True Urban Farming

By Allen Johnson

I’m Uncle Dale’s son and Michael’s cousin.  I’ve been reading backyard farming for a couple of years now and I’ve been mentioned in some of my father’s articles (Broiler Apocalypse, Proper Snake Removal).  My father asked me to describe our urban farm on this blog.  I hope that my backyard farm might inspire you to get creative with your situation and start to grow something.

My wife, daughter, and I live in an urban jungle – Arlington, Virginia.  Our house was built in 1945 during the post WWII defense boom as part of Ft. Barnard.  The army built it right into the side of the steepest hill in Arlington to use every square foot possible.  Being on a hill, we have more stairs than anything; 25 to the front door, 15 from there up to the back door and patio, 9 more take you to the highest terrace, and 30 inside that connect each room which is on a different level.  As part of an urban neighborhood, our entire property is barely larger than the US median square footage of new homes - 2,600 sq feet. 

Last summer we started a garden in the only truly flat piece of land, the 7.5’x13’ patch of soil next to our patio.  This year with a toddler we decide that our flat plot needed to be a place for her to play so we had to get creative to grow a garden.  We installed raised beds across the front of the house.  We built shelves into the retaining wall to support flower and herb boxes. On the highest portion of the hill we pulled out the thick underbrush that occupied the space and put in terraces. We use trellises for vertical gardening. Most of the crops are irrigated with soaker hose. Fortunately, our property has a southern exposure so we get plenty of sun. 
We now grow a variety of crops including lettuce, chard, tomatoes, cucumbers, black berries, broccoli, green beans, egg plant, peppers, raspberries, sunflower, squash, and many varieties of flowers and herbs. My father has been jealous of the quantity and quality of our produce. Small gardens produce proportionately more that large gardens because you have to maximize every square foot. My father’s large garden has wide walkways (more room for weeds) and plants that get neglected because of the volume of work to be done. 

I hope that our success with a small property will inspire you to find ways to turn your home into a productive backyard farm. If we can do it, anyone can do it. You don’t need the acres that my father has to have a several nice meals a week from your garden all summer long. Grilling fresh vegetables alongside chicken from my father’s farm is a treat after a long days work. If you haven't started yet, get creative and start today. You still have at least 90 good growing days in most of the US.

 Urban Arlington Virginia

 The hillside challenge

 Blackberries in the front yard.

 Interplanting vegetables and flowers in raised beds  

 Front door surrounded by garden

  Patio, planter boxes for herbs, and upper terrace

 A steep hillside with poor soil, yet the garden is thriving

 The reward