Last week I headed to the east side of Buffalo to meet with Mayda, head farmer and one half of the mastermind behind Groundwork Market Garden. It all started in 2014 when Mayda and partner Anders bought the 2 1/2 acre land at 1698 Genesee Street in Buffalo. Since then they have turned the space into an urban farm. It started with testing soil samples and making sure the soil they were using to grow their produce on was the safest it could possibly be. Fast forward to 2016 and they started to grow a variety of fruits and vegetables organically, using no harmful chemicals, but rather planting and weeding all of their crops by hand.
So what do Mayda and Anders get out of having an urban farm? They get the satisfaction from the work itself, they enjoy putting fresh, good for you food on people's tables and making a difference in the community. When I asked Mayda what her favorite thing in Buffalo was, she stated she loves that people are receptive of us, they always are willing to help and the community shows that by supporting and putting in an effort to always help out.
At Groundwork Market Garden they grow over 70 different varieties of fruits and vegetables in accordance with the seasons. While the 2017 Farm Shares are sold out for the season, if you would like to be notified when shares become available for next season you can fill out the form on their website {here} and you will be entered on their contact list.
What is a Farm Share? Its where members pay an upfront cost, allowing farmers to purchase the seeds and other materials for the growing season. Each week the member will then receive fresh produce from the field, directly from the farmer. This past seasons program ran for 20 weeks {June thru October}.
Looking to learn more about Groundwork Market or get involved? Down the road they hope to build their volunteer base to get more people in the community involved and continue to have more farmer to consumer interaction. In the meantime the gals over at Love in Motion are hosting a donation based yoga class this coming Friday {10/13} with proceeds going to Groundwork Market. For more info on the Feel Good Friday click here
You can also follow Groundwork Market Garden on the FB and Instagram {@gwmgbflo} to stay up to date on all the progress they are making.
I'll leave you with my opinion here - growing up on the east side of the city I must say it was nice seeing what was once an empty piece of land be used for something positive. To be able to provide fresh goods to the local community and have a positive impact on an area in the city that is perceived as maybe not one of the best neighborhoods around, is uplifting and Mayda and Anders are doing an amazing job. I can only hope that those in the community continue to support and spread the word on the great things these two are doing not only for the east side, but for the whole WNY area.
{Just a Blonde in Buffalo photos}
