Things I Like - Food

My sister Amy and her husband own some rural property in Missouri. It’s farmland and they plan to retire there when Bryan is finished with the Navy. I don’t know if they plan to actually farm but I know that Amy is looking forward to serious gardening.

My only exposure to farm life is thanks to Mr. White. His mother’s family has been farming in west Tennessee for at least 150 years and his grandparents were still living in the farm house built by his great-grandfather when we started dating. I will never forget my first visit there – it was July and it was hot. I rode on a tractor. But really, it’s a special place, beautiful and very peaceful – nothing but pastures and trees and the occasional cow.

There’s not much farm here in the city but you can be a virtual farmer through Community Supported Agriculture (CSA).

Community Supported Agriculture consists of a community of individuals who pledge support to a farm operation so that the farmland becomes…the community's farm, with the growers and consumers providing mutual support and sharing the risks and benefits of food production. Typically, members or "share-holders" of the farm or garden pledge in advance to cover the anticipated costs of the farm operation and farmer's salary. In return, they receive shares in the farm's bounty throughout the growing season…
~ USDA National Agricultural Library

I had no idea that this type of activity took place but it makes sense and the effort is growing stronger with the current movement towards a green economy. Although I was unable to find a farm that directly supported the Chicago area, there are several in the surrounding suburbs. Check out Local Harvest to see if there’s one in your community.