup local art market. Credit: Libby Hobbs / Tulsa Flyer 
Children play on an inflatable slide at the Crosbie Heights community garden in Tulsa, Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026. The street was closed for a block party, where neighbors ate hamburgers or Trenchers Delicatessen, shopped at a popup local art market and listened to live music. Credit: Libby Hobbs / Tulsa Flyer 
A sign for the neighborhood block party at the Crosbie Heights community garden in Tulsa, Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026. That night, there were fewer volunteers; they remained pretty consistent until school started. Credit: Libby Hobbs / Tulsa Flyer 
Preslie Watkins paints cinder blocks at the Crosbie Heights community garden in Tulsa, Tuesday, July 21, 2026. Families volunteered with their children before school started. Credit: Libby Hobbs / Tulsa Flyer 
A cushaw squash at the Crosbie Heights community garden in Tulsa, Thursday, July 9, 2026. Wildflower Cafe provided food, and Lucky Permaculture donated a compost bioreactor for volunteers to use. Credit: Libby Hobbs / Tulsa Flyer 
Around 1,000 pounds of food scraps at the Crosbie Heights community garden in Tulsa, Wednesday, May 6, 2026. The Oklahoma Compost and Sustainability Association hosted a compost workday at the garden to celebrate International Compost Awareness Week. Credit: Libby Hobbs / Tulsa Flyer 
Volunteers shovel mulch at the Crosbie Heights community garden in Tulsa, Wednesday, May 6, 2026. The Oklahoma Compost and Sustainability Association hosted a compost workday at the garden to celebrate International Compost Awareness Week. Credit: Libby Hobbs / Tulsa Flyer 
Amber Whitlatch talks with volunteers at the Crosbie Heights community garden in Tulsa, Saturday, May 2, 2026. She and several other volunteers share local resources and plug happenings around town. Credit: Libby Hobbs / Tulsa Flyer 
Volunteers work at the Crosbie Heights community garden in Tulsa, Saturday, May 2, 2026. Fletcher Stewart, president of the Crosbie Heights Neighborhood Association, said it cost them nothing up to this point besides a $55 garden lock and a little bit of his own money for food. Credit: Libby Hobbs / Tulsa Flyer
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