Growing Uptown

Since March of 2020, the Dyckman Farmhouse Museum (DFM), in partnership with New York Common Pantry (NYCP) and Garden Kitchen Lab (GKL), has empowered 20 families to grow food in their urban apartments in Upper Manhattan and the Bronx through our new Growing Uptown program, as a start to closing the gap in food security in their own homes.

To prepare for the launch of the program, museum staff developed “Grow Kits” with pots, soil, basil, parsley, and lettuce seedlings. NYCP distributed these kits on our behalf to their existing constituents. Kits were accompanied by bilingual written and digital instructions and recipes (available below), developed in-house, and designed to teach families how to supplement their food needs through urban growing.

We know this pilot was a great success; 20 kits were distributed to families in need, and several of our new urban farmers have kept in touch to share the progress of their windowsill crops.

Moving forward, DFM is putting together kits that are more robust and will include food staples such as onions and tomatoes. Ultimately, these simple Grow Kits are helping families learn more about where their food comes from and are just the beginning of how Growing Uptown can foster successful, impactful urban gardening as we expand the program.

With your support, Growing Uptown allows the museum to fulfill our mission with wide-reaching, impactful results. To continue the important work of the Growing Uptown program, consider leaving a gift that will greatly impact the lives of so many in our community.

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