Cadillac Urban Gardens on Merritt

Cadillac Urban Gardens on Merritt Cadillac Urban Gardens is a Southwest Detroit community vegetable garden run by SW residents. The story began with GM shipping carts that came from Korea.

What once began as an empty parking lot filled with scrap metal, growing weeds, and empty vibes has now become a community urban garden in the rich and vibrant Southwest Detroit. This lot that is now teeming with life used to be a GM executive parking lot for the old Cadillac Plant on Clark Street. A GM Environmental Engineer and his team looked at these shipping containers, made of plastic and me

tal, and asked "what else can we do with these?" Their first idea was to make carts, and they invited Ideal to take a look. We saw an opportunity to instead repurpose them into raised vegetable beds and the empty lot on McKinstry and Merritt into an urban garden. Rush Trucking aided in the effort and delivered 250 of these shipping containers to the Clark Street Headquarters to be painted. Ideal Contracting, Ideal Shield and Ideal Setech secured planting supplies, gardening tools, gloves, water supplies, etc. The Scarcyny Park community initiative cleared the rubbish and litter from adjacent streets. Cadillac Urban Gardens on Merritt was launched on May 19, 2012 and has since collected up to 1500 hours of youth service (and counting)! Our partners include Southwest Detroit Environmental Vision, Congress of Communities, Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation, LA SED, Latino Family Services, GM, Rush Trucking, Detroit Dirt, Detroit Cristo Rey High School, Gonzalez, Ideal Group employees, and Southwest Detroit neighborhood residents. If you would like to become more involved in this collaborative project, please contact us by sending a message or writing on our wall. We are always looking to engage more partners and invite others to share in the wealth of the Garden.

🌸🌼 Save the Date for Our 4th Annual Floral Fiesta Fundraiser! 🌼🌸Friday, August 7th | 5–9 PM at Cadillac Urban GardensWe’...
06/15/2026

🌸🌼 Save the Date for Our 4th Annual Floral Fiesta Fundraiser! 🌼🌸
Friday, August 7th | 5–9 PM at Cadillac Urban Gardens

We’re budding with excitement to invite you to a night that’s sure to blossom with joy! Come celebrate community, culture, and our shared roots in Southwest Detroit at our 4th Annual Floral Fiesta—a vibrant evening full of food, fun, and community.🌺

The Floral Fiesta is our way of honoring the incredible individuals who’ve helped shape local food systems here at Cadillac Urban Gardens and throughout SW Detroit. Let’s give them their flowers (literally and figuratively)!

What’s in bloom this year?

🎵Live music & entertainment
🍅 Delicious dishes from pop-up chefs
🏆Raffles, our Garden Market, and awards
🍺 One free drinks & food included with every ticket!

🎟️ Ticket Prices:

$10 for Detroit residents or $15 day of
$25 for non-Detroit residents or $30 day of

All proceeds plant seeds for the future by supporting our mission to provide free, culturally relevant produce for Detroit communities.

💖 Can’t attend but still want to support? Consider being a sponsor or sponsor a ticket for two Detroit residents to attend and experience the celebration!

🌿 Mark your calendars, grab your friends, and come grow the party with us!
We can’t wait to see you on August 7th from 5–9 PM!

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/cadillac-urban-gardens-4th-annual-floral-fiesta-fundraiser-tickets-1990658727842

Let’s get pickling this week 🥒Join our staff for weekly Wednesday community nights where we will be demoing how to pickl...
06/14/2026

Let’s get pickling this week 🥒

Join our staff for weekly Wednesday community nights where we will be demoing how to pickle daikon radishes!

Daikons and supplies provided for the demo. Learn how to pickle, build community, and take home a tastey treat. 🤍

Thanks to our amazing friends at for helping lead this workshop. We’ll see you all Wednesday evening post our drop in volunteer hours!

🌱✨ Meet the Staff! ✨🌱Say hello to Vincenté Perales 👏🏽Vincenté is a student at Wayne State University studying Urban Stud...
06/11/2026

🌱✨ Meet the Staff! ✨🌱

Say hello to Vincenté Perales 👏🏽

Vincenté is a student at Wayne State University studying Urban Studies & Planning and Urban Sustainability, and is joining us this summer as a Research Intern! 📚🌿

Working alongside our Yale Environmental Fellow, Alexys, Vincenté is supporting research focused on food insecurity and food access in Southwest Detroit. Together, they’ll be helping us better understand the challenges and opportunities within our local food system and how we can continue building a healthier, more equitable community. 🍅🥕🌻

Vincenté is no stranger to Cadillac Urban Gardens! 💚 They have been part of the CUG family since 2014, first joining the garden as an 8-year-old volunteer. Over the years, they’ve grown up with our programs, volunteered countless hours, and participated in internships that helped shape their passion for community development, sustainability, and food justice.

When they’re not studying or conducting research, you can find Vincenté:
🛹 Skateboarding
🎮 Playing video games
🌱 Spending time in the garden and community

We’re excited to have Vincenté back with us this summer and can’t wait to see the impact they’ll continue making at CUG! 💚🌻

🌻✨Introducing Merritt Market!✨🌻Cadillac Urban Gardens is excited to launch our very first Merritt Market a community mar...
06/08/2026

🌻✨Introducing Merritt Market!✨🌻

Cadillac Urban Gardens is excited to launch our very first Merritt Market a community marketplace created to support local entrepreneurs, artists, growers, food vendors, and small businesses while bringing neighbors together in Southwest Detroit!

📍 4601 Merritt St., Detroit, MI 48209
🕙 10 AM – 2 PM

🗓️ Market Dates:
• June 27th
• July 25th
• August 29th

Come shop local and enjoy:
☕ Coffee & Tea
🥖 Baked Goods
💍 Jewelry & Handmade Goods
🕯️ Candles & Scents
🪴 Plants & Garden Products
🥬 Fresh Produce
🍴 Food Vendors
🤝 Community Resources

🌱 NOW ACCEPTING VENDORS!🌱

Are you a maker, baker, artist, grower, food vendor, community organization, or small business looking to connect with the community and sell your goods? We’d love for you to be part of Merritt Market this season!

📩 Fill out our vendor form or email [email protected] to learn more.

Help us make this first season a success by sharing this post, tagging local vendors, and inviting your friends and family. Together, we’re creating a space to celebrate community, culture, and local entrepreneurship in Southwest Detroit. 💚

🌱✨ Meet the TEAM BEHIND CUG! ✨🌱Say hello to our EFP fellow Alexys Long!💚Alexys is a PhD student studying marine ecology ...
06/04/2026

🌱✨ Meet the TEAM BEHIND CUG! ✨🌱

Say hello to our EFP fellow Alexys Long!💚

Alexys is a PhD student studying marine ecology at University of California, Los Angeles and is joining us this summer as our Yale Environmental Fellow! 🌊🐠

Her research focuses on how human activity impacts seaweed communities—the foundation of many coastal ecosystems—on rocky beaches in California and tropical reefs in Mo’orea, French Polynesia. 🌿🌎

This summer, Alexys is excited to collaborate with Cadillac Urban Gardens and the Southwest Detroit community to explore food insecurity and food access in Detroit, helping us better understand and strengthen our local food system. 🥕🍅🌻

When she’s not conducting research, you can find Alexys:
🤿 SCUBA diving
🏀 Playing basketball
🌳 Exploring new green spaces

We’re thrilled to have Alexys on the team this summer be sure to say hello if you see her around the garden! 💚🌱

🌻

🌱✨ Meet the TEAM BEHIND CUG! ✨🌱Say hello to Alexys Long!💚Alexys is a PhD student studying marine ecology at University o...
06/04/2026

🌱✨ Meet the TEAM BEHIND CUG! ✨🌱

Say hello to Alexys Long!💚

Alexys is a PhD student studying marine ecology at University of California, Los Angeles and is joining us this summer as our Yale Environmental Fellow! 🌊🐠

Her research focuses on how human activity impacts seaweed communities—the foundation of many coastal ecosystems—on rocky beaches in California and tropical reefs in Mo’orea, French Polynesia. 🌿🌎

This summer, Alexys is excited to collaborate with Cadillac Urban Gardens and the Southwest Detroit community to explore food insecurity and food access in Detroit, helping us better understand and strengthen our local food system. 🥕🍅🌻

When she’s not conducting research, you can find Alexys:
🤿 SCUBA diving
🏀 Playing basketball
🌳 Exploring new green spaces

We’re thrilled to have Alexys on the team this summer be sure to say hello if you see her around the garden! 💚🌱

🌻

06/03/2026

We’re welcoming June with fun and exciting activities at CUG! 💚
Join us for our community salsa night on June 10th. Lessons will take place from 7-8pm and a social hour post lessons from 8-9:30pm. Food for sale will also be available between 6-7pm. This is a family friendly event! A huge thank you to Moises who will be instructing lessons for us 🫶🏽

We can’t wait to see you all soon!

🌱 Join Us for Volunteer Wednesdays at Cadillac Urban Gardens! 🌱Looking for a way to give back, connect with your communi...
06/01/2026

🌱 Join Us for Volunteer Wednesdays at Cadillac Urban Gardens! 🌱

Looking for a way to give back, connect with your community, and get your hands in the soil? Come volunteer with us every Wednesday from 4:00 PM - 6:30 PM at Cadillac Urban Gardens!

Whether you’re a seasoned gardener or have never planted a seed before, there’s a place for you here. Volunteers help with gardening, harvesting, beautification projects, and supporting our mission of providing free, culturally relevant produce to our community.

✨ All ages are welcome
✨ No experience necessary
✨ Great for families, students, and community members

Bring a friend, bring your family, or come meet new people while helping grow a healthier Detroit.

📍 Cadillac Urban Gardens
🕓 Wednesdays | 4 PM – 6:30PM

We can’t wait to see you in the garden! 💚

Address

4601 Merritt Street
Detroit, MI
48209

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm
Saturday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

313.842.1961

Website

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