My wife and I have happily raised our family in the same urban neighborhood for over 20 years – Five Points, home of the Willys Jeep. The plant closed and small businesses have dried up. Neighbors have come and gone; some have passed on, others deserted the city for greener pastures. The same Midwest story you’ve heard before.
We love our neighborhood and we love living in Toledo. We are city folk, but we prefer living simpler lives – we make our own stuff, we grow our own food, we raise chickens. We do better in Toledo, so we’re not going anywhere.
Instead we decided to dig our roots in deeper and started a sustainable urban farm in the abandoned easement behind our home.
Several discussions were had with the then current land owner(s) and subsequently the Lucas County Land Bank after they reclaimed the adjacent commercial/residential properties for default taxes – thus land-locking three abandoned parcels.
The view of the easement property adjacent to our yard had taunted us for years; enough with the shenanigans, it was time to grab a machete, fire up the chainsaw, and build a farm.
Before
After
The farm is ever growing and work is always ongoing. We farm organically – no pesticides or weed killers – and have completed Master Urban Farmer certification and GAP (Good Agricultural Practices) training from the Ohio State University Lucas County Extension; we are also a member of the Lucas County Urban Agriculture Alliance.
We grow lettuces, radishes, carrots, beets, turnips, onions, peppers, sweet corn, potatoes, sweet potatoes, broccoli, cabbage, cucumbers, melons, pumpkins, beans, meal corn, wheat, barley, hops, chickens and eggs; we even have a few pygmy goats that eat weeds and provide us with fertilizer.
Hidden Alley Urban Farm 