Table to Farm...

    Urban Farmer Movement

    Part 2 of the Urban Farmer series:  

looking into the lives of two women 

who are on a quest to trace our food 

from our tables.... to the farm

 Part 2: Sharon Leopardi, owner and operator of B.U.G.Farms in Salt Lake City, UT

 By Mark M. Benson

Tenacious Palate

 

A few months back...

The trees start to blossom...

The sun starts to peak higher in the sky...

Frost on the grass and leaves transforms to morning dew..

"The hope of summer is coming", I say to myself as I take my first walk outside filled with warmth and energy, everything is coming alive and summer is well on its way..... "Farmer's Market starts on June 12th and I'm there already!"

......And then it starts raining.... and raining... and, "Wait, is that snow?" 

This spring has brought an immense amount of moisture and subsequent colder temperatures, and I know there are more than a few people who planted just a little too early only to see their crop freeze overnight.... Back to square one.

There is no doubt that this season thus far has been a challenge for farmers and urban gardeners alike, but with the moisture has come a very vibrant and green Salt Lake City and I think we can only hope to maintain this level of rainfall for years to come.

Saturday, June 5th finally rolls around and The Downtown Farmer's Market at Historic Pioneer Park is finally here, vendors, producers and Urban farmers are showing up by 6am to set up their booths... and it is raining... But for Sharon Leopardi, owner and operator of B.U.G. Farms (Backyard Urban Gardens) this is her debut of the season,... her very first season, and nothing is going to dampen her spirits.

 

Sharon decided last year in November of 2009 after many years of experience in the agricultural/ geographical/ environmental world that she wanted to create her own system of sustainability. Sustainable in every sense of the word... Utilizing empty urban spaces for the purpose of growing and sharing her produce with the residents, restaurants and businesses of Salt Lake City, and also providing herself with food and an income. 

To get a better understanding of what makes an Urban Farmer, I want to give a more intimate look into the heart and soul of one.

Sharon has long been in tune and aware of the beauty and simplicity that life has to offer, and you can sense that when you meet her. I first met her at last weeks Farmer's Market, June 12, 2010, sporting some awesome colorful boots and a big smile, to buy some crisp and very fresh looking Arugula and Red spinach, the latter of which I had not seen since my days as a Chef tournant at Bradley Ogden, Las Vegas. I was excited to see this, as you eat with your eyes first. It would make a great addition to my meal for taste and eye appeal. As I glance around her table I see these eye-popping micro greens, vibrant swiss chard, tall and colorful chive blossoms, and a few various flowers and other herbs.

 

We conversed for a few minutes and mentioned that I had recently attended the book lecture for Novella Carpenter's "Farm City" and her eyes widened with surprise and then a little regret... Unfortunately Sharon was not able to attend because she had to attend to Her urban garden... The Irony... I tell her that I recently started a blog and went to Novella's lecture so I could do an article, and tell her a little about the event. As I stood there and conversed with Sharon, I really began to see how much gardening and fresh food meant to her. I decided then and there that the series of events that had led me to the "Farm City" lecture the previous week, and then to Sharon's stand was no accident, so I decided to do a 2 part series about these 2 incredible women.

I contacted Sharon a few days later and asked if we could meet to do an interview during the day, and as a full time gardener/farmer she was going to be busy all day weeding and tending to one of her 4 gardens... So I met with her at this lot, along with her mother and a friend who were helping her that day. I was immediately impressed by how well this garden was laid out and being utilized. I was able to ask her more in depth questions and most importantly, to get a glimpse at the core of what Sharon stands for and represents.

 

Sharon began this journey more or less studying Geography and the Environment at the University of Utah back in 2008, also working as a Garden coordinator there. After she finished school she went down to Caineville, UT to work for the season at Mesa Farm Market, working on an organic farm furthering her knowledge and awareness of responsible farming. At the end of the 2008 season, Sharon bravely ventured to New Zealand to backpack and work for a family learning about Permaculture, which is the study and practice of mimicking natural ecological systems and its ability to be 100% sustainable through this practice.

During the 2009 season she worked at Wasatch Community Gardens as the Youth Garden coordinator, teaching under-privileged kids how to garden and build character. At the end of the season, in November 2009, Sharon was fortunate enough to attend a SPIN farming seminar (Small Plot INtensive) which is a business model designed for farmer/gardeners to understand how to create a living from farming, especially in Urban settings. The program lays out plot plans for gardens utilizing 2 foot by 25 foot beds that are planted at different intervals of time to keep a steady crop rotation, with 3 crop cycles for most beds. It goes further to help farmers know their market, selling at farmer's markets, restaurants, grocers, co-ops, etc... They provide a network of information through manuals, support groups and other resources to ensure success for small time Urban Farmers.

It was after attending this seminar that Sharon decided she was going to take the leap and begin growing and supporting herself in the sprawl of Salt Lake City's urban lots and backyards. She started up her business, Backyard Urban Gardens or Bug Farms for short, and began working on her plan, searching the city for spaces and yards to cultivate for her business. Sharon started collecting her resources and with help from her mother and friends was able to get on her feet and ready for the 2010 growing season. 

         

Which brings us back to the present. As Sharon and I stand gazing down her row of Spinach that will be harvested later that week for the second Farmer's market of the season, she explains the intricate patterns and details of her operation, and we begin to walk toward her Tomato plants and Kale.

Protruding from the soil, bamboo shoots are staked at intervals among her Tomato plants to act as support for the vines as they grow up, creating more space for other plants and greens to grow below and receive partial shade from the towering vines. She explains that this creates more room also to grow other plants, and makes it easier to weed and move through the rows for harvest.

      

This is quite an operation, and also a tremendous amount of work. Along with this lot, Sharon has 3 other lots in various parts of Salt Lake that she tends to, including one that has chickens, ducks, Micro greens and fruit trees. All in all, Sharon is able to provide an extensive variety of almost exclusively heirloom and organic vegetables, micro greens, and greens, all of which are accessible at the Downtown Farmer's Market, as well as local restaurants Pago, Lugano and Stoneground on their menu offerings.

I have since been in contact with Sharon to ask questions and opinions, and I decided that I am not just going to talk the talk when it comes to raising awareness on Urban Farming and sustainable living. So I brought my two daughters Emma and Stormy, 11 and 12, along with myself to join Sharon at her biggest lot to help her harvest her Spinach and Kale that I had just seen earlier that week. I wanted to experience the organic connection between Farmer, harvest, consumer to table and I wanted my girls to understand the importance of this. 

We met up with Sharon on Thursday the 17th to help her harvest, and much to my surprise, she was the only one that showed up... I thought "My god this woman is dedicated to this", as she was going to do the whole operation herself. 

So with a quick tutorial on the finer points of harvesting Spinach and Kale, Sharon hands we "Green thumbs" (pun intended) some scissors and shears and we began to harvest. During the hotter periods of the day, care must be taken to ensure that the greens stay at peak crispness, so we had to take small handfuls at a time and quickly get them to shade to shock in a cold bath of water.

 Stormy harvesting Spinach

 
  Emma and Sharon "processing" Spinach
 

 Once we had picked all the produce, then came the "processing" as she called it, taking each bunch of Spinach one by one and cutting each leaf one by one, then giving the leaves a second and third wash. The crisp greens are then laid on a mesh tray to dry, then go right into bags and a cooler. Great care was taken at every step and I was so proud of my daughters for being a part of that. 
 

I want to thank Sharon for allowing myself and my daughters to have a glimpse into her life as an Urban farmer, and into her heart and core of what makes her who she is... Mother Earth...^^

By: Mark M. Benson

 

For more information on Sharon Leopardi, Bug Farms and what you can do to help and support her, visit her website @http://www.backyardurbangardens.com/ and on Facebook @http://www.facebook.com/sharon.leopardi. Also, don't forget to visit her @ The Downtown Farmer's Market every Saturday in Historic Pioneer Park at Bug Farms booth and tell her you heard about her from Tenacious Palate!