Feeding the masses: Tarentum urban farm provides more than food to borough residents
Tarentum is far smaller than Pittsburgh, but the appetite for urban farming to help the poor is just as big.
In this Alle-Kiski Valley community of just over 4,000 people, a small community garden launched in 2015 is today feeding low-income residents and others who struggle to find food in a borough that has no grocery store, said the Rev. Philip Beck, who runs the farm.
Tarentum officials and Beck have a 99-year lease to allow the community to farm a plot next to Riverview Memorial Park for $1 a year.
Unlike many farms that use fences to keep out unwelcome animals or people, this one has no barriers. Pathways through the garden are wide enough to accommodate wheelchairs. Beck said he wants everyone to feel welcome to explore and take whatever food they need.
"If we put a fence around here, we would undo the whole purpose of this garden, which is to provide an open space for folks," Beck said.
The tiny farm grows pears, blackberries, blueberries, carrots, collard greens, tomatoes, dill, chives, sweet peppers, squash, cucumbers and other crops.
There are several low-income and senior apartment buildings nearby, and Beck said their residents often rely on the garden as their primary source of fresh produce. Other people come from neighboring communities.
On an average day, Beck said, the farm can see up to 20 people stop by to pick produce.
"We actually can't keep up," he said.
Dozens of volunteers help with watering crops, pulling weeds and showing visitors what is or isn't ready to harvest, Beck said. Many volunteers have started their own backyard gardens since they began helping at the farm.
DJ Spencer, 60, of Brackenridge has been volunteering at the Tarentum farm for about three years. She and her husband, George — who is an organist at Beck's First United Presbyterian Church — stop by to water plants once a week.
"It's an important function for the area, I think, with the food insecurity that is prevalent everywhere," Spencer said.
The Spencers help prepare the raised beds for planting in the spring, and they clean them out in the fall once the growing season ends.
Spencer said she sees people stopping by to grab food starting early in the morning.
Many have come to rely on the farm, she said. Some people who come by to pick produce will even take a moment to pull a few weeds.
"The thing I like best about it is it's open to anybody," Spencer said. "There's no questions asked about income level or anything like that."
Jody Shumaker, 62, of Natrona Heights, organizes volunteer schedules for watering the plants. She also helps with other elements of the farm's upkeep, like planting seeds and laying mulch.
Shumaker, a retired Highlands School District teacher, said she has been taking on a little more responsibility at the garden every season over the five years she has been volunteering.
"I have such a huge passion for volunteering and keeping it local, too," she said, adding that she sometimes takes her grandkids to assist.
It takes a lot of people — many of whom quietly help out behind the scenes — to keep the farm thriving. Many volunteers, Shumaker said, find a sense of peace as they care for the plants and give back to the community.
"It's a very worthwhile project, and so many people benefit from it," she said. "Many people come by and walk through the aisles and see what's available."
They use no pesticides at the farm, Beck said, and grow food in raised beds with high-quality soil.
Like many local farms, the Tarentum Friendship Garden serves as a gathering space. School programs sometimes stop by, Beck said, and a little free library and food pantry at the farm get many visitors.
"We've created a space of what was just grass into something that feeds people not only in body but potentially in soul, in spirit," Beck said. "This place creates community and friendship."
On a recent day, Beck inhaled the scent of freshly picked oregano as he strolled the wood-chip-covered paths, pausing to point out a black-and-yellow goldfinch pecking at seeds from an orange zinnia.
Beck said he finds peace in the farm — though noisy trucks barreling by on First Avenue often interrupt the buzzing bees and chirping birds. Beck enjoys working with volunteers and meeting people who stop by.
"It gives a sense of community," Beck said.
The farm, Beck said, brings together a unique mix of people from diverse backgrounds.
"You could have a million dollars, or you could have zero dollars," he said. "We don't care about religious affiliation or who they're going to vote for in the next election. Those cares disappear here."
A variety of flowers — including sunflowers, Beck's favorite — attract birds, bees and butterflies. Volunteers collect their seeds each year to replant again next spring.
"They bring joy, not food," Beck said.
Maintaining an urban farm, though, isn't all sunshine and sunflowers.
A hailstorm pelted plants earlier this year, damaging crops. Every year, Beck struggles to find enough volunteers to keep up with the necessary maintenance.
Beck said the farm can't keep up with demand from the community. There's been talk of expanding the farm, he said, but that would require more volunteers and more time — things that aren't always easy to find.
