Wed, 25 Jul 2007
Philadelphia Urban Farms Bike Tour
As my first adventure in long distance, group bicycling, me and Eylem
attended Philadelphia Urban Farms Bike Tour organized by Chris Hill of
Weaver's Way Co-op . I was being lazy - huh, I biked ~30 miles! - so I
did not bring my camera along (mistake), but I brought my gps along -
hey, do not blame me, I was afraid, I would be totally lost somewhere
on the way to West Philadelphia from Mt Airy. Anyway, we made the
whole way, biked some extra at the end to Market East station since we
chickened out from biking home from north Philly. It was fun, it was
educational, it was tiring but it was rewarding too since it was the
longest we ever biked and first time in a group. I hope to do it
again. And hey, urban farms, they are great things. I hope they spread
and they succeed in their aims.
So, the point of this entry, I finally uploaded my gps map which is
superimposed onto google maps: Bread Crumbs showing the route we took
I said I was lazy right? So I am copying from Weaver's Way homepage,
here is info about the farms:
- The Weavers Way Co-op Farm is a one and a half acre organic (not
certified) farm that supplies the well-known food cooperative with
vegetables and flowers throughout the growing season. The Farm is
managed by David Zelov, a Co-op staff person. The farm is located
in East Mt. Airy's Awbury Arboretum, near Chew and Washington
Lane. Click here for more on the farm's history.
- The Mill Creek Farm is a collectively run urban education farm
that utilizes vacant land to improve local access to nutritious
foods and to promote sustainable resource use by growing and
distributing produce and by demonstrating ecological methods of
living. Run with enthusiasm and creativity by co-managers Jade and
Johanna, the farm sells produce on location twice a week, sells to
nearby Mariposa Co-op, and has an on-site building featuring a
living roof, composting toilet and straw and mud walls. Click here
for more about Mill Creek Farm.
- Mary Seton Corboy co-founded Greensgrow Farms in 1997 with the
idea of selling right off the farm produce to Philadelphia chefs
from an abandoned property in Kensington, within site of
Philadelphia's downtown. Today Greensgrow is a nationally
recognized leader in urban farming, still selling to local
restaurants (including Django, White Dog, Fork, Standard Tap,
Little Fish, Rose Tattoo, and Beau Monde) but also open to the
public from early spring through Thanksgiving. A small but
dedicated staff runs a multifaceted operation, including a
nursery, a farm market, and a Community Supported Agriculture
(CSA) program, proving that abandoned land is only abandoned if we
choose to leave it that way. Click here for more on Greensgrow
Farms.
- Spring Gardens, at 18th & Wallace Streets, is a mature,
lovingly tended community garden between Spring Garden and
Fairmount on 18th Street.
(and ahem, we also visited Yard's brewery.
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