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Typically, I don\u2019t like books that claim to be the \u201cultimate\u201d in the title as they usually disappoint.\u00a0 I brought this bias to a book from 2016 (but new to the Miller Library) titled \u201cThe Ultimate Guide to Urban Farming\u201d by Victoria, British Columbia author Nicole Faires.\u00a0 I can\u2019t claim expertise on urban farming and its many aspects, but I was very impressed by the thoroughness of this manual on the topic.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s important to first know the scope.\u00a0 This is not about edible landscaping or urban homesteading, the latter a term the author describes as \u201cdabbling in a wide variety of self-reliant skills to raise food and make things for their own family like knitting, canning, and beekeeping.\u201d\u00a0 By contrast, the goal of an urban farmer is \u201cintensive food production near or in a city\u201d with the intent of selling most of that food to others.<\/p>\n
The author used the city of Havana, Cuba as a model.\u00a0 Forced to become self-sufficient without reliance on petroleum products following the end of the Soviet Union, this city of 2 million gradually developed a localized food system that she encourages Canadian and American cities to embrace.\u00a0 Faires also recognizes that \u201cfarms\u201d come in all sizes, suggesting that balconies and window boxes, even indoor light gardens have the potential to be productive income sources.<\/p>\n
After these preliminaries, the rest of \u201cUrban Farming\u201d is a systematic and meticulous review of the many, many crops one can consider, including those that might be used for purposes other than food.\u00a0 Besides the expected guidance on planting and growing, this includes the intricacies of harvest, storage, and selling your products.\u00a0 Raising a wide-ranging variety of animals for profit, including fish and shellfish, is also explored.<\/p>\n
Excerpted from the Spring 2022 issue of the Arboretum Bulletin<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Typically, I don\u2019t like books that claim to be the \u201cultimate\u201d in the title as they usually disappoint.\u00a0 I brought this bias to a book from 2016 (but new to the Miller Library) titled \u201cThe Ultimate Guide to Urban Farming\u201d by Victoria, British Columbia author Nicole Faires.\u00a0 I can\u2019t claim expertise on urban farming and its many aspects, but I was very impressed by the thoroughness of this manual on the topic. It\u2019s important to first know the scope.\u00a0 This…<\/p>\n