Urban agriculture

The Little Orchard That Could

What do you do if you live near a strip of WSDOT-owned land that abuts I-5, is overrun by invasive plants and rapidly fills with unclaimed dog excrement? In Wallingford, you might introduce yourself to your neighbors, petition the government and dream bigger. That’s exactly what a group of friends and neighbors did at the Freeway Estates, starting back in 2010. Now, the land they have reclaimed from blackberries and dog poop has grown into a community meeting space which hosts…

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Help Harvest Fruit Trees

Mariah at Lettuce Link asked us to repost our call for volunteers to help harvest fruit trees so that they can donate it to local food banks. "I’m still particularly looking for folks to volunteer as Harvest Leads in Wallingford," Mariah adds. Here’s the skinny: Harvest Fruit for Donation! The Community Fruit Tree Harvest, a program of Lettuce Link at Solid Ground, serves our community by gleaning fresh fruit from backyard trees to donate to food banks and free meal programs. Fruit Tree…

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Chicken Coops and Urban Farms

Have you been toying with the idea of building a backyard chicken coop or starting your own little farm? If you want some creative inspiration, then you'll definitely want to check out Seattle Tilth's Chicken Coop & Urban Farm Tour on Saturday, July 13, from 10:00am to 4:00pm: In this self-guided tour, you will see simple chicken coops built in an afternoon and elaborate finely-crafted coops that took weeks of planning and building. See what accommodations are needed for keeping miniature…

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Community Greenhouse Seeks Seedling Nurturers

If you’ve got the itch to get your hands in the dirt, the Wallingford greenhouse, aka “A Growing Community,” could use your help! You might remember that last summer, we featured Wallingford resident Cyrus Appell, who has donated the use of his backyard greenhouse to the greater good for the past five years. Thanks to the time donated by dozens of volunteers, thousands of seedlings have been distributed to giving gardens throughout Seattle. At harvest time, the fruits (and veggies) of…

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Congrats to the lady with a lopper and a ladder

Barb Burrill, one of Wallingford's hardest working volunteers, recycling guru, Wallyhood writer, and community tree steward, has been selected as a national finalist for the Alliance for Community Trees (ACTrees) 2012 Volunteer of the Year Award. ACTrees awards individuals who are "inspirational volunteers in action who have made a contribution to urban forestry by improving community trees and the neighborhoods where they live." Barb is one of 40 orchard stewards who works with City Fruit and Seattle Parks and Recreation under their…

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City Grown Land Search 2013

Mowing the lawn is so 2012. Weeding is a drag. Planting massive beds of peonies just to have flocks of feral chickens peck them to a purple pulp is beyond depressing. So what do you do? Think outside the garden box and ponder a partnership with City Grown, our urban farming wonder friends. City Grown is looking for new places to grow food, and their Land Partners pretty much have it made: a share of the fresh produce grown each season,…

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A Tough Nut to Crack

Fruit tree steward, neighborhood recycling guru, and overall swell neighbor, Barb Burrill, shared a recent adventure in the Wallingford urban orchard: A couple of weeks ago while walking home from my son's school, I noticed a bunch of lime-like fruits lying on the ground and sidewalk beneath a huge tree. Some had split open and looked like what might be black walnuts. I remember finding a funny-looking nut shell when I was a child and learning from my mom that it…

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