Curb Appeal: Beautifying Berkshire

In this month’s Curb Appeal feature we are highlighting one homeowner that is beautifying Berkshire Street one interesting plant at a time. Mr. Antoine Bell has always had quite the affinity for plants. He loves to grow them and loves to experiment with some that aren't as common as your typical petunia. The first plant that caught my eye in his pristine front yard was a spiky grass-like plant with a long shoot coming out the middle and buds all around. He explained to me that this is a yucca plant, one native to Arizona and the southwest, but he was able to keep it thriving right here in Detroit! He loves it because it stays green even through the gray winter months adding a bit more color to his yard.

One thing I learned from Mr. Bell is that he likes a challenge. The yucca is not the only unique plant he has cultivated over the years. He has also tried his hand at growing a pineapple plant and a variegated pink lemon tree! He loves the determination and research it takes to grow them and feels accomplished being able to maintain them and learn from them. Although the pineapple plant only yielded one fruit, and the lemon tree also succumbed after its 3rd year, he learned many lessons about what plants need and how to maintain them through the different seasons. Over the course of our conversation, he pulled out at least 20 different plant cards that he has grown over the years and had a story for each one of them.

Like plants that change over the seasons, Mr. Bell has seen many changes through his years in Morningside. A resident here since 1987, Mr. Bell has seen neighbors come and go, houses stand and fall, and through it all feels lucky he gets to call this neighborhood home. Serving over 24 years in the military, he knows a thing or two about change and how in many ways it can make us stronger.

After one of his deployments, Mr. Bell recalled that before he returned home, his wife told him over the phone that he wouldn't believe what happened on their block. Filled with anticipation, he returned to their home only to find the three houses across the street from theirs had been demolished, transforming the block entirely. Though he had hoped to see a different outcome, he was filled with even more determination to keep his house beautiful to uplift his block.

Mr. Bell’s Berkshire home. Image courtesy of Racheal Pisano