Urban Farmgirl

bungalows

No Acres Gardening

• Window boxes (made from untreated rot resistant wood, of course)
• Porch boxes (for our brick half-walls)
• Roof boxes (we can get to our little garage roof rather easily)
• Hanging baskets
• Use vertical space--outdoor shelving, perhaps
• Indoor window garden (herbs, greens)
• Perimeter garden (leave the middle of our tiny yard for the kids to play, but surround the yard with foot-deep beds)
• Non-typical gardening (hydroponics, mushrooms)
• Sprouting (deserves its own post--fresh sprouts all winter, no garden needed!)

• Sun. Our little lot happens to be dug right into a hill, and with houses on all sides, we get very little direct sunlight. I have to limit my ground plantings to shade-loving plants (benefit: I can grow spinach through July and August!). I can plant sun-loving plants, such as strawberries and tomatoes, in hanging baskets. (And then the bugs can't get them as easily!)
• Soil Quality. Urban gardeners have to be very careful about just planting something in the soil in their backyard. Many city lots are contaminated with heavy metals from traffic, soot (cities used to run on coal and wood, remember?), and even house paint. Even our mostly brick bungalow has leaded and heavily chipping paint on roof and window trim; our soil has moderate levels of lead in it. I would recommend hauling in some safer soil, if you can. We're also planning to add our homemade compost (from kitchen scraps) to the soil, which adds nutrients and reduces the heavy metal ratio.
• Water Needs. Container gardens dry out more quickly than gardens in the ground; be sure to check your plants regularly for dryness and read seed packets carefully for water recommendations. (A rain barrel would be great for saving costs on water, which us city folk have to purchase.)

predators!

living here, living now

What sort of things can this urban farmgirl do now to live sustainably and prepare for farming, you may ask? Good question. And the full answer would not be short! But allow me to give you some great ideas:

• Install a rain barrel at the end of a gutter or three.
• Get a varmint-proof com compost bin and put your kitchen scraps and yard wastes there.
• Tuck vegetables amidst your landscaping plants, or devote a whole bed or container garden to organic veggies.
• Use window boxes for flowers and/or herbs.
• Support a local farmer by buying produce from her throughout the summer, either at a farmer's market or through a weekly subscription service (CSA).
• Grow your veggies at a nearby community garden.
• If there's no community garden nearby, start one! Look for abandoned lots and see about renting them. Most owners are glad to have something on there besides brush and trash.
• Indoors, put herbs and greens (lettuce, kale, spinach) to grow in a sunny window for winter veggies.
• Sprout seeds and beans for cheap and easy winter nutrition.
• If you have a small lawn, consider an electric mower or a reel mower. We use outdoor scissors!
• Recycle everything you can.
• Learn to cook whole foods from scratch. Stock up on whole grains and beans and figure out how to make something yummy.
• Bake your own bread. Every farmgirl should know how to do this!
• Grind your flour from bulk organic wheat berries. We used part of a tax return to buy my grain mill, after years of wanting one!

Those are just ideas to get your gears working. I'd love to hear what you do to farm in the city, or things you do on your 40 acres that could be translated into an urban environment.

so it begins

As I stare out my window at my container sugar snap peas, growing above the makeshift support my husband made out of lumber onto a twig we attached yesterday, in haste, to prevent the little crop (which makes up a quarter of my garden this year) from falling over, I realize one small truth:

A farmgirl can grow anywhere.

As my husband can attest, I spend a lot of my daydreaming time planning our farm-to-be. As I knead bread, clean up toys, fold the laundry, drive through rush hour, pick weeds, change diapers, listen to the neighbors blast their music as my little ones try to sleep--I dream. About the land we'll have, with its rolling hills, lush pasture, hardwood forest, babbling brook...about the house we'll live in, fixing it up into a quaint and comfy home, or building it up from the ground with our own four hands...about the garden we'll grow, the heirloom tomatoes, potatoes, peas, greens, fruit trees, blueberries, orange peppers....about the animals, the sheep, the cows, the chickens, the pigs, the barn cats...about the greenhouse, the chicken coop, the barn, the wood shed, the playhouse...about the new life that is to come. I long for it, though I know not when it will arrive, or even how or where. It feels like a destiny of sorts; a calling from God.

But my current call is right here, right now. In the city. I must channel my farmgirl heart toward growing myself and my family, right where I am. I am asking God to grow my love for Him, for neighbor, for city, even for self. I am striving for holiness, selflessness, grace, patience, diligence, love, and truth--all things that will serve me well in the city and on the future farm, and surely in the life to come. I will take down gutters and put up a rain barrel; I will compost outside and vermicompost inside; I will bake my bread, buy veggies from a local farm, cook from scratch, sew, knit, clean, create, save. I will rise early to spend time with my Father, to plan my day, to brew the coffee. I'll homeschool my little ones and love my husband.

So this farmgirl will grow. And she'll grow veggies. And kids. And so much more! All from a little brick bungalow in the city.