The experimental urban agriculture organization
Greensgrow Farms has been operating for nearly two decades in South Kensington where it not only runs a CSA program and a community kitchen, but also educates Philadelphians about sustainable living, and attempts to convince other communities to replicate aspects of its urban farming model.
A little over a week ago, West Philadelphia became an extended member of the Greensgrow family when a gardening center,
Greensgrow West, opened on the 4900 block of Baltimore Avenue
at the former site of the Elena's Soul jazz club.
The gardening center will remain at the Baltimore Avenue site for at least two years. They will sell plants and fruit trees, and eventually offer workshops similar to those held at the Kensington location. Greensgrow West will also be home to a farmer's market accepting
SNAP and WIC Farmers' Market Nutrition Program (
FMNP) benefits.
According to Greensgrow's Ryan Kuck, himself a 15-year West Philly resident, the organization saw the neighborhood "as really fertile ground," and an ideal location to further explore its mission of creating livable communities on underutilized urban land.
"We know we have a lot of support [in West Philly], and we know there's a market for greening," says Kuck, who adds that Greensgrow's
mobile markets, which offer fresh food to underserved communities, are often based in West Philly. "It's also just a really interesting place for us to explore what Greengrow's future model might look like."
It's currently unclear what will happen to the site when Greensgrow's lease ends in April 2016.
Source: Ryan Kuck, Greensgrow Farms
Writer: Dan Eldridge
Mobile Market photos by Jennifer Britton
Remaining photos by Bryn Ashburn