More homegrown vegetables, without the sweat

When we wrote about San Francisco-based My Farm earlier this summer, we noted that Oregon-based Your Backyard Farmer had reportedly been doing something similar for a few years already. Sure enough, turns out the two-woman company began installing organic gardens throughout the Portland, Milwaukie and Lake Oswego areas of Oregon back in 2006. Your Backyard Farmer requires just a plot of land big enough to feed the mouths involved–10 by 10 square feet is about the minimum for an individual or a family of two–along with six hours of direct sunlight a day and an outdoor water source. In exchange, the farming team will provide clients with an organic vegetable farm right outside their door, customized to their family’s size and dining choices. Customers get to choose the produce they want grown from a seasonal list of summer and fall crops. Your Backyard Farmer both installs and visits the garden once a week to weed, harvest and do any additional plantings necessary. Each time they leave, a basket of freshly harvested vegetables is left behind that’s cleaned and ready to be cooked or eaten. Weekly costs for a garden big enough to feed a family of four are roughly USD 40. For those who want to learn to do it themselves, Your Backyard Farmer also offers a consulting program that runs from March through November, including about 2 hours a month of on-site consultation on topics including soils, pest, disease, garden planning, crop rotation, succession planting, trellising, weeds, transplants verses seeding, cover cropping and more. All of which is further evidence that consumers really do want more control over their food. Help them become urban farmers, and help yourself to a rewarding new business! Spotted by: Michael Turri