Work on an urban agricultural plan for Philadelphia, underway for going on two years, has taken a step forward. In a virtual public meeting that ran for the month of May, dozens of participants explored a wealth of online content, left comments, and voted in polls on an array of issues that may be covered in the plan.

Soil Generation website

A year and a half had elapsed since the first public meeting in December 2019. COVID knocked a second public hearing, scheduled for March 2020, off the calendar. Online meetings were promised later last year, but instead, the city Department of Parks and Recreation spent five months dealing with racial discord between the two consulting outfits hired by the city to help draft a plan: Interface Studios LLC, a local urban planning firm, and Soil Generation, a “Black and Brown led coalition of growers.”

Interface Studios website

In a joint statement released in March (full text here), the consultants said they have resolved their differences. “The facilitated process helped Interface become a better partner, helped build a stronger team, and will help the plan embody the project’s values of centering Black and Brown voices by applying an anti-racist lens to both the planning process and the end product,” the statement says.

The obligatory public hearing phase is now finished. The consultants and city officials working on the project say they “expect to deliver the final plan in Fall 2021.” Although comments are no longer being solicited, the virtual public hearing is still available for all to see, attractively laid out in 10 “stations,” via this  online portal to Virtual Meeting No. 2.

Station 1 is an 18-minute video orientation about the planning process.

Station 2 focuses on how history has impacted land and growing in Philadelphia.  “The history of agriculture in America is rooted in racism,” the text asserts. Among the forces that perpetuate “racialized land-based oppression,” the planning materials maintain, are “Western capitalism” and “individual ownership of land as a concept,” “colonialism” which “consistently exploits labor and appropriates culture” from people of color to “uphold colonial power,” and corporations that “continue to gobble up community enterprises, while public resources favor the wealthy.”

Spam filters use software and a set of muscle discount cialis 20mg mass. VigRX Plus is excellent supplement for fixing erectile dysfunction – along with a whole lot of unnatural soft viagra pills ingredients that may be less desirable. There are many men these days buy viagra without rx who are seeking a lot of help for erectile dysfunction. Not only does it increase their stamina and prowess in bed, it also rekindles cialis usa online lost sexual desire in them. Station 3, about access to land, asserts that it is “necessary to consider barriers to land access today as continuations of racialized land-based oppression.”  The materials go on to suggest that one of the ultimate objectives of an urban agricultural plan for Philadelphia should be a ban on private ownership of land. Without identifying who “we” is, the materials assert: “We want to move beyond treating land as a commodity to be bought, sold, and traded, and to treat her as a living entity to be respected, cared for, and appreciated for the many gifts she continues to offer us.”

Station 4, titled “What Do Community Gardens Need to Thrive?” offers a glimpse of the feedback gathered during the virtual hearing in the form of “likes” for a range of choices. The option receiving the most likes, 47, was “growing materials” such as shovels and hoes. “Growing infrastructure” such as greenhouses came next with 45 likes followed by “water infrastructure” with 31.

Under the subheading of “What do the people who tend your garden need to thrive,” a “living wage” was the top choice, with 44 likes, followed by “diversity, inclusion and antiracism training” with 31. “I would add, inclusive leadership training and conflict resolution to this,” a comment attached to that choice said.

Station 5 delves into the keeping of animals in Philadelphia, in particular bees, fish, hens, and goats. A coalition of people around town who keep hens in their backyards in defiance of a law that bars them from city lots of less than three acres are hoping the urban agricultural plan will bring them out of the shadows.

At Station 6, titled “How Do We Get Jobs and Build Businesses as Growers?” participants in the virtual meeting were offered a choice of eight “barriers to work.” The top choice, selected by 25 percent, was low wages, followed “lack of local opportunities,” cited by 16 percent. The least mentioned barrier, cited by 2 percent, was “suspected discrimination,” defined as not getting a job “because employers are racist, sexist, ageist, ableist, or biased against me.”

Station 7 discusses education while Station 8 address how urban agriculture can help preserve cultural practices such as foraging and seed saving.

Station 9, “How Can We Improve Philly Food Systems & Policies?” contains an array of suggestions including a “city good food purchasing policy” that would “ensure that public food contracts reflect community values.” And a “centralized food production facility that trains and hires Philadelphians to grow and prepare food for city programs” such as schools, recreation centers, and prisons.

Station 10 asks, “What Are Your Priorities?” Participants selected from an array of choices in three areas. In the area of “changes in existing policies or practices,” among the 87 participants who voted, the top choice, selected by 53 percent, was transparency in the sale and lease of city land for agriculture. Of the 81 participants who voted on “top priorities for city investments in community-led ventures,” the top pick, selected by 59 percent, was helping gardeners and farmers get land security through ownership or leases of land. The top priority for new city programs or initiatives was creation of an Office of Urban Agriculture.

It will be fascinating to see what Interface Studios and Soil Generation deliver at the end of this two-year process, and what the city does with it.

Last spring, when the pandemic forced the cancellation of the final round of public hearings in a process that was supposed to wrap up last fall, planners vowed to set up an “online engagement process” with updates promised “in the coming weeks.” The updates never came. Instead, Jaramillo reports, the Philadelphia Parks and Recreation department spent five months engaged in a “facilitation process” to help reconcile differences between the consultants.

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Jaramillo has done some excellent reporting on urban agriculture in Philadelphia in recent years. Unfortunately, for the urban ag scene in town, this latest piece of hers for WHYY and PlanPhilly will be her last. She announced on her Twitter page that she has accepted a job with Fact Check “to debunk misinformation about COVID-19.”

• First, peruse this map to see if the lot is city-owned and available.
• Next find out if you’re eligible to purchase the lot and submit an application. You’re supposed to get some response from PHDC within 120 days.

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PHDC’s overhaul of the system for selling publicly owned vacant lots is a result of a reform process that has been underway for several years. The push for a better way was spurred by reporting by Plan Philly and WHYY, the public radio station, which uncovered a backlog of more than 18,000 “expressions of interest” to buy some of the more than 8,000 vacant lots in the city’s inventory. Many of the queries had gone unanwered for years.

Under the new system, buyers may submit formal applications for lots approved for sale as side yards or community gardens–as long as the applicant meets certain terms and conditions. The city is supposed to respond within 120 days–with approval by no means guaranteed.

The new website acknowledges that the city has some fences to mend with community gardening advocates who have long complained about the inability to make use of blighted lots:

“The City of Philadelphia and PHDC have a strong commitment to community gardening and urban agriculture. Gardening is an important part in helping to transform and sustain communities. In the last five years, PHDC has done a lot of work in community gardening and urban agriculture. There is more work to do, but we are committed!”

PHDC also acknowledges that some gardens have already been established without authorization on vacant lots. The new system promises a possible path toward legalization for at least some of them:

“If you are already gardening on a lot but don’t have an agreement to do so, we may be able to formalize your garden.”

In considering applications, PHDC apparently will take steps to assure that vacant lots ostensibly purchased for use as “community gardens” aren’t commandeered for purely private use or perhaps flipped to a developer for a fat profit. That sort of scam does indeed happen with disposition of city-owned vacant lots, as WHYY and others have reported in, among others, a piece about a city judge who acquired lots for a pittance and sold them to a developer a year later for a $135,000 profit, and another article about how political favoritism can distort the process of disposing of vacant lots.

The new application process suggests the city will require proof that a purchaser has the intent and wherewithal to create and manage a garden that is actually open to the community. As the PHDC’s new website states:

The application to use property for a community garden, open space or recreational area will ask for information about you and, if applicable, your organization. It will also help us make sure you are up to date on your taxes, have no conflicts of interest, and comply with the City’s campaign contribution guidelines.

• The application also asks you to submit:
• An economic opportunity and inclusion plan
• Detailed plans
• Documentation that you have successfully completed such developments in the past
• Proof that you have the funds needed to complete the development
• Organizational documents

UPDATE: By midsummer, compost, mulch, and wood-chip distribution had resumed at 3850 W. Ford Road in the park. Check for schedule.

The recycling center in West Fairmount Park usually opens its doors to aficionados of its free leaf compost  like me at the start of April. That didn’t happen this year. Blame the coronovirus, and the fact that in the old setup at the recycling center, a small throng would gather around one huge mountain of compost standing practically shoulder to shoulder to fill their buckets and bags, conduct that is off limits these days.

Philadelphia Parks & Recreation came up with a new, safe setup and commenced free compost distribution this year on May 20. Mulch and compost is now spread out into 12 different numbered piles so 12 customers at a time can load up while remaining properly socially distanced, a good 20 feet apart.

Below is the notice recently sent out by the department with details about where and how you can get free compost. Word apparently hasn’t spread very far and wide yet. I dropped by for compost on both May 20 and 21 and was the lone customer both times. (Hint: for ease of loading, back your car right up to the pile and shovel the compost directly into heavy-duty trash bags in your trunk.)

Hello Philly Food Growers,

As you may know, food production has been deemed essential during the COVID-19 crisis. Philadelphia Parks & Recreation appreciates your efforts in growing food for your families and communities.

In an effort to support food production in Philadelphia, we will reopen the Fairmount Park Organic Recycling Center (3850 Ford Rd., Philadelphia, PA 19131) by appointment only for Philadelphia growers with open-bed vehicles (pick-up trucks or dump trucks) to receive free compost and mulch on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m. We ask for your personal protection and the protection of others that you follow the protocols listed below. If it is determined that protocols are not being adhered to, this service will be discontinued.

For individual growers without an open-bed vehicle, there will be free piles of mulch and compost available for growers to self-load into containers at the Fairmount Park Horticulture Center’s parking lot (100 N. Horticultural Dr., Philadelphia, PA 19131). Compost and mulch will be available Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. We ask for your personal protection and the protection of others that you follow the protocols listed below. If it is observed that protocols are not being adhered to, this service will be discontinued.

Protocols for self-service compost and mulch at the Fairmount Park Horticulture Center parking lot:

• Please remain in your vehicle until loading.
• Please be mindful if there is a line of vehicles waiting. If there are more than two cars in line, you are limited to 20 minutes to collect the materials you need.
• Only one vehicle at a pile at a time.
• You will need to bring your own shovel and container.
• You must wear a mask and gloves at all times.
• You must follow directional signage and instructions from PPR Staff
• The best way to keep yourself and others safe from COVID-19 and to end the pandemic is to stay away from other people; try to keep at least six feet between you and anyone else picking up compost or mulch. If you’re having trouble keeping a safe distance, consider coming back at another time.
• You will be asked to leave if you are not following protocols.

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Protocols for open bed vehicles at the Fairmount Park Organic Recycling Center:

• Please arrive 10 minutes prior to your scheduled appointment. We reserve the right to turn away any vehicles that are late to their appointment.
• We ask that you make a sign with the name of your garden and appointment time that can be read from 10 feet away.
• You will check in with the attendant at the gate and be given instructions on where to receive the materials.
• You must wear a mask and follow the instructions of PPR staff.
• You are not allowed to exit your vehicle.

Make your reservation for the Fairmount Park Organic Recycling Center.

Please reach out to FarmPhilly@phila.gov with any questions or concerns.

After a couple of years on a waiting list, this winter I got into one of Philadelphia’s hidden gems: the greenhouse in the Horticultural Center in West Fairmount Park,  run by the city’s department of parks and recreation. Part of the building is open to the general public. Another part of the facility is a working, commercial-grade greenhouse, half of which is used by parks & rec employees to grow seedlings for gardens in public parks and community recreation centers all over town. The other half of the greenhouse is occupied by a community propagation program. Community gardens, nonprofits, for-profit growers, and individual Philadelphians like me can rent an 8’x3′ table for $50 for the propagation season, which runs from the February through May. So, as I said, after waiting for a couple of years, I’m in, and have wasted no time getting my crops going.

It’s the third week of February, and I’m largely alone so far. Do my greenhouse neighbors know something that I don’t about the folly of getting such an early start? We’ll see.

By the third week of February, few of the other growers in the propagation program have gotten started, but I have eight or 10 different crops underway already including rutabaga, rapini,  kale, chard, cilantro, arugula, sprouting daikon radish, three or four varieties of lettuce and lots of spinach.
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I’m planning to put the spinach out in my garden, under a floating row cover, in early March, followed by the lettuce a week or two later. We’ll see how that goes.

One of the propagation program tables near mine

Another table near mine with a myriad of herbs

Philadelphia Parks & Recreation Department greenhouse

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UPDATE: Read about my adventures in the greenhouse here and here.

It’s been nearly a month since I spread a thick layer of Philadelphia Parks and Recreation compost on my community garden plot in Roxborough, and planted some salad-mix seeds in it. The seeds germinated, the seedlings are thriving, and I haven’t seen any five-legged toads in the garden. So that load of city compost, from the parks department’s recycling center at 3850 Ford Road in Fairmount Park, was apparently good, non-toxic stuff.

The compost, in a pile set aside for the general public, alongside piles

Compost in early April was cleaner than the plastic-cluttered stuff later in the month

of mulch and manure, varied on each of my three visits to the recycling center in April. When I dropped by for a bag on April 24, the compost was riddled with shreds of plastic bags, nylon rope and other decidedly nonbiodegradable trash, which was easy enough to pick out but a bit unsettling anyway. Earlier in the month, the recycling center’s compost was free of trash.

You can’t complain about the price. It is available free-of-charge, 30 gallons at a time, to anyone with an ID proving that that they are a Philadelphia city resident.
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The recycling center’s web site describes the material as “screened leaf compost,” which is made on site from “leaves and herbivore manure.” It contains no sewage or sludge material and is “approved for various applications and is tested periodically through the U.S. Composting Council Seal of Testing Assurance Program,” the web site says.

The most recent test results were released on April 7 by the Penn State Agricultural Analytical Services Laboratory, which analyzed a sample of compost collected in late March. The detailed analysis, posted on the recycling center’s web site, indicates that the compost on that day hit the sweet spot by the most important measures.

The nitrogen content was 1.9 percent by dry weight, towards the upper end of the average range for finished compost of 0.5 to 2.5 percent. The Ph level was 8.0, a notch above the neutral measure of 7, which is about what garden soil for vegetables should be.

My seedlings like Philly Parks & Rec compost

In addition to a chemical analysis, the test also entailed planting cucumber seeds in the stuff to see whether they would sprout and thrive. The U.S. Compost Council uses the germination rate to group compost in three grades, from “immature” to “mature” to “very mature,” with a germination rate of over 90 percent required to qualify for the latter, highest grade. The sample of Philadelphia municipal compost from late March passed that part of the test with flying colors. Germination and seedling vigor for the cucumbers planted in it were both clocked at 100 percent. I can’t say that 100 percent of the seeds I planted in parks department compost germinated, but most of them did,  as the photo below will attest.