Pecan trees gracing the D-Block skyline
A couple mornings before Christmas, my neighbor, Ms. Evelyn came walking by. She had her "grandbabies" in tow, two young girls probably 8 or 9. Ms. Evelyn, is-- my best guess-- probably 70, 75. Bending over every couple steps, she was picking up pecans as she was doing every morning for the past several months. Word on the street is that the "Pecan Man" is...
Hey there good folks,
I've got a quick little story for you and a couple of pointers as you begin your summer garden.1.) Story: A Hidden GardenLast week, Sundiata Ameh-El, co-coordinator of iGrowand I were installing raised beds around town together. Because we were in the area and because my father had told me about it, we swung by for a look at an unlikely farm. It's hidden behind a Tallahassee...
How does a team of dedicated youth and adults create a major food-producing, educational, and inviting urban agriculture demonstration project on a 1/3rd acre vacant lot? How much food can we raise? How many people -- especially young people-- can we engage in urban agriculture? Can we make money raising and selling healthy, green, fair, and affordable food?These are the questions we've been...
In partnership with a group of young folks in Frenchtown calling themselves iGrow, I'm increasingly exploring urban farm possibilities.As we investigate possibilities, partnerships, land, business accounting, marketing, proposal pitching, and the works, we're manufacturing and selling iGrow Garden Buckets as a joint venture to raise seed money.Amidst the conversation, we've been talking about...
This past week I was in Oakland for the 15th annual conference of the Community Food Security Coalition. With the Oakland's rich history of food justice work rooted in the Black Panther's Free Breakfast for School Children Program(that gave rise to the nation-wide free and reduced lunch programs), the Occupy Oakland movement centered just around the corner, and a gathering of 1100 folks from...