Urban Farming Popularity On The Rise In Columbus

by Rachael Penton

Thursday, July 19th 2018

“We have summer squash, dill, collards, tomatoes." Marcie Todd’s urban pocket farm is nestled in between the homes of Ann Street. "People come through every day and they're like oh I didn't even see this here!"

Todd has built the farm on land that she leases from the city where a vacant house was town down. “I feel like it's like a huge privilege to be able to have a space where I can farm in the city." Michael Hogan with the OSU extension says urban for-profit farms like Todd’s are growing in Columbus. "About 4 or 5 years ago we had 4 or 5 in the city limits of Columbus, and this summer there are 30 that we know of."

In addition to being a source of income for the farmers the garden provides fresh produce in an area where there isn't always a lot. "When I saw the garden going in I thought this is just awesome," says neighbor Michelle Schultz.

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Todd donates 15 percent of everything grown on the farm. "I feel like it's really important to give as much from the urban site to our community as we can." She sells the rest to the neighbors- who are enjoying watching the garden grow. "I think it's going to do a lot to make people take notice and maybe take more pride in their properties when they see something like that happening in their neighborhood."

More information on The City of Columbus Land Bank Community Garden Program on their website here.