November 11, 2011 07:50 by Groupie
Have you ever wondered where your food comes from? Or how did you get that to grow in the garden? Or how about a fun, educational get-away for you and your family; a venue that is a unique, community resource is only several hours away. Growing Power, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin is an exceptional community initiative that has received national attention for its positive influence.
“In 1993, Growing Power was an organization with teens who needed a place to work. Will Allen was a farmer with land. Will designed a program that offered teens an opportunity to work at his store and renovate the greenhouses to grow food for their community. What started as a simple partnership to change their landscape of the north side of Milwaukee has blossomed into a national and global commitment to sustainable food systems. In a space no larger than a small supermarket live some 20,000 plants and vegetables, thousands of fish, and a livestock inventory of chickens, goats, ducks, rabbits, and bees.” http://growingpower.org/our_history.htm
Growing Power has given people from diverse backgrounds the opportunity to participate in their organization by helping to provide equal access to healthy, high-quality, safe, affordable food for people in all communities.
If you and your family/friends decide to venture to Milwaukee, I would highly recommend taking a 1 ½ hour tour of the Growing Power facility. Growing Power’s urban farm is located on a 2 acre plot and includes all of the following (for only $10 per person):
- six traditional greenhouses growing over 15,000 pots of herbs, salad mix, beet greens, arugula, mustards, seedlings, sunflower and radish sprouts. These greenhouses also host production of six hydroponic systems growing Tilapia, Perch, and a variety of herb and salad greens, and over 50 bins of red wriggler worms;
- two aquaponics hoop houses with two independent fish runs and growing beds for additional salad mix and seedlings;
- seven hoop houses growing a mixture of salad greens and mushrooms;
- a worm depository hoop house;
- an apiary with 14 beehives;
- three poultry hoop houses with laying hens and ducks;
- outdoor pens for livestock including goats and turkeys;
- a large plot of land on which the first stage of the organization’s sophisticated composting operation is located including 30 pallet compost systems;
- an anaerobic digester to produce energy from the farm's food waste;
- a rain water catchment system; and
- a retail store to sell produce, meat, worm castings, and compost to the community.
Tours are offered at their site Monday-Sunday at 1:00pm and are open to the public. I also recommend checking their website since there are certain dates when tours are not available.
Have you taken your family on any educational tours that relate to health and wellness? If so, please share! I love to incorporate knowledge into my travels!
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Turn Your Garden into a Gym
Houseplants: Good for Your Health?
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