The new wave of urban farming: how to get fresh food from small spaces

Yes this whole idea is key to our survival.
I am looking for situations to make myself sustainable...on either coast

Thanks for the tip...

Even if you only have an apartment with a small balcony. I have three flower containers on my second floor back porch, not far from my kitchen . This year I grew chives, basil, Italian parsley and rosemary inter mingled with violets and some yarrow; different height plants. The parsley and the chives faced the outer edge so they hung over the approx. 30" X 8" planters I hung on the out side of the three railings. Each had a different group of things mixed so they looked like they were flowers for display especially with the different greens and grays the plants show in their foliage. So they even looked very attractive! When I needed they rosemary, parsley whatever I took my kitchen snippers out on the porch and snipped what i needed.
Check out the web or magazine stand or bookstore for products you need to start and then you may even get them locally. If you have more area the 'mini' herb garden near your kitchen will only enhance your fresh vegetables.
Fresh sliced tomatoes with fresh basil and a little olive oil, AAAHH. So worth it!

every little plot helps. i love my backyard garden. seeds are the most important aspect. be careful where you buy yours to start

I think samthesixth nailed it, container gardening. Vacant lots in cities around the country probably have some connection to the Industrial Revolution. Others voiced their concern about heavy metals and various contaminants. Very real concerns for people looking to cut the lock on vacant lots.
Besides, if you find a use for it, the owner will too and boot you.

Year 'round indoor gardening can make a difference in how well you eat . I wish i had a yard , though .

Even city people can do container gardening.

Yes! Go Green Team.

I recently moved form a small city to a large one and had to give up my large backyard garden for pots and containers. While its still possible to grow your own food this way, and I applaud people who do, I have found that I haven't been able to grow a fraction of the food I used to (of course I moved to a different climate too with more disease and pests) but some food is better than none! Make that landscaping edible.

My wife and I planted a small garden this year and she was delighted and amazed to know that she could break ground place seeds into that soil water it pull a few weeds and in the end of all that place some very tastey fresh food on our table for our family to eat.So was I and I'm very proud and happy for her. A with that being said its something everyone should try even if its only done in small pots , or plots of land,or on roof top in citys .

I believe those are the same jerks that bought out the largest organic seed supplier in the world and genetically modified all the seeds. Get ur grow on!

Yes, in your face Monsanto for screwing up the farmlands and corrupting/ upsetting peoples lives...

Excerpt
Do you dream of an organic garden, but don’t have a yard? A flock of chicks, perhaps, but don’t have a yard? Home-grown food, and lower grocery bills (but, alas, no yard!)? Dream no more, because you can have it, and without quitting your job, trading your bus pass for a pickup, or moving to the rural north.

A new wave of farming is happening in a city near you. While true, Old MacDonald had a farm (ee-i-ee-i-o), his offspring have some urban fish to fry. They’re working off loans, and can’t necessarily afford a parcel of land. They’re young parents who want to save money on cherry tomatoes. They’re newlyweds paying off healthcare debt, and growing taters in their trashcan. They’re students avoiding crappy dining plans. They’re urban farmers. Plain and simple.

In Fresh Food From Small Spaces: The Square-Inch Gardener’s Guide to Year-Round Growing, Fermenting, and Sprouting, author R. J. Ruppenthal turns a seemingly anti-urban idea—that farming has to be done outside, with a red barn and rolling fields of wheat—on its head. Because urbanites, too, can grow their own food indoors, in cramped spaces, and without access to land! For real.

So without further ado, I give you Ruppenthal’s comprehensive “how-to” info for growing fresh food in the absence of open land; it’s here for the taking. Nom nom. Here’s my discussion with him:

Q. Without the luxury of land or space, is it really possible for someone to grow and produce their own food?

A. You do not need much space to grow some of your own food. If you live in an apartment, condo, or townhouse, you might not think that you have enough space to grow anything, but my goal is to change your mind on that. You can grow nutritious sprouts on a counter top, salad greens on a windowsill, dwarf fruit trees on a patio, tomatoes on a balcony, and much more. Most vegetables, and even fruit trees and berry bushes, can thrive when grown in containers. Indoors, try mushrooms, sprouts, and fermented cultures such as yogurt, kefir, kombucha, sauerkraut, and kimchi.

Q. What are the top five things a city resident needs to know about urban gardening?

A. First, you need to know that you CAN grow a lot of different food crops in limited spaces, even in apartments, condos, townhouses, and other small homes. I described some of the possibilities above, and there are more in my book. Hopefully, you will try some of these and also come up with new ideas on your own, as many of my readers have done. Second, start with something that is relatively trouble-free (such as salad greens, peas, or even tomatoes) and work up from there. You will learn a lot from your successes and your failures. If you try some simple crops and do everything you can (such as provide good soil and water) to ensure their success, then you WILL experience some success. Third, do not be afraid to fail. All of us have our hits and misses. Sometimes you forget to water or you planted the wrong variety for your climate, or for whatever reason, a particular plant simply was not happy. A lot of people would quit after an initial failure, but I hope you will stick with it. The only difference between a “black thumb” gardener and a “green thumb” gardener is that green thumbs learn from their mistakes, try again, and keep trying until they get it right.
end of excerpt.