BUFFALO, N.Y. — Urban farming has grown in popularity over recent years. According to the journal Sustainability, the practice has increased by 30 percent over the last thirty years. There are several urban farms growing in Buffalo. Terra Dumas founded her farm, Common Roots, ten years ago on Peckham Street in the city's East Side. They are blooming on several former vacant lots. "This used to be 17 lots or more of vacant land and tall grass and litter and garbage and really just emptiness, and so you know, now it's full of life and colors and green."
The area that is considered a food desert, and the neighborhood does not always have east access to fresh produce. Dumas explains that the farm serves the people on a program known as "Community Supported Agriculture". "People commit to our farm at the beginning of the season, so they pay one of two prices, either for a pick up every week or pick up every other week of the produce that we grow here, but they pay us up front at the beginning of the season, so we can have the money that we need to buy the supplies we need in February and March when we're not selling anything."
The farm grows organically, avoiding the use of damaging pesticides or other chemicals. "Without a healthy Earth you can't have healthy food, a healthy life. So if you're spraying nasty chemicals you're killing that life, you're now competing with it instead of working together, and not only does it adversely affect the environment, it adversely affects our bodies."
The bounty of Common Roots reflects the diversity of it's surroundings. Dumas says that the farm offers veggies not commonly seen in stores. "We can bring that awareness to people and show them there's a lot more out there, vegetables that have been grown for centuries that don't ship well, so you don't see them in the store, but they actually have much more flavor than you're used to."
The farm's founder also lives in the community they serve, and Dumas knows that her neighbors appreciate what they do. "We do get people saying "Wow, I remember seeing this five years, it's incredible what it looks like now !" Yeah, I feel like we've earned our respect and our place in this community."
For more information on Common Roots, click here.