Located in a food desert in the Midwest, The Troostwood Youth Garden is growing fresh food and a community where no one else will. Listen to urban farmer Ericka Wright and youth Jessica Baker discuss Troostwood’s origins, how fresh food can work in the city and the importance of knowing where your food comes from in [...]
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There are as many different types of consumers of local food as there are different types of urban farmers and different types of food grown. Consumers with different needs can all benefit from urban farming. Three farms on the Kansas City Center for Urban Agriculture farm tour explain this perfectly. Kurlbaum’s Heirloom Tomatoes, J-14 Agricultural Enterprises and the Troostwood Youth [...] Farming no longer has to be about fields and barns. Right in middle of an urban district, on a plot of land next to a storefront or parking lot, an urban garden can sprout and bring a new source of food and sense of community. The saying in real-estate is location, location, location, but urban [...] We constantly hear that youth are our future, but what will that future look like with the ever-increasing disconnect between our food and ourselves? A number of local, urban farmers are fighting that future, by providing youth an opportunity to relearn our food. During the summer you’ll find youth working the fields, rows, and greenhouse at J-14 [...]
Katherine Kelly in the leafy greenhouse at KCCUA. Katherine chats with each customer at the spring transplant sale. From our perch on top of a stack of soggy hay bales, six-year-old Evangeline Ellingsworth and I can see the entirety of the farm that is her stomping ground. Beyond the curved hoophouses and still-barren fields, [...] “Poverty-borne problems can be best solved by people within the community where they are found.” The Cross-Lines organization was founded on this principle in 1963 and today provides many services to the community like emergency rent, clothing and food. Now it its third year, the community garden helps connect people with what they’re eating and supplement the food pantry. By providing fresh food and nutrition education to the public, Cross-Lines is helping to combat health issues associated with poverty. [...] This summer’s Farm Tour will give participants the opportunity to get an up close look at honeybees and learn about the benefits of local organic honey. Honey is not only nature’s energy booster, but also, an immune system builder, and remedy for seasonal allergies. Rich Sauter and Robert Burns are two Kansas City area beekeepers that hope to shed some light on the inner workings of bees. [...] J-14 Agricultural Enterprises: Joe Jennings Joe Jennings has always farmed; first on the family farm in Texas, then a small plot whenever he moved, and, now, he has 8.5 acres in Kansas City, Kansas. Joe’s J-14 Agricultural Enterprises produces a wide range of vegetables and fruits and operates as a you-pick CSA; subscribers pay, receive a key to the gate, and can come pick at any time. At the peak of production, the farm can feed over 150 families. During the summer, the 81 year old can be found working with Youth Volunteer Corps members, teaching them the skills that have led to his own joy. |
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