Philadelphia Abundance and Philabundance

Hello, readers!  Sorry for the long hiatus between posts—more are coming shortly.

Southeastern Pennsylvania is a land of temperate climate and fertile soils, so by the end of summer the Clark Park farmers’ market is nearly overflowing with incredible regional produce!  Even my own little garden is at the height of its summer production.  I have five varieties of tomato, broccoli, eggplant, cabbage, and several herbs ready to harvest with cauliflower following close behind.  This morning at the farmers’ market I purchased blueberries, raspberries, yellow peaches, Honeycrisp apples, Bartlett pears, Yukon Gold potatoes, purple potatoes, multi-colored beets, carrots, green beans, Lima beans, garlic, chives, red onion, yellow onion, Rainbow chard, Pattypan squash, and watermelon.  I wish that I had my camera so that I could show you how utterly gorgeous my haul is!  You’ll just have to imagine, for now.

However, even in the midst of such abundance, there are still many families and communities in Philadelphia that struggle to put food on the table.  When money gets tight, fresh fruits and vegetables are often the first thing to get cut from a family’s grocery list.  Unfortunately, this also means that the nutritional quality of these families’ meals is also diminished.  Philabundance, the region’s largest hunger relief organization, operates a program called “Share the Harvest” in which farmers and gardeners around the region can donate fresh produce to be distributed to needy families.  If you have your own garden and are overwhelmed by zucchini or tomatoes, please consider giving away your excess produce to this or a similar organization.  Or, plant a section of your garden each year specifically to be given away.  This program with Philabundance continues through the last Saturday in September.  Check out the program web site for information about drop-off locations around the region.