from the new york times:
Urban Farmers’ Crops Go From Vacant Lot to Market
By TRACIE McMILLAN
Published : May 7, 2008
IN the shadows of the elevated tracks toward the end of the No. 3 line
in East New York, Brooklyn, with an April chill still in the air,
Denniston and Marlene Wilks gently pulled clusters of slender green
shoots from the earth, revealing a blush of tiny red shallots at the
base.
"Dennis used to keep them big, and people didn’t buy them,"
Mrs. Wilks said. "They love to buy scallions."
Growing up in rural Jamaica, the Wilkses helped their families raise
crops like sugar cane, coffee and yams, and take them to market. Now,
in Brooklyn, they are farmers once again, catering to their neighbors’
tastes : for scallions, for bitter melons like those from the West
Indies and East Asia and for cilantro for Latin-American dinner
tables.
"We never dreamed of it," said Mr. Wilks, nor did his relatives
in Jamaica. "They are totally astonished when you tell them that
you farm and go to the market."
For years, New Yorkers have grown basil, tomatoes and greens in window
boxes, backyard plots and community gardens. But more and more New
Yorkers like the Wilkses are raising fruits and vegetables, and not
just to feed their families but to sell to people on their block.
This urban agriculture movement has grown even more vigorously
elsewhere. Hundreds of farmers are at work in Detroit, Milwaukee,
Oakland and other areas that, like East New York, have low-income
residents, high rates of obesity and diabetes, limited sources of
fresh produce and available, undeveloped land.
More at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/07/dining/07urban.html?ex=1210824000&en=9d6a23b0418d45a4&ei=5070&emc=eta1
--
What use was it having all that money if you could never sit still
or just watch your cattle eating grass?
- Alexander McCall Smith, _The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency_
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