california pitcher sage, saeaside agoseris, and prostratus foraged on Allston Way, Berkeley, CA
Gathering a Farm (work in progress)
I hold stewardship as a core value. Stewardship of place, relationships, home, and life. As I reflect, I see this value shape my art, my health practices, my family, and the spaces I inhabit.
Lately, I’ve been tending to the plants in and around my new home in Berkeley, CA. This small plot of land is maybe a sixteenth of an acre. I find myself wondering: is this a garden, or a farm?
At first glance, “farm” feels too big for such a small parcel. But the writing of my friend Melissa Butler opened a new understanding. She shares that the word farm comes from the root dher, to hold and support. It’s also connected to firmare and firmus, to settle, strong, and constant. Even dharma shares this root: a word for the path of right living.
By the USDA’s definition, a farm is “any place from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products were produced and sold, or normally would have been sold, during the year.” Technically, with some vision, even this plot could qualify! But more meaningfully, I’ve come to understand that a garden may feed oneself, while a farm nourishes others.
This is my intention: to create a place that nourishes. Through food, flowers, herbs, or inspiration. What we are growing here is a farm.
To cultivate this vision, I am slowly gathering seeds and cuttings from my neighborhood, seeking plants with histories in this soil, bringing them home, and stewarding their growth. The plants will become the foundation for something larger, a living expression of care and reciprocity.
images coming soon