Orchard Project’s (POP) efforts to beautify urban
spaces, promote environmentally friendly development,
and provide accessible fresh produce to high-poverty
neighborhoods.
Founded in 2007, POP is dedicated to reclaiming unused
land for sustainable development and ethical, local food
systems. One of the biggest challenges facing low-income
residents in large cities like Philadelphia is access to healthy
and affordable food, as fresh produce is both expensive and
geographically distant from high-poverty neighborhoods.
Orchards can reduce a community’s reliance on imported
foods by providing cheaper and fresher local alternatives.
POP works with organizations of all stripes – nonprofits,
public parks, community gardens, elementary schools, and
religious congregations – developing partnerships to plant
and maintain urban orchards. One such congregation is
Roxborough Presbyterian Church (RPC), whose POP orchard
was planted in October 2009.
But the partnership with POP was not the congregation’s
first foray into horticulture, as RPC member Elizabeth
Vecchione originally had the idea for a community garden
in late 2008. After realizing how much underutilized land
the church owned, she saw the perfect opportunity for a
communal space that would improve the church’s outreach
and relationship with its neighbors. It would also make
an important environmental contribution, as community
gardens provide locally grown, fresh produce to areas
that would otherwise not have access to these healthy
food alternatives. In the spring of 2009, the Roxborough
Presbyterian Community Garden was born.
factors, and distribution to low-income neighborhoods.”
The middle two are perhaps the most important – not only
do orchard candidates need the manpower to care for the
plants, but the land itself needs to be environmentally
viable. Says Forsyth, “we need to check that the space has
a water source, e