Tag: farmers markets

Indy urban garden flourishes after loss of mulch piles

The fate of a westside urban gardening program for kids looked bleak this spring after city officials hauled away a large pile of mulch needed to create growing beds on vacant lots.

But Mother Love’s Garden is in the midst of another bountiful summer thanks, in part, to community support following an IndyStar story about the program’s unexpected challenge.

Tysha Ahmad, who operates the garden and camp, said after word spread about the mulch removal, a landscaping company, Heath Outdoor, donated mulch to the gardens and two other loads were delivered through ChipDrop. A private resident also donated $250.

“We needed so much because we just redid the garden beds,” Ahmad told IndyStar. “We’ll utilize all of it within the next few weeks.”

The city does not allow the long-term storage of mulch due to public health concerns, a spokesperson for the Health and Hospital Corporation of Marion County

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Garden grows into Honey Tree Farm

Casey Ostwinch thanks a tomato plant on Honey Tree Farm in Catawba County. (Virginia Annable/The Hickory Daily Record via AP)

Casey Ostwinch thanks a tomato plant on Honey Tree Farm in Catawba County. (Virginia Annable/The Hickory Daily Record via AP)


Virginia Annable

AP

HICKORY, NC

Tori and Casey Ostwinch’s farm started as a garden.

Over the years, their garden grew until the pair decided to try farming full time.

For a year, the Ostwinches worked on a farm in South Carolina to see if they could do it themselves. In 2018, they decided to try.

The couple bought 5 acres in the St. Stephens area. They moved into the small brick house and built their farm, Honey Tree Farm, around it.

Now, rows of crops fill every foot around the house. Tomatoes, cauliflower, broccoli, kale, radishes, lettuce and beets bloom from the soil. The crops take up about 1.5 acres, Casey said.

Casey took on management of the farm from the start, while Tori continued working a corporate job. Casey’s

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