What is it?
This small, all volunteer, urban production farm was launched in 2010 to supplement William Byrd’s community Food Pantry with fresh, locally grown vegetables and provide weekly harvests to our program families and nutrition education projects. 14 rows of organic soil produce more than 430 grocery bags of fresh produce annually. Bed preparation, planting, watering, weeding, composting and food harvesting activities combine with horticulture and animal husbandry (bee keeping and bird feeding) to keep this project growing and feeding our community. Partnerships with peer agencies like Shalom Farms and FeedMore and several of our market vendors, including Origins Farm and Byrd Farm provide stability through increased times of need. Visit www.wbch.org for detailed information about volunteer opportunities with the farmlet.
During the 2012 growing season the farmlet produced the following vegetables:
- Beets: Detroit Dark Red, Crosby Egyptian
- Brocolli
- Cabbage
- Carrots
- Collard Greens
- Cucumbers, Armenian and standard
- Daikon Radish
- Garlic
- Green Beans
- Japanese Eggplant
- Kale: Dwarf Blue Scotch, Red Russian, Smooth Spring
- Leaf Lettuce Mix
- Mustard Greens
- Parsley
- Romaine Lettuce Heads
- Salad Mix: Arugula and Lettuce blend
- Salad Mix: Lettuce blend
- Spinach
- Sugar snap peas
- Sungold/Mixed yellow cherry Tomatoes
- Swiss Chard
- Tomatoes
- Turnips
- Upland Cress (aka Creasy Greens)
- White potatoes
- Zucchini
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| From Collegiate Kids Week in the Field |
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In January, I will introduce you to our brand new fellow. Our AMS Fellow, that is...
Allegheny Mountain School (AMS) was founded in 2011 to train and support young adults committed to sustainable food and community development. Beginning on May of each year, AMS Fellows spend 6 months (Phase I) in residence on Allegheny Mountain; followed by one year in the service of Partner Orgainizations (Phase II) along the Route 250 corridor of the two Virginias. Our goal for this year of service is that each AMS Fellow will touch the lives of at least ten families through teaching gardening and building sustainable local food programs.
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Think it's too late? But you forget! You live in Virginia, a mostly zone 7 temperate clime with relatively mild winters. This allows for one of the longer growing seasons, especially if your micro-climate is a little warmer... (next to a warm exterior house wall or protected from freezing winds by a tall hedge, excellent soil conditions, etc).
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Urban production farmhands and honeybees at work: Prevent this work at your own peril!
Behind the compost bins in the back 40, so to speak, there is a new hive of activity. And it is BEEs! Thanks to local beekeeper David Stover, we have an active, thriving hive with bees harvesting pollen from the blooming kale, blooming peas, blooming oregano, blooming basil (and blooming etcetera!) of our farmlet. It's very exciting to see the ecosystem that is developing simply by adding a few key players here and there. If you come by to visit William Byrd, you should ask Ana or Cheryl to take you on a tour. Two Saturdays a month you might see Marlene or Edith plucking weeds, ripping up stuff for composting, harvesting produce for the food pantry or even herding youngsters who are honing their weeding, planting, harvesting, on-site noshing skills. It's ALL learning and ALL GOOD.
Yes.
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There are obscure commands on digital cameras and becoming dazzled by the language I lost the photo proof that our executive director and I attended a presentation at the Tuckahoe Women's Club last week where the guest speaker was Will Allen. Actually it turns out I still have the images, but I can't get them off the internal memory of my FujiFilm digital camera. (Solutions WELCOME) If you are not familiar with Mr. Allen and you are reading the Byrd House Farmlet page of our blog, then now's your chance! Quick, visit www.GrowingPower.com and find out! Aside from the whole MacArthur Genius Award thing, Allen is to Urban PRODUCTION Farming now what Michael Jackson was to music videos in the 1980s. Based in Milwaukee Wisconsin, his operation has grown from a single urban production operation in the outskirts of a major metropolitan food desert to an organic food community center that seems to be serving the world. Ok, a little gushy, but the impact of a fundamental principle (ALL people are entitled to good, healthful food) and an idea (it ALL starts with the soil) cannot be understated. I will be posting a video clip from the presentation and there will be an interview with Sunny Gardener's Lightly on the Ground on WRIR.org very soon where you can hear from Allen describe the importance of the production farming philosophy and the reality of its impact on the ground with PEOPLE.
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In January, I will introduce you to our brand new fellow. Our AMS Fellow, that is...
Allegheny Mountain School (AMS) was founded in 2011 to train and support young adults committed to sustainable food and community development. Beginning on May of each year, AMS Fellows spend 6 months (Phase I) in residence on Allegheny Mountain; followed by one year in the service of Partner Orgainizations (Phase II) along the Route 250 corridor of the two Virginias. Our goal for this year of service is that each AMS Fellow will touch the lives of at least ten families through teaching gardening and building sustainable local food programs.
There are obscure commands on digital cameras and becoming dazzled by the language I lost the photo proof that our executive director and I attended a presentation at the Tuckahoe Women's Club last week where the guest speaker was Will Allen. Actually it turns out I still have the images, but I can't get them off the internal memory of my FujiFilm digital camera. (Solutions WELCOME) If you are not familiar with Mr. Allen and you are reading the Byrd House Farmlet page of our blog, then now's your chance! Quick, visit www.GrowingPower.com and find out! Aside from the whole MacArthur Genius Award thing, Allen is to Urban PRODUCTION Farming now what Michael Jackson was to music videos in the 1980s. Based in Milwaukee Wisconsin, his operation has grown from a single urban production operation in the outskirts of a major metropolitan food desert to an organic food community center that seems to be serving the world. Ok, a little gushy, but the impact of a fundamental principle (ALL people are entitled to good, healthful food) and an idea (it ALL starts with the soil) cannot be understated. I will be posting a video clip from the presentation and there will be an interview with Sunny Gardener's Lightly on the Ground on WRIR.org very soon where you can hear from Allen describe the importance of the production farming philosophy and the reality of its impact on the ground with PEOPLE.
Become a volunteer Urban Farmhand. Help us out weekly. Watering, moving compost, digging, planting, building...all kinds of farming activities. Bring knowledge, or just bring hands and heart.
E-mail: ckosakowski@wbch.com
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7.15.10: Shalom Farms provides produce for WBCH Early Childhood CSA's
Thought this might make you smile - we had such an exciting vegetable and memory filled Thursday - from harvesting chard, peppers and squash at the farmlet, to giving away 10 CSA bags of produce, from our farmlet and our wonderful partners at Shalom Farms who will be giving us vegetables from their farm for our EC CSAs and Chefs R4 Kids cooking class and Food Pantry clients. We are truly helping to create a healthy community, starting at WBCH! Visit our farmlet and our Chefs R4 Kids class, help us pack CSA bags and just come and feel good about what we are doing. It will really put a smile on your face.
Click here to read Chef Ellie's blog - read what she REALLY thinks about the Chefs R4 Kids project!
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Farmlet Work Day: 06.26.10: We've Got Water!!
We are very lucky at the farmlet, and so are our plants. Steve and Carol (Perennial Pleasures Plant Pharm) donated a drip irrigation system to the farmlet. Steve came on Saturday morning and put it in. He sowed Marlene and Kyle how to maintain it - just in time for another 100+ temp day on Sunday.
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Farmlet Work Day: 06.12.10
We had two new VCU students, Nicole and friend who came to the BHM and asked if they could help with the garden...and then farmlet. Edith has become a regular and loves to weed, something that needs to be done daily. Kyle and Jasper have become regulars and Kim and Michi put in a couple of hours after working in their community garden. Michi may be one of the youngest volunteers, he helped dig, plant and water. AND of course we could not do anything without Marlene our own Will Allen, farming guru. Today was pretty hot, 105 heat index.Watering is the only way these plants will survive...it is unfortunate that our hose to the community garden was borrowed, leaving that garden a little dried out. A friend gave us some more hoses; thank goodness for our friends and volunteers. Saturday we planted sweet potatoes, peppers, tomatoes, herbs, cucumbers and collards. Sunday we planted more potatoes, we decided that we needed to only water today, it was too too hot.
Saturday we had a couple of guests too - Dr. Morrow, everyone's favorite horticulture instructor (retired) from J. Sargent Reynolds Community College. He is busy, helping a lot of community gardens, gardens in schools and most recently the Mayor's Youth Conservation Corp. Tim of Backyard Farmers, came by to see how the farmlet was coming along. He was impressed with it. And then David Stover, local beekeeper came by to see the farmlet and think about where we could place two donated bee hives.
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05.29.10
Volunteers at the Byrd House Farmlet moved compost, watered crops, planted seedlings and potted vegetables all in a collective commitment to growing the best food possible for the best people in the world: our children! Our volunteers included Boy Scouts from Fifth Baptist Church on Cary St.and their den mother Kerry (thanks to WBCH new staff member Maurice) and the most pro-active "we came here to get it done" young adults you could ask for. (but where did they come from? eh? eh?)
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BOBCAT Donated for a Day!
The McClatchie Tree and Lawn Service - donated their industrial sized bobcat to us for the day on Sunday, 5/23. They showed Marlene how to operate it and she ran it from 9 - 4 non-stop. It was amazing. Now we need to rake the woodchips out, but at least they are out there. Pretty amazing. Volunteers from Big Brother Big Sister came and helped plant pepper plants, then watered and raked. A very productive day.
DON'T FORGET: Every Saturday is a Farm the Farmlet Day - Join the Flock and Swoop the Land Placing Wood Chips and Compost, Watering and Weeding, Learning by Doing! Call Patty at 643-2717 if you want to join the fray.
Work Days Yield Crop Plantings
Many Thanks to our work day volunteer groups: Richmond Street Soccer and FedCorps!
3.28.10: Byrd House Farmlet is Hatched!
Many Thanks to our work day volunteer groups: Richmond Street Soccer and FedCorps!
What a success! VCU's call for a Crop Mob brought out a great crew of 17 Crop Mobbers who moved a ton of wood chips, built 3 compost bins, dug 6 post holes, and worked on our hoop house. We worked hard, had fun, made friends, and learned a lot. After sharing a great spaghetti dinner, we parted company - invigorated by collaborating on this "We Feed Our Community" project.
NOTE: The next Crop Mob gathers Saturday, April 17. You know you want to be one of them! (Maybe we'll name a row after you or your group? eh? eh?) Visit www.richmondgroundup.blogspot.com to RSVP.
Don't forget the Eat Good Grow Great Challenge Grant - We are cultivating this farmlet with YOUR support-- see details above!
Check out more pictures on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=166252&id=10263536138
