At the Pulaski Zeralda Community Garden in Germantown, the air is thick with the scent of green onions and okra. These vegetables grow from some of the 38 plots, including one dedicated to a local women’s center. This season alone, the garden yielded blackberries, strawberries, tomatoes, okra, peppers, corn and collards. The garden participates in
MoreA local seed company quietly amasses a tomato treasure troveHearing Happy Cat Organics’ Tim Mountz talk about tomatoes is enough to make any food-loving soul long for summer. Along with his wife Amy Bloom, Mountz has compiled a seed collection featuring 200 varieties of heirloom tomatoes. If that sounds like a lot, have no fear:
MoreWith help from a USDA grant, PHS Launches the Community Grower’s Allianceby Lee Stabert
The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society has been awarded a $300,000 grant from the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Over the three-year lifespan of the grant, PHS will use the money to expand City Harvest, its expansive urban food growing program, through
On a roof or in a yard, Grace Wicks grows gardenersby Char VandermeerIt was easy to pick Grace Wicks, sole proprietor of Graceful Gardens, out of the horde of stern-faced suits bustling by the Four Seasons Hotel in Center City. She was the one wearing a great big grin and carrying a giant green gardening
MorePrisoners and community gardeners help feed Philadelphia's hungry by Natalie Hope McDonald
Adjacent to a soccer field in fairmount park, in view of what’s left of the Delaware River’s wetlands, the Philadelphia Prison System operates eight correctional facilities for men and women along State Road.
The Horticultural Center at Magee Rehabilitation Hospital eases pain with plantsby Emily Schu
Six stories above 16th and race, an elevator opens to a secluded street complete with a parked car, cobblestone sidewalks, a telephone booth, raised garden beds and potted peppers, tomatoes and pumpkins. At its peak, the rooftop is blooming with life, far from
Mill Creek Farm sets a standard for sustainable farmingby Will DeanBat Cave #2. That’s the first thing you can easily make out about the main farm building at West Philly’s nonprofit Mill Creek Farm. It’s painted in yellow on a piece of metal that juts out of a low, glimmering building in the middle of
MoreA local teen finds success by growing healthy foodby Dana HenryThe school bell rings and teenagers fill the entrance halls of University City High School. Many are running and some are calling out to their friends, relieved from a long day of classes. A young man apologizes to the woman at the front desk who
MoreTurn waste into black goldby Will DeanIf you’re reading this magazine, you probably have at least have a vague idea of what composting is. The natural way to make nutritious (for plants, that is) fertilizer, composting was once a standard practice for every farmer, gardener and consumer.
MoreWhat brings you to the food issue? Are you trying to find that tiny restaurant for a transcendent dining experience? Is it a recipe you need that will unlock your creativity and wow your friends and family? After all, what is more pleasurable than eating or preparing a delicious meal? (Please don’t say your answers
MoreIsn’t it inspiring to see Michelle Obama and a class of fifth graders digging up the White House lawn, planting the first garden there since Eleanor Roosevelt’s victory garden in 1943? It’s clear that nutrition is going to be a priority for our First Lady, and her interest in it is personal; a few years
More