Community Farms, Community Connections: An EDC Grounding Event with Liz Lamb, Robin Gunkel, and Carissa Aoki

Interested in urban agriculture and its role in Baltimore communities? Join us for a tour of the community farms in Broadway East, Oliver, and Johnston Square. These farms are managed by The 6^th Branch, a non-profit organization originally founded by military veterans. Unlike city farms where gardeners rent separate plots, these farms were all initiated with input from their communities, and neighbors are welcome to come harvest food at any time. Weekly farm stand offerings are likewise free to the neighborhoods. Pollinator gardens contribute to neighborhood ecosystem diversity. 6^th Branch farmer Liz Lamb will join us to talk about the organization’s initiatives and neighborhood outreach. Since EDC is a group interested in design for equity, among other things, there will also be an opportunity to walk by the new Hope Village, a container house development for the working unhoused, now under construction. Robin Gunkel, who was involved with the Sunflower Project next to the Johnston Square Farm, will also join us to tell us a bit about the history of that project.

Dr. Carissa Aoki will be our guide for the tour. Aoki is a professor at MICA and an applied ecologist working at the intersection of landscapes, disturbance and risk. She is particularly interested in bringing anti-racist principles to the teaching of science, including the use of interdisciplinary stories to bring non-traditional content into the curriculum.

Tour Itinerary: If you happen to arrive late and need to catch up with us, the start of the tour will be at the 1600 block of N. Montford Avenue. From there we will proceed to Oliver Community Farm, 1325 N. Bond St., and finally to Johnston Square Farm, 1310 Homewood Avenue.

Travel logistics: The farms are not quite within walking distance. Biking and carpooling are encouraged, so we don’t have a large group of cars moving from one location to the next.

Biking: If you want to bring your bike, park your car at Johnston Square Farm, 1310 Homewood Ave. (where the tour will eventually end). Then ride to the start of the tour, the East Broadway Berry and Tree Farm, at the 1600 block of N. Montford Ave. Meet us there at 3pm. If you are interested in bike-caravaning from Johnston Square, meet at the Farm no later than 2:45 pm.

Driving: If you are carpooling with friends and are not already meeting elsewhere, we recommend parking all cars at Johnston Square Farm, 1310 Homewood Ave., and then driving the single car to the tour’s start, the 1600 block of N. Montford Ave.