We are an Urban Micro-Farm located in the city of Roanoke, Virginia. Our total property is only .25 acres in size and our actual growing space is even smaller at approximately 600 square feet! But you know what they say – size doesn’t matter…and in our case, we find that to be 100% true! With the space we have, we are able to grow food for ourselves and our community as well as flowers too!
I’ll admit, we had grand dreams (and still do) of owning property where we could grow copious amounts of food and flowers – but then real estate went crazy and interest rates got ridiculously unaffordable. Rather than putting off our dreams until “someday” we decided to work with what we have. We are lucky enough that our city property includes an extra half-lot that was just grass when we bought the place, so over the last 6 years we’ve transformed that COMPLETELY useless lawn into a productive micro-farm!
Urban Farm Residents & Growers
Soap Maker Extraordinaire
Angie grows the flowers and makes the bouquets. She has a ridiculous number of indoor plants. She also plays with oils and lye to make cold-processed soap.
Fun Fact – She taught Troy how to use a camera (See Troys Bio).
Rubin came to us as a foster on what would have been his last day on earth. We foster-failed (no surprise) and we can’t imagine a world without him.
He tolerates his little sister Nellie and easily let her become the Alpha dog. What a vicious pit bull…
Nellie is not your typical Golden Retriever. She was a COVID puppy so she wasn’t socialized very much and as a result is pretty much afraid of people that she doesn’t know.
She is the Alpha dog, loves her family and LOVES to be brushed for hours on end.
Photo Coming Soon
Seed Hoarder
Troy is the food guy – he grows the produce and mans the market stall when we are at Salem Farmers Market.
Fun Fact – Troy is an award winning photographer and was previously employed by NASA Television!
When you’re shopping for produce, do you check the labels to see where your food was grown? Was it grown in the US? Was it grown in your state?
Do you think about how far and how long your food traveled before it even arrived at the grocery store for you to purchase? All that food has to be harvested, packed, shipped, and unpacked at it’s final destination – and that takes time! Sometimes, a LONG time…and all that time effects the taste of the food you’re eating. Not to mention it’s often sprayed with preservatives or waxes to survive the trip. And lets not forget about unfair labor practices in other parts of the world…
The same principles apply to flowers – flowers are often grown outside the US and travel great distances before arriving at the local florist or grocery store. Did you ever notice that sometimes the bouquets in the grocery stores are already starting to wilt before you even take them home? And how long do they last? A few days – if you’re lucky. And don’t get me started on the “dyed” bouquets – what the heck is that all about?
Now imagine buying your produce and flowers from a local farmer – everything we sell is harvested a day or two before the market. The food tastes so much better! And the flowers last so much longer! I’ve vase-tested many of my flowers myself and can attest to the fact that they last at least a week, sometimes much longer, depending on the flower!
Everything we sell was either grown or made at our little neighborhood farm in Roanoke, VA. When you buy from us, you are not just supporting a local business. You are supporting a local family who enjoys growing food and flowers for their community. You are saying no to big box profits and corporate overlords by keeping your dollars local – and for that, we truly thank you!l
Remember when blogging was a thing? I’m bringing it back!
Would you like to know our market schedule? Learn more about our produce, flowers or soap? Or just be mildly entertained by the occasional story about what it’s like to be a neighborhood farmer?