I will make this short and sweet:  it's October and the peppers are turning yellow! [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500"] peppers[/caption] Two thoughts: 1.  Some of them are very small, like the size of my fingertip. 2.  I don't even like peppers.

I will make this short and sweet:  it's October and the peppers are turning yellow!

peppers

Two thoughts:

1.  Some of them are very small, like the size of my fingertip.

2.  I don't even like peppers.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500"] Tomato![/caption] Since my tomatoes were a little, uh, delayed this year due to multiple moves, I hadn't had more than a few tomatoes at a time.  But there's always this time when they all come at once and friends, we have reached it.  I picked a lot of these while they were still green because in my experience tomatoes will either rot or be eaten by insects and animals before they have a chance to fully ripen outside.  I just set my green tomatoes someplace darkish - I don't bother with that wrapping in newspaper nonsense that I tried last winter - and leave them for about a week, checking every so often to make sure nothing's rotting.  Like so: [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500"] row of tomatoes[/caption] Those tomatoes above may be on a windowsill but they actually won't get any sun...confusing, I know.  Row houses!  I just don't have any real counters yet in my kitchen so the windowsill will have to do.  This is a little more than half my harvest because I gave away a big bag of them to a friend.  Someday I'll learn to can things and make up a big batch of tomato sauce to use throughout the year but since my stove is sitting in the middle of the living room this is not the year for that.  Also it feels selfish to keep three or four dozen tomatoes to myself:  my boyfriend and I love tomatoes but I don't think anyone can love tomatoes that much. The red tomato in the row is a Dr. Walter and very prettily heart-shaped: [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="375"] Dr. Walter, I presume...wait, I've already made that joke[/caption] Such a perfectly tomato-y tomato!  Unfortunately it tastes, well, gross.  I mentioned this before when I got my first Dr. Walter:  they're just kind of bitter.  I thought that first one might just be a fluke, but these new ones were grown in different soil (back when I had gazillions of gardens) so I think it's just the variety of tomato.  Everything I read said that they were good for markets because they were pretty and that part is true, but I really don't like the taste.  I think these will be turned in to sauce... I leave you with an updated view of the bathtub in all its vegetable goodness.  Welcome, fall! [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500"] bathtub[/caption]  

 

Tomato!

Since my tomatoes were a little, uh, delayed this year due to multiple moves, I hadn't had more than a few tomatoes at a time.  But there's always this time when they all come at once and friends, we have reached it.  I picked a lot of these while they were still green because in my experience tomatoes will either rot or be eaten by insects and animals before they have a chance to fully ripen outside.  I just set my green tomatoes someplace darkish - I don't bother with that wrapping in newspaper nonsense that I tried last winter - and leave them for about a week, checking every so often to make sure nothing's rotting.  Like so:

row of tomatoes

Those tomatoes above may be on a windowsill but they actually won't get any sun...confusing, I know.  Row houses!  I just don't have any real counters yet in my kitchen so the windowsill will have to do.  This is a little more than half my harvest because I gave away a big bag of them to a friend.  Someday I'll learn to can things and make up a big batch of tomato sauce to use throughout the year but since my stove is sitting in the middle of the living room this is not the year for that.  Also it feels selfish to keep three or four dozen tomatoes to myself:  my boyfriend and I love tomatoes but I don't think anyone can love tomatoes that much.

The red tomato in the row is a Dr. Walter and very prettily heart-shaped:

Dr. Walter, I presume...wait, I've already made that joke

Such a perfectly tomato-y tomato!  Unfortunately it tastes, well, gross.  I mentioned this before when I got my first Dr. Walter:  they're just kind of bitter.  I thought that first one might just be a fluke, but these new ones were grown in different soil (back when I had gazillions of gardens) so I think it's just the variety of tomato.  Everything I read said that they were good for markets because they were pretty and that part is true, but I really don't like the taste.  I think these will be turned in to sauce...

I leave you with an updated view of the bathtub in all its vegetable goodness.  Welcome, fall!

bathtub

 

[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.

Sooooo jealous...

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.

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!

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!

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!