by Dave Majewski.

This week I was able to lend a hand - and back and shoulders and thighs and pickup truck to the Curtiss Urban Farm Foundation (CUFF) and Mark and Janice Stevens from the Wilson Street Farm.  We picked up various seeds and cover crop seed - locally I would like to add, because it is all about sustainability, which includes travel/fuel - as well as sustaining local businesses.  Preferred Seed Inc. of Buffalo provided the 50lb bags of seed.

There were an assorted variety of seeds we unloaded and schlepped up the stairs to the second story of the barn, which was a minor detail that was seemingly secretly held back from me while I was picking up this order for them and driving to Wilson Street.  It was a good workout.

The seeds included Buckwheat - which Mark is going to use as a sort of poor soil remediation, aerator or conditioner. You can get two harvests of buckwheat in a season. It grows to about three feet, cut it back and it grows again in about three months. We will use the cut buckwheat as an organic matter source for the ongoing compost operation.

There is also vetch - which we will use as a high nitrogen source - or activator - for compost operations. Vetch is also a legume - from the bean family - and therefore "fixes" nitrogen from the atmosphere - meaning it uses little nitrogen from the soil which makes it a great cover plant for conditioning soil as well. Vetch is also widely used by the NYS Department of Transportation.

We also unloaded white clover - another legume with similar qualities as vetch. However, clover is one of nature's best lures for honey bees. If you think bees are no big deal - think again. Without bees, bats or certain insects, we would all either be hand pollinating as in China, or be dead. This clover will also be used as a high nitrogen activator for composting operations.

There were also several bags - 50lb bags hauled up the stairs of the barn- of perennial rye grass. Annual rye grass is not long lived - about one year. It is used most often as a "cover" plant that will occupy a niche in the landscape where other more aggressive and invasive plants would otherwise occupy. You can get annual rye grass to grow in as little as 4-7 days after seeding. It grows fast and is non aggressive. It will also be cultivated a few times a year and used for composting. This annual rye is merely a temporary approach for some vacant lots until specific details for future agriculture are determined  - we just need sustainable, easy and economical green cover for now.

All seeds/plants are considered sustainable in that there is little maintenance required to manage them, no fertilizers or chemicals needed and hopefully no supplemental irrigation.

The Wilson Street Farm and Curtiss Urban Farm Foundation are not resting or getting fat as some of us are. There is work to do this winter and spring comes up fast.

Site preparation and seeding will begin as soon as Mother Nature dictates; usually late March, if dry and somewhat mild, or in April. Soil temperatures play a key role and those will be monitored starting next month.

For those that wondered about the hoop houses surviving the winter, winds, snows, etc.... they look fine and have incurred no damage at all. The plastic might have to be tightened up a bit or readjusted, otherwise all looks well. The hoop houses are a great retreat from this winter's weather! A great place to sit in the natural light, warmth of the sun and read a book or have lunch or even have a meeting, as we did recently while discussing upcoming vacant lot plans; sitting on bales of straw and drinking ice tea and eating our lunches.
 
2010 will be Buffalo's biggest year ever as far as vacant lot renovations and urban agriculture development goes. This is an exciting time to be part of these sustainable and community beneficial projects. There is room for everyone to partake.
 
Contact CUFF, CAO, AmeriCorps, Buffalo Re-Use, Grass Roots Gardens, Wilson Street Farm or the International Institute. Every one of these organizations can use volunteers during the growing season. There is always opportunity to serve and help is always needed.

For those of you that cannot help, be sure to take a ride by in the summer to see what is transpiring with vacant lots in your city. It will be truly incredible.

Buffalo, New York will soon be a national leader/example in vacant lot restoration, utilization and sustainability. Some of these community lots will be planted with hundreds of fruiting trees and shrubs and many perennials and trees that are beneficial to birds and bees, etc...  One lot is planned for hundreds of blueberry shrubs, serviceberry and cranberry.  At every opportunity we will re-use, re-direct or harness any storm water runoff that we can.  There will be bio retention zones and rain gardens. Every single plant will have a use: either as food, for bees, composting, soil remediation, etc.

And yes, to those that will inevitably ask, soil testing will be done on each and every lot that is to be renovated.  Samples will be sent to EPA-certified labs and the test results will be reviewed by me or another qualified horticulturalist to determine the need for necessary remediation steps.  Each site will be amended with specific composts prior to any cultivating.  Experience has shown that there is little concern for any contamination on many vacant lots.  Sure, there are minor traces of lead occasionally - but those levels have rarely, if ever, turned out to be at levels requiring intervention. But, we play it safe nonetheless.  We test for mercury, lead and arsenic as well as tests for organic matter, CEC and other important components.  The composts that we use are an additional measure that would address any impurities or unsatisfactory results. We double and triple up on everything.
 
Some of us say that we do not have 10,000 vacant lots (an estimated 650+ acres), rather, we have 10,000 potential classrooms for children/communities to learn how to recover and remediate vacant and neglected lands; and how to cultivate, nurture, produce and harvest healthy food - a curriculum course that many of us feel should be mandatory in schools - as should checkbook balancing and human relations.
 
The absence of fresh organic fruits and vegetables from our population's diets - and the knowledge of producing and preparing the same - can be attributed to one of the leading causes of an unhealthy America.  Diabetes and heart problems are two of the leading causes of death - and they are both able to be somewhat managed and influenced by healthy diets.
 
Ironically, homicide is one of the lowest causes of death in America - but it gets the most consistent coverage.  Healthy soils, potatoes, peas and beans are not front page or 11 PM news-worthy, glamorous, sexy or controversial.  Other than BRO, where are the rest of the media outlets when you need them?
 
Remember:
No Farms =  No Food