People have always grown food in urban spaces—on windowsills and sidewalks, and in backyards and neighborhood parks—but today, urban farmers are leading an environmental and social movement that transforms our national food system. To explore this agricultural renaissance, brothers David and Michael Hanson and urban farmer Edwin Marty document twelve successful urban farm programs, from an alternative school for girls in Detroit, to a backyard food swap in New Orleans, to a restaurant supply garden on a rooftop in Brooklyn. Each beautifully illustrated essay offers practical advice for budding farmers, such as composting and keeping livestock in the city, decontaminating toxic soil, even changing zoning laws.
Breaking Through Concrete Building an Urban Farm Revival
About the Book
Reviews
“The information is inspiring and would be of value to school groups considering planting a garden or participating in an urban farm program.”—Green Teacher
“Gardeners and foodies may be inspired by this book to hit the road themselves and visit some of the urban oases described. Even better, some may stay home, follow the book’s good advice, and cultivate their own food garden.”—Library Journal
“Presents stories of hope and triumph over homelessness, over difficult municipal regulations, over hunger.”—Los Angeles Times
“If you think getting rid of your lawn is a radical idea, you'll be blown away by ‘Breaking Through Concrete: Building an Urban Farm Revival,’ by David Hanson and Edwin Marty (University of California Press, $29.95). Urban agriculture is evolving in thrilling and surprising ways, and this examination of 12 successful city farm programs updates us on how, where and what's next. The gardeners profiled are visionary, the tone political yet instructive, the examples both gritty and inspiring. From the success of Seattle's P-Patch program to kids milking goats at the Edible Schoolyard in Berkeley, Calif., this is a book that will touch your heart, expand your mind and motivate you to scale up your own food production.”—Seattle Times
“Wonderfully photographed visits to a dozen urban farms all over America from Seattle (P-Patch) to Brooklyn's own Annie Novak's Eagle Street. The authors asked hard questions and got honest answers. This is a great resource for anyone who wants to get started, and the beautiful farms and farmers are well worth a look.”—Marion Nestle The Atlantic/Health Blog
"You will glean stories of inspiration that will leave you determined to start growing food."—Urban Farm"There’s a conviction among many sustainable agriculture advocates that the best way to move agriculture forward is to look back. The hope is to return to an exalted era in agriculture, to the kind of rural scene fit for a Rockwell painting or a Shaker Village—to food grown the old fashioned way. Breaking Through Concrete is not that, which is exactly the point. This ode to urban farming is not nostalgic (those are skyscrapers in the background, not silos), but instructive. It's a beautiful, gritty and very real portrait of the possibilities for the future of food." — Dan Barber, Executive Chef & Co-owner of Blue Hill
"A road map to the future of America. A blueprint of possibilities. A book full of remarkable stories of neighborhood visionaries, stories of people who grow community in their gardens. Where others see trouble, they see food and hope." —NPR's Kitchen Sisters
"Finally, a book on the full continuum of urban agriculture in America, replete with inspiring images of the people and places behind today's city-grown food. Hanson and Marty tell these stories with such admiration for their subjects you'll want to bestow hero status to city farmers." —Darrin Nordahl, author of Public Produce: The New Urban Agriculture
“Breaking Through Concrete will satisfy readers hungry for a broad perspective on urban agriculture. The beautiful stories and photographs of successful programs throughout North America, combined with practical ‘how to’ guides, provides a valued resource for practitioners, advocates, scholars, and gardeners.” —Laura Lawson, author of City Bountiful: A Century of Community Gardening in America
Table of Contents
Foreword by Mark Winne
Preface by David Hanson
Introduction by Edwin Marty
1. P-Patch Community Garden Program, Seattle, Washington • The Neighborhood Garden
HOW TO: Change Your City’s Urban Agriculture Zoning Codes
2. Homeless Garden Project, Santa Cruz, California • The Farm as Therapy
HOW TO: Grow Good, Safe Food
3. Fairview Gardens and the Center for Urban Agriculture, Santa Barbara, California • The Historic Farm
HOW TO: Plant Perennial Fruit Trees in the City
4. Denver Urban Gardens, Denver, Colorado • The Garden as Community
HOW TO: Turn Your Waste into Black Gold Compost
5. Kansas City Center for Urban Agriculture, Kansas City, Kansas and Missouri • The Farm for Profit
HOW TO: Access Start-Up Capital for Urban Food Projects
6. Versailles Community, New Orleans, Louisiana • Backyards of Bounty
HOW TO: Develop a Congregational Urban Farm
7. Jones Valley Urban Farm, Birmingham, Alabama • The Education and Production Farm
HOW TO: Engage the Community with Education Programs
8. Greensgrow, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania • The Nonprofit, For-Profit Farm
HOW TO: Rehabilitate Contaminated Soils
9. Eagle Street Rooftop Farm, Brooklyn, New York • The Rooftop Farm
HOW TO: Convert Rooftops to Residential Gardens and Urban Farms
10. Catherine Ferguson Academy, Detroit, Michigan • The Alternative Curriculum Farm
HOW TO: Raise Urban Livestock
11. Growing Home’s Wood Street Urban Farm, Chicago, Illinois • The Job Training Farm
HOW TO: Extend the Growing Season with Hoop Houses and Greenhouses
12. Sandhill Organics and Prairie Crossing, Grayslake, Illinois • The Peri-urban Farm
HOW TO: Start an Urban Farm
Conclusion by Edwin Marty
Acknowledgments
Bibliography