By Lynette Hazelton, Philadelphia Inquirer

For the best in hyperlocal organic produce, you could shop at any of Philadelphia’s upscale supermarkets — and expect to pay a high price.

Many food-insecure city residents can get the best in hyperlocal organic produce, too, and it’s free.

The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society supports 176 community-led gardens, many of which cooperate with City Harvest, a PHS initiative, by pledging to grow and redistribute some of their produce to food pantries, soup kitchens, community fridges, and other nonprofit programs across the city.

“It’s so important that we are not just feeding people but connecting people and building community,” said Adam Hill, director of community gardens and urban agriculture for PHS.

From seedlings to food security

That’s why, on a recent Saturday at Awbury Arboretum, car after car slowly made its way to the greenhouse to collect a box of seedlings from PHS staff and volunteers that included collard greens, zucchini, cucumbers, peppers, and broccoli to grow for a nonprofit agency. It was City Harvest’s last of its three annual seedling giveaways that PHS calculates are worth $1,200 to $1,500 per garden.

Unlike commercial gardening centers, PHS gives gardeners seedlings that are seasonally appropriate, said Sally McCabe, associate director of community education. For example, collard greens, she said, are now no longer available at most gardening centers even though, as a fall crop, they will fare well as temperatures go down. She said that gardeners are also getting more variety than a typical garden center can provide.

Read the full story here

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