I visited all the Urban farms in Pomona
I spent the last couple months making the rounds of urban farms around the area and wanted to share my thoughts for anyone curious about visiting. These spots are little green pockets in the city and more of them deserve attention. Here's my rundown:
Growing Roots — A small but inspiring operation on a plot they secured in partnership with Pomona Unified School District. It's only about an eighth of an acre, but they pack a lot into it and the whole thing is about showing the community that we can grow our own food together. Run by Julieta, she's really sweet and clearly cares about the community.
Sarvodaya Farms & Nursery — This one was my genuine favorite and the highlight of the my visits. Hands down the most beautiful of the bunch. It's a genuinely lush, thriving farm and nursery with gorgeous plantings and an incredible variety of exotic fruit trees, vegetable garden, and medicinal herbs. They run workshops, a Farmer Training Program, a kids' program , and give away all the food they grow through their Free Farmstand. You can feel how much care the team puts into the whole space and everything they grow. The community there is warm and welcoming . I left inspired and with a bunch of new plants.
Gente Community Garden — A neighborhood-focused community space that's all about gathering and integrating the surrounding community through growing. Smaller and grassroots, but welcoming, and you can feel the intention behind it. They are still in a development phase but the team was really sweet and welcoming.
Cal Poly Pomona — If you want to see the more high-tech, research-driven side of things, the Cal Poly programs are worth a look. They have an excellent nursery, and you can walk around the various gardens around the nursery / farm store. There is also an indoor shipping container farm, but you can only see that with special permission. They have events pretty regularly that are fun for the whole family.
Lopez Urban Farm — Large farm that that grows fruits and veggies that get shared with Pomona residents through a mutual aid system. It's open several days a week and they have events often.