[caption id="attachment_4213" align="alignnone" width="672"] Sooooo jealous...[/caption] After a furious few nights of number crunching, we have the official results of the 2012 South Philly Garden Tour fund raiser. This is by far the largest fund raiser the Co-op does each year and we hope it provides a great time for people who attend as well as those who volunteer the use of their gardens. Here are the numbers: 24 participating gardens... 111 attendees... 141 tickets sold... $3673.33 Net proceeds... ...and best of all... 10 new members on day of Tour! As you can tell by the numbers, not only was the Tour well attended but we also had a number of folks who couldn't make it for one reason or another still give to the Co-op by purchasing a ticket or two. As with all of our fund raising, the proceeds from this event will go toward the pre-start-up costs we incur so that when it comes time to put a deposit down on a location, stock the shelves with inventory (after, uh, building shelves) and hiring a staff, we will have every penny of member equity available. After the Tour was all over, one attendee who has lived in South Philadelphia for several years remarked that going on the Garden Tour helped him realize "just how cool a place South Philly is" and "how great it is to live here." He went on to say, "look at all this great stuff going on in my neighborhood - especially the creative and sustainable things being done with very tight spaces - that I didn't know about." A great day for meeting cool neighbors... seeing great gardens... and helping bring the South Philly Food Co-op that much closer to opening.

While we recover from the awesome good time that was the Garden Tour, we want to share some of the first photos trickling in from that day. We've got them in an album on Facebook that you can view by clicking here (need not be a Facebook user to view). In a bit, we'll have news about how the Garden Tour did in terms of funds raised. PlanPhilly's coverage of the day includes the VERY exciting news that the Garden Tour - along with selling 140 tickets - brought in enough new members to put us over the 300 mark (305 to be exact). Suddenly our next goal of 400 doesn't seem so far away.

At the Whitman branch of the Philadelphia Free Library, you can find more than just books. Step outside and you'll find their community garden overflowing with marigolds, petunias, rose bushes, tomato plants, and herbs. After the Garden Tour you can even go back on a Monday with other children and families and keep on planting new flowers, vegetables, and herbs, and learning about gardening. You can get the whole scoop on the Whitman Library Garden by going on the Second Annual South Philly Food Co-op Garden Tour, on Sat., Sept. 8, 2012 (raindate Sun., Sept. 9, 2012) from 1-5 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online at http://southphillygardentour.eventbrite.com/ or at these locations:

• Urban Jungle, 1526 E. Passyunk Avenue
• Ultimo Coffee, 1900 South 15th St.
• Grindcore House, 1515 S. 4th St.

The Garden Tour will be a self-guided ticketed event, and will feature over 20 public and private gardens throughout South Philadelphia. Participating gardens will have their doors/gates open for the duration of the event, and will have someone available to greet visitors, show them around and answer questions. RSVP on Facebook here. This is one of many fundraisers that will help us raise the funds for a site analysis of potential store locations. Help us make it a success – buy tickets for yourself, your friends and your family! And, if you haven’t yet joined, meet some of our member-owners and please consider joining now!

Since announcing the 2nd Annual South Philly Garden Tour almost a month ago, we've gotten a ton of great press to help get the word out. Here are just a few of the great things that some local news organizations and blogs have had to say about the Tour: NakedPhilly.com

We’re into the sustainable-locally-sourced-socially-conscious vibe of this event, and appreciate the impact that events like this have on creating communities of like-minded folks...

Phoodie.info

South Philly’s Second Annual Fall Garden Tour Sounds Just As Good As The Stuff It Supports...

Philadelphia Weekly (with a great picture of the Co-op's board at the top of the page ;) )

Whether you’ve got a green thumb or the touch of death, chances are it wouldn’t kill ya to spend an afternoon outdoors appreciating nature—especially when it’s for a good cause...

Philly Homegrown

South Philadelphia is becoming more beautiful by the moment, and here’s your chance to take a tour of 20 neighborhood gardens...

Mark Bittman, New York Times:

If you care even a little bit about making positive changes to the food system in this country, you'll not only go on the Garden Tour but you'll immediately become a member of the Co-op.

(Okay, I may have made one of those up but I'm sure he'd say something like that if he knew about the event!) The Second Annual South Philly Food Co-op Garden Tour will be TOMORROW. Sept. 8, 2012 (raindate Sun., Sept. 9, 2012) from 1-5 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online at http://southphillygardentour.eventbrite.com/ or at these locations: Urban Jungle, 1526 E. Passyunk Ave. Ultimo Coffee, 1900 South 15th St. Grindcore House, 1515 S. 4th St. The Garden Tour will be a self-guided ticketed event, and will feature over 20 public and private gardens throughout South Philadelphia. Participating gardens will have their doors/gates open for the duration of the event, and will have someone available to greet visitors, show them around and answer questions. RSVP on Facebook here. This is one of many fundraisers that will help us raise the funds for a site analysis of potential store locations. Help us make it a success – buy tickets for yourself, your friends and your family! And, if you haven’t yet joined, meet some of our member-owners and please consider joining now!

Just when I thought there weren't any tomatoes on my plants I saw these: [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500"] friends[/caption] And lots of peppers, too! [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500"] hello, sun[/caption] I didn't do much to my plants this past week because we had so much rain, so it was nice to come out and see all the growing that's been going on.  Unfortunately this kind of growing was happening, too: [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="375"] sucker![/caption] I've been pinching these little suckers off because I read something about tomatoes that told me to do that.  It's kind of fun! We've been lucky to be getting all this rain - not so lucky when you get caught in it walking home from work - but the plants love it.  I think the 2nd Annual Garden Tour couldn't come at a better time.  Think how lush all these gardens are going to be!

With the Garden Tour just THREE DAYS away, we'd like to take this time to thank the many businesses (some of which are also part of our Shop South Philly member-benefit program) for helping out on the day of the tour. When you check in at Urban Jungle to pick up your wristband and tour map, you'll also learn the location of these refreshment stops, some of which are being hosted at the businesses themselves with others at some of the gardens. Thanks go out to Wash Cycle Laundry, The Wishing Well, Rita's on E. Passyunk Ave, Black N Brew, Theatre Exile, OCF Coffee House, and Girls Can Tell for providing refreshments, specials and discounts to Garden Tour participants. Many thanks also to Urban Jungle for being both a ticket sales location and allowing us to use some of their space as our check-in location. We also have get a shout out to Ultimo Coffee and Grindcore House for being ticket sales locations. We're certainly lucky to have so many friends in the world of local South Philly businesses so that we can offer in-person ticket sales in several convenient locations. Cantina Los Caballitos will be the location of our Garden Tour after party - featuring 20% off drinks. The Cantina has hosted a few events for us in the past and we couldn't be more grateful. Finally, we have to give special thanks to our sponsors, each of which ponied up the cash that helped defray the costs of the Tour and ensure that more of the proceeds of the Tour go directly to the Co-op to help us cover the start-up costs for the storefront itself. Those sponsors are Saul Ewing; The Campaign Group, Inc.; Theatre Exile; and Fresh* Dipped. Please take the time to click on all the links above to learn more about these great and generous businesses. The Second Annual South Philly Food Co-op Garden Tour will be on Sat., Sept. 8, 2012 (raindate Sun., Sept. 9, 2012) from 1-5 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online at http://southphillygardentour.eventbrite.com/ or at these locations: Urban Jungle, 1526 E. Passyunk Avenue Ultimo Coffee, 1900 South 15th St., Grindcore House, 1515 S. 4th St. The Garden Tour will be a self-guided ticketed event, and will feature over 20 public and private gardens throughout South Philadelphia. Participating gardens will have their doors/gates open for the duration of the event, and will have someone available to greet visitors, show them around and answer questions. RSVP on Facebook here. This is one of many fundraisers that will help us raise the funds for a site analysis of potential store locations. Help us make it a success – buy tickets for yourself, your friends and your family! And, if you haven’t yet joined, meet some of our member-owners and please consider joining now!

[caption id="attachment_4179" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Bouvier Community Garden. Photo courtesy of flickr user xram[/caption] From two overgrown, abandoned garden plots owned by the Neighborhood Gardens Association, the Newbold Neighbors Clean & Green committee has, over the past three-plus years, carved out an urban oasis known as the Bouvier Community Garden. The verdant grounds provide the neighborhood  with a venue for environmental education; a link to a sustainable community food system; a space for quiet respite; a composting program through Bennett Compost—oh, and a home for one mischievous gnome. You can learn more about this major achievement of vacant lot beautification AND see a number of unique household and community gardens by going on the Second Annual South Philly Food Co-op Garden Tour, on Sat., Sept. 8, 2012 (raindate Sun., Sept. 9, 2012) from 1-5 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online at http://southphillygardentour.eventbrite.com/ or at these locations:

• Urban Jungle, 1526 E. Passyunk Avenue
• Ultimo Coffee, 1900 South 15th St.
• Grindcore House, 1515 S. 4th St.

The Garden Tour will be a self-guided ticketed event, and will feature over 20 public and private gardens throughout South Philadelphia. Participating gardens will have their doors/gates open for the duration of the event, and will have someone available to greet visitors, show them around and answer questions. RSVP on Facebook here. This is one of many fundraisers that will help us raise the funds for a site analysis of potential store locations. Help us make it a success – buy tickets for yourself, your friends and your family! And, if you haven’t yet joined, meet some of our member-owners and please consider joining now!

A civic association, a public high school and a major greening, gardening and beautification advocacy group have come together to transform a formerly vacant and barren asphalt lot along one of the city's major thoroughfares into a beautiful and green addition to South Philadelphia. The two plots produce a bounty of fruits and veggies that are actually sold at a nearby farmer's market. Have we whet your appetite enough yet? You can learn more about this major achievement of greening and beautification AND see a number of unique household gardens by going on the Second Annual South Philly Food Co-op Garden Tour, on Sat., Sept. 8, 2012 (raindate Sun., Sept. 9, 2012) from 1-5 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online at http://southphillygardentour.eventbrite.com/ or at these locations:

• Urban Jungle, 1526 E. Passyunk Avenue
• Ultimo Coffee, 1900 South 15th St.
• Grindcore House, 1515 S. 4th St.

The Garden Tour will be a self-guided ticketed event, and will feature over 20 public and private gardens throughout South Philadelphia. Participating gardens will have their doors/gates open for the duration of the event, and will have someone available to greet visitors, show them around and answer questions. RSVP on Facebook here. This is one of many fundraisers that will help us raise the funds for a site analysis of potential store locations. Help us make it a success – buy tickets for yourself, your friends and your family! And, if you haven’t yet joined, meet some of our member-owners and please consider joining now!

[caption id="attachment_4169" align="alignright" width="300"] Photo | landscapedesignideas.com[/caption] Ever wonder how your co-worker turns out such incredible produce from her teeny container garden? Ever stand on your tippy-toes to catch a peek at flowers blooming beyond alley fences? Ever turn green with envy over your neighbor's inexplicable koi pond? This year's South Philly Food Co-op Garden Tour has the cure for what ails your voyeuristic green heart/thumb: In addition to getting the inside scoop on South Philly's vast variety of community gardens, a handful of homeowners will also open their doors, sharing secrets on everything from proper container-garden soil combos to the best ways to eliminate pesky South Philly-dwelling slugs. Get the inside scoop on tons of private gardens, and more, on the Second Annual South Philly Food Co-op Garden Tour, on Sat., Sept. 8, 2012 (raindate Sun., Sept. 9, 2012) from 1-5 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online at http://southphillygardentour.eventbrite.com/ or at these locations:

• Urban Jungle, 1526 E. Passyunk Avenue
• Ultimo Coffee, 1900 South 15th St.
• Grindcore House, 1515 S. 4th St.

The Garden Tour will be a self-guided ticketed event, and will feature over 20 public and private gardens throughout South Philadelphia. Participating gardens will have their doors/gates open for the duration of the event, and will have someone available to greet visitors, show them around and answer questions. RSVP on Facebook here. This is one of many fundraisers that will help us raise the funds for a site analysis of potential store locations. Help us make it a success – buy tickets for yourself, your friends and your family! And, if you haven’t yet joined, meet some of our member-owners and please consider joining now!

Dear Friends, LoMo, East Passyunk Crossing, Newbold, Pennsport, Point Breeze, Passyunk Square... when I first moved to 12th and Dickinson in 2008 I have to admit that "South Philly" felt so big to me. So many different neighborhoods... distinct boundaries of civic associations... feeling like I needed my passport just to cross Broad Street. In fact, my husband and I chuckle about the question our realtor asked when I mentioned that there were some houses listed on Jackson Street... "does she know how far Jackson is?" A few weekends ago, a group of committee members and I started hand delivering Co-op share certificates to everyone who has paid up their full $200 equity. As I walked from block to block and house to house I began to sense that South Philly was somehow smaller now - no longer a bunch of distinct neighborhoods or blocks - but a community of people connected to each other by the Co-op. I discovered so many great little blocks that I’d never been down and I noticed a lot of similarities - the cat and dog finder rescue stickers, little planter boxes or container gardens - among the houses of Co-op members. Most of all, I loved getting to meet the many people who were home when I rang their doorbells to drop off the certificates. For everyone involved in the Co-op, our community has gotten bigger (292!) while South Philly itself feels that much smaller. If you haven't joined yet, becoming a part of this community is as easy as clicking on this link to fill out an application and sending your first equity payment. If you pay off the whole $200 you can expect a ring on your doorbell from one of our committee members who will be delivering your Co-op share certificate. We print the certificates twice a year before the general membership meetings. In the meantime, we have another great way for you to see parts of the neighborhood you may have never experienced before: the Second Annual South Philly Garden Tour on 9/8 (THIS Saturday!). Check out the many Garden Tour Countdown posts on this blog for more information about how you can finally get into that neighbor's backyard that you've been dying to see. Have a great week! Alison L. Fritz President, Board of Directors South Philly Food Co-op P.S. If you had paid your full $200 before our spring membership meeting and haven't gotten your certificate yet, don't worry. We haven't forgotten you. We will be stopping by soon to drop it off soon. Thanks!