(R)evolution of My Yard Part 2

Our first attempts at urban agriculture in Seattle also changed the way we ate. We had been living in New York, where the eating is good believe me, but we didn’t do much growing there other than container gardening.  The farmer’s markets weren’t as widespread there as they are in Seattle now.  Once we hit the Pacific Northwest, we jumped into local food knowing what we ate with both feet, so to speak.

We had been subscribers to a CSA and were frequent fliers at the farmer’s market in Ballard. Living in Seattle is a beautiful thing when it comes to farmer’s markets. In both of my neighborhoods I’ve lived in here, we’ve had year-round farmer’s markets.

Last summer we went to the market, but we didn’t necessarily need to. And that, friends, was awesome!  Lots of ink has been spilled on how expensive farmer’s markets can be, but in my experience they aren’t necessarily so.  Most neighborhood farmer’s markets here have certified organic farm stands, local farm stands stating that they use “No Spray,” as well as those that don’t specify. These no spray booths are typically less expensive, and they’re local and you can meet your farmer.  Which is pretty much what it’s all about.

In fact, Double S got the idea for squash blossoms from a no spray farmer at the Ballard farmer’s market.  The booths often may not look like they were set up by a food stylist, but the end result is the same. Delicious fruits and vegetables. We have some things we only buy organic and others that we feel more flexibility around.  Bottom line: farmer’s markets can be a viable option for most people to get fresh fruits and vegetables.

Just as the growing season was coming to an end in 2oo9, we were moving into our new homestead. When we were packing our things at The Treehouse, our landlord asked us to be sure to clean out the weeds and dead vines and things from our garden plot, because he planned on turning our plot into a new parking space for his boat–dying inside. Double S and I were in (figurative) tears and still suck our teeth and shake our heads at that little tidbit. We made so much happen in that little plot. Magic, even.

PS, that song makes a great selection on a mixtape to woo girls. Just ask Double S!

Although we loved and still love the Treehouse, we always dreamed of the day we would have more space, more room to expand our growing power and less lectures about gardening techniques from local characters–ee mansplaining. When Double S and I finally decided to make that big step to homeownership, after much looking, we fell in love with our new yard before we even saw the inside of the house. Yep, the yard had us at hello.

It’s only a front yard, technically, but it’s fenced and landscaped and has mature fruit trees and raspberries and blueberries (RASPBERRIES AND BLUEBERRIES!) and grass that we can DESTROY in the name of growing our own food. Kill! Grass, that is.

Right now we’re in the process of revolutionizing our yard from a pretty sweet and landscaped (fake river bed, anyone?) hang out space, to a lil’ urban farm. With the help of our knowledgable and awesome friend Meg Brown of growandresist, we’re taking measurements to make at least half of the yard fertile for crop production.

Stay tuned! It is the year of urban agriculture here in Seattle, ya know. Seriously. It is! Get with the program!

About the author: M.J. Briggs grew up in St. Louis, then spent seven years living it up in NYC before moving to Seattle. Now, finally with some space to give it a shot, Briggs is going to town with urban agriculture. Converting lawn to food, then canning, preserving and cooking the heck out of it! And maybe keeping chickens? Briggs blogs at ohbriggsy.wordpress.com.  Drop Briggs a line at ohbriggsy.gmail.com.

Related posts:

1. (R)evolution of My Yard Part 1
2. The (R)Evolution of My Yard Part 5: Green Everywhere
3. The (R)evolution of My Yard Part 3: Transplants and Seed Starting

---

Comments RSS You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.