Category: Urban Farming

People have been growing food in urban areas for years, and you can remember how “victory gardens” were common even during World War II.  This idea of growing food, in small areas and urban neighborhoods is sweeping the nation and Baltimore has joined the trend.

“Because of urban agriculture’s potential to feed, employ, beautify, and improve ecological and health outcomes, it is often touted as a promising solution to the ills of urbanity, especially in cities like Baltimore where vacant land is plentiful, food insecurity and blight are rampant, and community resources are scarce.”

Read the entire article at: “BaltimoreMagazine.net“

“New York City just approved the Lowline, a dreamy, eco-friendly project.”

The world’s first underground park and public cultural space will soon be on the “must-see” list of many visitors world-wide. The team who dreamed up this underground oasis will soon use “cutting edge solar technology to transform the abandoned Williamsburg Bridge Trolley Terminal located under Delancey Street into a one-acre underground public park. Here, sunlight is delivered underground, activating photosynthesis to create a lush garden space year-round.”

In an area where a much needed public space is highly desired, the Lowline team is hoping to be a model of success for reusing and cultivating underground spaces.  There vision is “to shape the future of the City through innovation, deep community engagement, education, and youth development.”

“New York City is the place where visionary ideas get turned into tangible realities,” said NYCEDC President Maria Torres-Springer. “Today we move one step closer to making the Lowline a reality, which will serve as a cultural and educational hub for this vibrant community and pioneer cutting-edge technology.”

To read the entire article, visit: “HuffingtonPost.com”

Whether you’re in the Houston area or not, we’ve stumbled upon a great Instagram account that will give you wonderful gardening tips and beautiful imagery. Nicole Burke (@rootedgarden) is one of the Houston’s most up-and-coming garden consultants and her clients rave about the work she does.

“The Rooted Garden designs, installs and maintains organic vegetable and herb gardens in Houston, TX. Providing consulting, high quality garden beds, and local sources for plants and soil, The Rooted Garden is a leader in Houston’s edible gardening market.”

We’d love to hear about your gardening business and what you do.

In the fall of 2015, my youngest child entered preschool.  While I was already employed as a philanthropy advisor, I was quietly looking for a way to be out and about in Houston and gardening more.  The business happened almost accidentally as a few friends asked me to help them begin a backyard garden.  In November, I registered ‘Rooted Garden’ as a business and formally announced my enterprise to friends and neighbors.  My first six gardens were standard 4′ x 8′ or 4′ x 4′ cedar gardens.  But within a few months, friends began to tell other friends and I was soon working with clients on gardens of 150 square feet or more.  Now, eight months in, I have served over 45 clients and the phone keeps ringing!  Just recently, I’ve begun garden consulting for clients in other cities as well.  It’s a dream come true and a real joy to share the garden with so many new friends.

How has having a family garden improved your quality of living for your kids? What do they most love about growing their own food?

As parents, we all feel the need to provide a wide open space for our kids to run free but that is not always possible for families in the city.  We have a fairly small backyard but our vegetable garden still provides some of the aspects of adventure and discovery that kids often miss in urban settings.  In a relatively small space, my children can explore, work, forage, discover and eat. The novelty that my kids crave can often be met in the garden with an emerging butterfly, a new seedling, a hidden fruit or a pest infestation.  Every day and every season is unique.  With a family of four children close in age, it’s difficult to find an activity in which we can all participate fully but the garden has become such a place.  When my kids are fully grown, I believe they’ll look back and remember our garden as a central part of their family and life.

What have you been most successful at growing up until now? What would you still like to try?

Lettuce!  Lettuce crops are incredible in Houston.  We plant seed in October and we can cut and come again until April and then grow Arugula and Mizuna throughout the hot months.  Because our winter temps don’t drop very low, the winter garden is actually (I think) the best.  I love to grow a huge variety of lettuces with different colors, textures, and tastes.  I think most people that tire of salads do so because they’ve never had a freshly cut salad full of bitter and sweet, crunchy and soft lettuce.  It’s so satisfying and delicious and it’s one of the main reasons that I desire to see more Houstonians growing.

What would I still like to grow?  I’d love to grow Chia seeds, Amaranth, or Quinoa.  Unlike most of the country, Houston’s toughest time to grow is June through August so I’m always looking for new crops that can stand the heat and humidity and help me hold on till its sweet lettuce season again.

Do you have any tips on how to keep your garden area free of weeds? Your gardens always look so tidy and well-kept! 

Thank you!  I almost always work with raised garden beds.  Houston’s soil is gumbo clay and while it has some beneficial properties, the proven method for successful edible gardens here is raising the garden bed and filling it with soil and compost.  I work with several local soil companies that are amazing.  Their soil and compost are so clean and nutritious that weeds are really not a thing for the first year.  There are airborne weeds to contend with, but I try to fight them by keeping the gardens full.  My clients will tell you that I don’t waste an inch of the garden.  Some may say that things are too crowded but if I can see a weed finding its way into the garden, I figure there might as well be something edible growing there instead.

Any patch of land can be used to grow food. You don’t need acres and acres of land to have a successful farming operation on your hands.  Atlanta has over 40+ farmers markets, all being supplied by local farmers, on many types of land using countless growing methods.

“Indeed, one of the advantages of being in an urban setting is close proximity to neighbors, including neighboring school children.”

To read more about specific urban farms popping up in Atlanta, visit: “myajc.com“

People from Madaya have been known for their farms that once sloped down toward the valley. About one year ago that picturesque scene has changed because Madaya has been under siege by the Syrian government and their allies.  Due to the siege, farmers are no longer able to access their once rolling hillside farms.

“We’ve been farmers from the first day,” says Abu Khalil, nom de guerre of a civil activist and independent citizen-journalist from Madaya. “We used to plant our land. But the siege cut us off from our fields. So we brought boxes and filled them with red soil for planting. We put them on balconies, on verandas of houses, any place where the sun can reach.”

To read the entire article, visit: “UPI.com“

One woman, who’s “been there herself”, is lending a helping hand to those struggling with homelessness. She knows her purpose is to help others, and she delights in serving her community by running an urban garden.  She says “I was homeless for a year and a half,” James said. “Everything happened at once.”

“Mental illness, lost my job, daddy died, daughter got involved with the kingpin drug dealers.  Four different things transpired in my life that sent me down a spiral.”

To listen to the entire radio show, and read the full article please visit: “RadioMilwaukee.org“

“It’s called Revision Urban Farm which is part of Victory Programs, an agency that works on a wide range of social issues.  The goal of the farm is to help homeless families and young people move ahead in a sometimes difficult world.  At Revision Farm, young people with summer jobs, many volunteers and staff work together to provide fresh, healthy produce for the community.”

Read the full article at: “BostonCBSLocal.com“

If you’re familiar with baseball or live in the Pacific Northwest, you know Safeco Field is home to the Mariners, their fans and “all the trappings of an American sporting event.”

What you may not know is that they now have a 450 square foot urban garden beneath the batter’s eye against a dark backdrop.

“Previously home to evergreen trees (removed, too distracting), flowers (often unattended), the raised bed now plays host to a variety of long-season plants, including peppers, basil, tomatoes, beans, chard and parsely, among other things.”

“The project is exciting because everyone at the Mariners organization is very dedicated to its success,” McCrate says. “Our work is most enjoyable when our clients and partners are eager to learn, enthusiastic and genuinely appreciative of the harvests that come from the garden. At the stadium, everyone seems to be rooting for the crops.”

To read more about Safeco Field’s Urban Garden, visit: “SeattleMag.com“

Gardening is so easy, a 4 year old can do it! If you’re looking for an inspirational Instagram account to begin following, we highly suggest visiting @mikes_homegarden! This charming little boy will inspire you to garden like you’ve never gardened before.  Below you can read our interview with Mike’s Mommy, who kindly gave us an in-depth look at this adorable pint-sized gardener.

What made you want to start documenting Mike’s home garden? What sparked his interest AND yours to start growing your own food? We’ve been fans of homesteading for a while, and right now we are working with what we have to come as close as we can to it. With a backyard of about 800sqft in a urban area we have managed to grow food for two years now, and we absolutely love it. We come from families that know what it means to work with the soil and grow food, and we wanted Mikey, our son, to learn where food comes from and appreciate all the hard work and dedication put into farming/gardening in order for people to eat good food.

“Currently there is one woman, Beverly Thomas of Cold Springs Farm running what she calls her “Veggie Van”. It’s packed with vegetables she grows locally on her own farm. Currently she is restricted to only distributing to existing members or customers and she can only do it on commercially zoned areas.”

Read more about Urban Farming coming to Fort Worth, here: “WFAA.com“