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Formerly a city garbage dump in the middle of a low-income neighborhood, the site that St. Mary’s Urban Youth Farm now occupies and beautifies, was once a blight on the community. In the mid 1990’s neighbors along with local gardening activists organized to turn this wasted land into a community asset. Cheerful and informative, Naomi Goodwin, director of St. Mary’s Urban Youth Farm was kind enough to talk with me about the goings on at the farm, and the story she told was one of transition.Since 1995 when ground was broken on this garden, the space has served to improve the health and lives of the community. Despite recent funding shifts away from community gardening projects, area residents have continued to recognize and benefit from the farm’s bounty. Youth volunteers work alongside trained gardeners to produce food that is sold at discounted rates in local farmers markets. The young volunteers are trained in skills that they can utilize and market the rest of their lives, while the community receives the benefits of affordable locally grown organic produce. Birds, butterflies, bees, and other local fauna find a home in the native plants that hold the hillside in place, all the while compost bins overflow and the blades of the windmill turn lazily in the soft breeze. Walking into this garden was like seeing a dream come true. Not only did I feel like I’d suddenly stepped into the countryside, but I could clearly see all of the basic Eco-friendly gardening steps that I teach folks here in the Twin Cities working on a larger scale then I’d ever seen in a city.Several local organizations work with the land at St. Mary’s. While various groups of volunteers tend to the crops, others work to keep the beehives buzzing. Naomi impressed me with her sense for the overall health of the space. “We have so many volunteer’s here that sometimes things get out of balance.” Naomi explained, “We used to get a lot more migratory birds stopping by the pond, but since more of our land has gone to food production, and less to native plants, the system is out of balance and we aren’t providing enough habitat to entice them here as much.” The full vision for the space has not yet been realized. Physical changes such as adding a water pump to the windmill. Once the windmill is pumping, then water from Isle creek pond, which sits in the middle of the farm, can be used on the crops. Organizational shifts away from agency to agency competition for land use and towards a more collaborative approach are also needed before the farm functions to it’s highest potential. Despite this room for improvement, St. Mary’s Urban Youth Farm is an example of excellence in landscaping. Transitioning this space from a dump to an urban farm has proven to be an enormous benefit to the community. Gardeners everywhere can learn from these neighbors good work, and those of us lucky enough to have our own little corner of the earth to shape, should heed the good example of the folks at St. Mary’s. Wherever we can we need to turn open urban space into habitat for earthlings of all stripes. In Minneapolis and St. Paul our yards and parks give us green space on nearly every block. I hope for all our sake that many more of us here at home begin to recognize our unique responsibility as citizens of these gorgeously green cities to preserve, and maintain the lush vibrancy of our home towns. I know for my part, I’m planning to put a rain garden full of native plants in the back yard this spring in order to provide habitat for birds and butterflies. After all I figure, why have a yard, when I could have an enchanting, urban oasis! "If help and salvation are to come, they can only come from the children, for the children are the makers of men."
"There are two lasting bequests we can give our children:
one is roots. The other is wings."
"It often happens to children - and sometimes to gardeners - that they are given gifts of value of which they do not perceive until much later."
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The Seed Vol. 24 March. 20, 2009 A Giving Tree Gardens Newsletter
Photos by Russ Henry and Shaunna McBride ©2009 ,Text by Russ Henry ©2009 by Giving Tree Gardens, all rights reserved.
A Farm In The City
Driving through the densely populated rolling hills of San Francisco made this Minneapolis gardener realize how blessed with green space we in the city of lakes truly are. The concrete jungle of San Francisco extends along the coast and stretches for miles inland. Houses and apartment buildings stand side by side, straddling the hillsides. The buildings are so tightly packed that as we drive past, they seem like cars linked together on the biggest roller coaster imaginable. In this very urban setting even a little patch of grass stands out to my green seeking eyes, and from the moment I first spotted St. Mary’s Urban Youth Farm, I knew I’d found an oasis.
The unmistakable guidance of thoughtful organic gardeners was apparent even as I zoomed down the freeway past this farm in the city. Enthralled by what I saw, I turned off at the next exit, and headed back towards the green space that caught my eye. What I found when I pulled up to St. Mary’s delighted and surprised me. All the tell tale signs were present, compost bins, native plantings, bee hives, rain water capturing, healthy looking edible crops, and even a towering wind mill, I was certain that this was the work of knowledgeable organic gardeners. After taking my fill of pictures, I set out to dig a little deeper and find out everything I could about this enchanting urban oasis.
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May 2-3, 2009
Join Russ Henry of Giving Tree Gardens this May 2nd and 3rd at the Living Green Expo!!
Free Expo Workshop
with Giving Tree Gardens owner, RUSS HENRY
Sunday, May 3, 2009 from
11 till noon,Join Russ for his class, Healthy Yards, Healthy Lives: 7 Steps to Growing Personal and Global Health In Your Own Back Yard!
Plant Profile: California-lilac
Ceanothus
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This blue beauty had me taking as much notice as the honey bees! As perfect in function as it is in form, ceanothus are naturally giving. Sprouting only after forest fires, these shrubs form a symbiotic relationship with soil micro-organisms, forming root nodules that draw nitrogen from the air into the soil. This nitrogen is then available to help adjacent plants grow. Ceanothus plays an important role in forest regeneration as it creates nutrient-rich patches in forest habitats. Various species of Ceanothus thrive throughout the Americas. Here in Minnesota, we can grow Ceanothus Americus, commonly known as New Jeresy Tea. Uses of this plant range from hand soap and basket making to blood pressure medicine and herbal tea. Ending homelessness, one person at a time
Project Homeless Connect is a one-stop shop model for delivering services to people experiencing homelessness.. These services include: housing providers, employment specialists, medical care, mental health care, benefits specialists, eye care, haircuts, transportation assistance, food and clothing. YOU can help!
1,000 citizen volunteers are needed at the next event on May 11th, 2009. The Convention Center space will be set up with many tables, rooms, and areas for the various services available and volunteers will assist the guests in connecting with the services they need or request.
FREE GARDEN CLASSES!!!
Calling all gardeners! Mother Earth Gardens, Is hosting FREE GARDEN CLASSES!!!
Join Russ Henry of Giving Tree Gardens on Wednesday, April 1st 2009, to learn how you can have it Made In The Shade in your urban garden space. Classes happen Every Wednesday Evening at 7:00 through the begining of April, so make sure to click below for the full class schedule.
Bring your garden questions, and ideas!
Everybody had to stop and smell the flowers in this amazing green space. Birds, butterflies, bees, and people all feel at home in the garden.
The Red-winged Blackbird above plays in the cat tails surrounding Isle Creek Pond, while the honey bees below turn garden nectar into sweet gold.
Notice how the farm stands out in contrast to the freeway and buildings that surround it. This place is an oasis in the busy city. Year round growth occurs in the warm San Francisco climate. The smart organic gardeners of St. Mary's take full advantage of these condusive conditions through the clever act of Cover Cropping.
Composting, native plant use, cover cropping, bee keeping, rain water retention, and food production, St. Mary's Urban Youth Farm is an example of excellence in landscaping.
