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Posted by Xi Wang | August 10th, 2010

Story and photos by Allison Burket

On July 26, despite record-breaking temperatures, over a dozen volunteers joined DC Food For All for a Saturday morning workday at Common Good City Farm!

[Common Good City Farm, Washington, DC’s only urban farm, was founded in 2006 to support healthy, affordable food access in DC communities. Two years ago, it relocated from its original home on 7^th Street NW (you may remember it as the 7^th Street Garden) at the request of the LeDroit Park Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC). Now located at V & 3^rd Streets NW on what was formerly a baseball field on the grounds of a shuttered middle school, Common Good has since provided over 400 bags of fresh produce.

Between time spent tending the berry plants, volunteers took a tour of the farm – which includes a forest garden, a weed garden, and dutifully decaying compost piles. The farm itself was a delight, featuring arrangements of leafy greens, berry plants, and everything in between. My favorite part was the intentionally meandering, spiraling walkways that practically force visitors to stop and smell the sunflowers. The farm is organized and maintained based on principles of permaculture, which works to mimic relationships between species found in nature, thereby encouraging crops to support each other as they grow.

We later reviewed the programming components of Common Good’s educational and gleaning programs. Through the Green Tomorrow program, produce from the farm goes to neighborhood residents, who work a certain number of hours on the farm in exchange for fresh fruits and vegetables.   The rest is donated to local food pantries dedicated to improving healthy food access. Common Good also engages youth in the neighborhood, encouraging in the next generation the skills and enthusiasm to eat healthy and prepare their own food.

The day ended, of course, with a potluck! A feast of beet brownies, freshly-picked peaches, and a cumin quinoa salad was well worth the sweat and sunburn.

Want to get or stay involved? We talked with Spencer, the farm manager, and Olivia, the volunteer coordinator about all sorts of ways DC Food For All readers can support Common Good:

Call your Councilmember! Common Good needs help pushing the City Council to move forward on plans to turn the empty lot next to the farm into a neighborhood park! The park would be an important asset to the community and would help draw wider neighborhood participation to the farm. Ward 8 Councilmember Marion Berry recently moved to extend the public comment period for the proposal, adding another delay to the long-overdue approval and construction of the park.

This most recent postponement increases the likelihood that the city may never come through on its promise. Call Councilmember Barry at (202) 724-8045 or Ward 1 Councilmember Jim Graham (202) 724-8181 to urge action on the park for LeDroit Park!

Volunteer! Olivia the volunteer coordinator also emphasized that Common Good is always looking for individuals interested in sharing their time or specific talents with the farm.

The Farm is open Monday and Thursday afternoons (3-7 pm) and Wednesday and Saturday mornings (10 am -1 pm). Visitors are always welcome to stop by, though Common Good requires that any who would like to volunteer participate in one of the volunteer orientation sessions, which usually take place the first Saturday of every month. Check here!

If you are interested in neighborhood outreach, enthusiastic about grant-writing, enjoy putting up fliers, or want to help with database management, e-mail info@commongoodcityfarm.org with “Attn: Olivia” in the subject line.

Did you know they take food scraps? Your kitchen waste can help nourish the farm! Drop off your food scraps (no meat or dairy please!) anytime during work hours and Common Good will help you add it to their compost pile! Click here for a full list of what they accept.

Donate! Tax-deductible donations can be made on the website. Click here!

Posted by Xi Wang | July 12th, 2010

The DC Food For All will host a volunteer workday at Common Good City Farm. The mission of the farm is to grow food, educate, and help low-income DC community members meet their food needs. We’ll get our hands dirty on the farm and have a potluck while sharing thoughts about food systems in DC, with a focus on food justice in communities.

We’ll work on Saturday, July 24, from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. So bring your enthusiasm, good company, and a dish if the fancy strikes you. We’ll help out with things such as:

• mounding potatoes
• securing drip tape with hangers
• woodchipping
• weeding
• planting!
• securing tomato plants
• processing cured garlic
• potentially helping dig a rain garden

RSVP to Xi Wang at cele8stial@gmail.com by July 18 if you are interested in helping out and let us know if you can bring some food to share. Let’s get dirty!

Posted by Xi Wang | June 14th, 2010

*UPDATED* Howard University Hospital (HUH) is hosting a fresh produce market geared toward the community and residents of the Shaw Neighborhood. Farmers on Wheels is a collaboration between DC WIC (Women, Infant and Children) Program and HUH CARES (Comprehensive Area Resources, Entitlement and Services). Although there are a handful of nearby farmer’s markets, most of [...]

Posted by Xi Wang | March 9th, 2010

DC Food Not Bombs is an adhocratic group that shares vegan and vegetarian meals to promote healthy eating, peace, non-violence, community, and the reduction of waste in our economies. Barrett Jones made this short video of some of the behind-the-scenes preparation and serving.

[Cross posted to DC Food Not Bombs]

Posted by Xi Wang | February 19th, 2010

With shovels and forks, local food justice advocates will descend on the Historical Society of Washington tomorrow for Rooting DC, the District’s own urban agriculture forum. Workshops are organized around four themes–production, distribution, preparation and preservation–in order to explore how food finds its way from the field to our forks.

For the first time in it’s 3-year history, Rooting DC will feature cooking demonstrations.  Steve Seuser, who planned and coordinated the demonstrations, says that presenters will share how to prepare cooked, raw, and fermented foods, as well as canning basics. In particular, the demonstrations will feature recipes that are fast and affordable for families, as well as processes for gardeners who grow a lot and aren’t sure what to do with the overabundance.

Tracye McQuirter, a nutritionist with the UDC Center for Nutrition, Diet, and Health, will present during Workshop Session 2. We talked with Tracye about the importance of eating hea

Posted by Xi Wang | January 15th, 2010

Food access is a topic that is gaining attention both nationally and locally.  A few stories this past week have converged on the topics of food access and children. The momentum for school gardens and for students to have a better understanding of their relationship to food is building–especially in the nation’s capital.  The installment [...]