Remnants of Rural Life in Downtown Paso Robles
My hairdresser gave me a late appointment Thursday afternoon. When she finished cutting my hair she invited me to stick around for a few minutes until she closed so we could take a walk downtown together. She knows I like to walk. We're almost neighbors in Templeton, but we only see each other during my haircuts. I welcomed the chance to walk with her.
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| A Full Size Pomegranate Tree on Pine Street Across from the Train Depot |
From Uptown Hair on 7th Street, we walked down Pine toward the City Park. I had been curious about seeing the new senior residential care center near 7th and Pine, across from the train station. Margaret knows a lot of the residents because she takes care of their hair. We didn't go in, but one of the residents thought we wanted to come in so she opened the door. Before we knew it one of the caregivers was behind her, making sure we were not up to anything nefarious.
When we got to the corner we saw the pomegranate tree. I've seen my residential neighbors plant both dwarf trees with inedible fruits and full size pomegranate trees in their yards, but I've never seen one this large around the neighborhood. This one was huge. As you can see some of the fruit is beginning to turn red, but much is still green. I wonder if the homeless folks have discovered this healthy food source yet.
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| Large Pomegranate Tree in Downtown Paso Robles |
A Pumpkin Plant on a Commercial Lot?
Or might it be a squash plant? I couldn't get any closer to it since it was behind a fence on private property. In any case, it seemed a bit out of place so close to the center of town, but that's Paso Robles for you. There are still single family homes right downtown.
These urban gardens and fruit trees remind me that Paso Robles is still a city in the north end of an agricultural county. If I remember correctly the pomegranate tree is in front of a single family home. Now the area is mostly commercial. Still, there's an old almond orchard almost right across from the Marriott Hotel and the Gateway Center on Vine Street. And I've even seen deer use the crosswalks on 12th and Vine downtown
Grow Your Own Urban Garden!
Do you see fruits and vegetables growing in your downtown?
