By Amy Laughinghouse

When Sunnie and Woody Bates of Atlanta sold their Buckhead home two years ago, knowing their multiple acres and extensive gardens had become too much for the two retirees to care for, Sunnie feared that moving into an apartment might be a painful transition. Then she heard about Post Riverside, an upscale development in suburban Atlanta that provides garden plots for its apartment residents.

Even non-gardeners enjoy relaxing in the urban vegetable gardens.

"I think it's a great idea, especially for people who are coming out of homes that had gardens," says Sunnie, who tends one of 24 individual plots. "We came out of a traditional Japanese home with a Japanese garden, and I knew I was going to miss being able to plant a few things of my own. It was a very difficult move for us, but the garden (at Post Riverside) did help."

While providing individual garden plots for residents is not yet widespread in the apartment industry, Todd Tibbitts, vice president of the Landscape Division for Post Properties, Inc., says the demand for these resident-tended gardens is growing. Since 1988, Post has installed about 15 "urban vegetable gardens" in three southern cities and Washington, D.C. and has plans to expand the gardens soon into Dallas. Each garden includes 20 to 30 plots, which measure about 4 by 8 feet. Post provides plants and seeds, which range from tomatoes to peas and corn, as well as fertilizer, storage bins for tools and an on-site compost bin. They also provide as much guidance and hands-on assistance as residents require.

So far, demand for the garden plots has exceeded supply. "There are waiting lists for a plot," explains Tibbitts, who says most properties divvy up plots each year through a lottery. Because land can be both scarce and expensive, gardens cannot be planted on every property, but where Post can't make room for full-blown vegetable gardens, they often try to incorporate a smaller herb garden that residents can raid for plants like fresh rosemary and thyme. "We want our residents to be able to commune with Mother Nature right there at the apartment community- to get out, get dirty and have that horticulture therapy," he explains.

Even apartment residents who don't have the time or the inclination to go play in the dirt are reaping the benefits from an increasing focus on green space in rental communities. "We're seeing more people doing more garden atmospheres, spending more money on the landscaping," says Angela Nash, vice president of PROMOVE, The Apartment Source, an Atlanta-based apartment locator service. "Before, it was more about the pool and the tennis court. Those are still important, but now it seems to be about the relaxation atmosphere, as well-a return to nature, if you will."

A prime example of this trend is Jefferson at Lenox Park in Atlanta, which opened last April. When construction is completed in December 2000, this apartment community, nestled near the vital heart of the city, will offer eight themed courtyards, from the burbling waterfountain of Fontaine Bleu Courtyard to the bird and butterfly gardens of Parisian Courtyard, which will also boast professionally tended plantings of herbs.

Demand for individual garden plots for apartment residents is growing.

"We're giving it sort of a tucked away feeling, even though you're in the middle of everything," says property manager Kristy Harris. "You can look out your window and see fountains and ponds rather than bushes and regular landscaping. It's nice to be able to get away from the traffic and the noise and hear the fountains and the waterfalls."

Non-gardeners enjoy the urban vegetable gardens at Post properties, as well. "People who don't have gardens come in and sit and enjoy the atmosphere," says Sunnie Bates of the resident gardens at Post Riverside. "I've seen people bring their children in to show them the gardens. It's a beautiful little area."

Though Sunnie originally requested a gardening plot at Post because she wanted to grow the exotic blossoms she needs for her Japanese flower arrangements, she has enjoyed the social aspects of this popular national past time, as well. "Post will plan a planting day and a clean-up day, and last summer, they had a little party in the garden," she says. "You get to know other people in the community. We've had a good time."