Late Summer Dinner at Healcrest with Grit & Grace

On September 7th 2014 at Healcrest Urban Farm located in Garfield,  Blue Collar will host its first ever participatory dinner in Pittsburgh.  The idea is simple. An all volunteer driven dinner to raise funds for groups trying to further the values of independence and hard work held so dearly by the denizens of our magnificent city. The dinner will be a three course dinner with drinks provided. Each guest will be provided 4 tokens representing 25% of their total donation. During the event each group will give an in depth performance showcasing their mission in Pittsburgh. At the end of the dinner the guests will give their tokens to the groups that they value the most. The chef for this particular dinner is chef de cuisine Curtis gamble of grit and grace and former executive chef at bread and wine in Chicago IL..

 

 

 

HEALCREST URBAN FARM – Healcrest Urban Farm  is a women-owned urban farm and social enterprise business.   Through nurturing  abandoned urban land we empower all people to reclaim, restore and sustain our collective knowledge and health.  We grow culinary and medicinal herbs, creating an oasis of wild and cultivated plants, using our platform  in the community to offer education on food, health, and healing.  We hand blend our herbs with local seasonal fruit creating supportive tea blends and delicious ice pops that we call Tea Pops, a vehicle to open everyone to the power of herbal medicine.  Healcrest is a place of healing- both the land and ourselves. 

 

 

 

 

GIRLS ROCK PGH -Girls rock pgh -Girls Rock! Pittsburgh is an empowerment program for female youths of all definitions, abilities and backgrounds. Girls Rock! Pittsburgh utilizes the process of making music to instill tools for amplifying self-confidence, creative expression, independent thinking, mutual respect and cooperation, while cultivating a supportive and inclusive community of peers and mentors. Girls Rock! Pittsburgh is committed to community awareness and social agency, fostering a network of role models for the endeavors of girls and women that promote social change amongst its diverse participants. Girls can play any kind of music they want. Creative voices of girls and women need to be amplified to create social change. Girls need positive role models and support for their creative endeavors. We can build a community where girls support each other rather than tear each other down. We can empower girls to recognize, understand, and respond to discrimination. “Girls Rock” is more than just a slogan.

 

 

HOMESTEAD BOYS CHOIR – AAMI Boys’ Choir, a positive community-based alternative, enables its members to experience the richness and excitement of creative expression. The benefits gained by the youth are discipline, confidence, motivation and the continual building of their self-esteem.  Additionally, the choir prepares members to be productive individuals allowing them to believe in themselves and their potential.  They learn the value of friendship and the importance of respecting self and others.

 

 

 

Founded in 1986, Just Harvest works in Allegheny County to change the unjust public policies that create hunger and poverty. Just Harvest is a membership-based non-profit organization that is mobilizing our community, connecting people to public benefits, and advocating for a stronger anti-poverty safety net, with the aim of economic justice for all.

 

You can register & choose your level of giving, for the

Late Summer Dinner@ Healcrest Urban Farm 

by heading to our events page 

REGISTER FOR DINNER NOW!

Healcrest Introduces CSA for the Fall/Winter Season!

Community Supported Agriculture allows farmers to remain financially sustainable while connecting members to the bounty of seasonal, local food. Members buy a share of the year’s harvest at the beginning of the season and receive weekly boxes of in-season produce. Healcrest Farm is building upon the CSA model to offer herbal medicines and healing products on a monthly schedule. Our Community Supported Apothecary invites you to explore medicinal plants, learning as you heal. Register Here

How does it work?
CSA membership is a great way to build a home supply of herbal medicines, learn more about how to use local plants, and explore new ways of being in control of our own health.

Each month for six months you’ll receive organically grown herbs and artisanal herbal products. Our CSA gives you the opportunity to try medicinal natural healing products you’ve been curious about and gain knowledge as you learn how your body heals. You’ll be able to pick your share up each month, warming you through the winter, and meeting with the women who grow and make all the products.

What is in a share?

Each share supplies you with seasonally appropriate medicines and products. Some herbal preparations you can expect to receive this season from October to March are:
~ Herbal Honeys
~ Nourishing Tea Blends
~Infused Healing Oils
~Salves
~ Elixirs: general well being & immune boosting
~Tea Pops!
~ …And More

You will receive educational information every month about the plants included in your share products, and suggestions on how to use them.

Why Join?
When you purchase a share, it helps support the work we do revitalizing the land, growing and processing the herbs into useful natural medicines that nourish the body and enhance vitality. In return, you will receive a variety of herbs that support good health and the health of the environment, while also preserving the agricultural character of our wonderful community.

Join Up Here!

Healcrest is on Hatch!

Dear Fans of Healcrest Urban Farm!

This year has been an amazing year for local, healthy food and urban farming! Maybe you have seen the buzz on our TeaPops in Pittsburgh Magazine here & here or seen us out in the Pittsburgh region and tried one of our sophisticated artisanal TeaPops at these amazing spaces! As you may know, the TeaPops have led us into a fast-paced start-up phase as a local, natural food producer and social enterprise. This also means we must grow with the demand of our buzz and this is what we are doing! In March this year we successfully funded a KivaZip crowd-sourced loan in 2 days flat! Our supporters are amazing. As we continue to raise startup money to expand and speed-up our TeaPop and boxed tea production – we ask you, our friends, colleagues and family to join us as contributors!

The money we raise will help get us into our own commercial kitchen space and increase productivity through high-tech ice pop equipment purchases. With startup support through Idea Foundry, our growth is being supported, tracked and led by an experienced team!

If you did not get a chance to contribute to us through Kiva, now is your chance to focus your contribution to Healcrest through a Pittsburgh-based crowd-sourced platform called Hatch! What is great about Hatch is that it supports amazing local businesses like us and it functions similar to Kickstarter, where you get swag for your contribution!

Our campaign just opened today, and we are inviting friends and family to join us now as a private, even anonymous, contributor to Healcrest Urban Farm! You can contribute funds – as little as $5 – and you get in return some serious Healcrest Urban Farm swag, including a TeaPop punch card, dry-ice TeaPop shipments and a Healcrest Urban Farm TShirt depending the level of giving!

Here is the link to contribute now @ Hatch: https://hatch.pdcdc.org/healcrest-urban-farm–2

Thank You so Much for Your Continued Support!

The Team of Healcrest Urban Farm!

Maria Graziani, CEO/Founder

Dana Launius, Markets and Marketing/Partner

Meg Graham, Farm Manager/Partner

Michelle Soto, Farm Co-Manager and Resident Herbalist/Partner

Suzanne South, Community Relations/Partner

The berry/herb garden…lavender, rasberries, blackberries, sage, Greek oregano…

First summer harvest of herbs

JULY :: Classes & Events at the Farm

On a small hill in Garfield, Healcrest Urban Farm is bursting with the colorful flowers of herbs in the height of summer! Our working, urban, organically run farm hosts a variety of events. Contact Michelle for booking at 615 804 0064.

Volunteering on the Farm!

Every Sunday from 11­4 join us for a volunteer day! We’ll be busy harvesting flowers, weeding, and working in our berry patch this month. Farm Tour at starts at 4pm, free for Garfield residents.

Classes & Workshops

In July we have 5 classes scheduled­ three Fermentation Classes with Natalya and two Herb Classes with Michelle! Fermentation classes will not run with fewer than 8 participants, so please register early at http://www.healcresturbanfarm.com/events.html

Salve Making Class! Monday July 7, 6­8 pm ($20)

From blooming garden to a wonderful finished product! Learn abut the therapeutic properties of different herbs and why you would chose them for your oil. We will talk
about many plants in the gardens and how to harvest them. Then we’ll harvest our own
roots and flowers to infuse our oils, discuss different techniques and turn your finished infused oils into a salve. Participants will leave with samples of products made in class. (Please register in advance so we can have enough supplies on hand)

Sauerkraut and Kimchi – Wednesday July 9, 6­8 pm ($25)

During this show, tell, an taste you will learn the foundations of making sauerkraut and kimchi. There is no one way of doing it. Come and explore the exciting possibilities that variations offer for our breakfast, lunch, and dinner plate.

Fermented Beverages – Monday July 14, 6­8 pm ($25)

This show, tell, and taste session will introduce you to the making of lightly fermented natural sodas with water kefir grains, fermented syrups to be mixed with sparkling water, and a variety of alcoholic meads.

Herbal Sleep Aids – Monday July 21, 6­8 pm ($10)

Trouble getting to sleep? Staying asleep? Bothered by sleep apnea? Or is it impossible to wake up?

Learn about different herbal approaches for addressing difficulties falling asleep all and trouble waking up. Walk through the gardens to identify common sleep aid plants and discuss how to grow and process them.

The Easy and Fun Milk Fermentations – Wednesday July 30, 6­8 pm ($25)

This session will cover the making of cultured and non­cultured butters, milk kefir,
okroshka (eastern European cold soup with milk kefir) and clabbering raw milk to make a
simple but delicious farmer’s cheese. Yum!

SUMMER HAS ARRIVED AND IT IS HOT!

So to refresh and recharge you we have Savory Strawberry Creamsicle; Cucumber Lime Mint, and returning champs Chocolate Lavender, & Fresh Apple Mint. In addition we are bringing freshly brewed Iced Tea by the cup. Try our original Tea Blends like Goddess Blend or Everyday Tea. We look forward to hosting you for volunteer days, tours, and classes. And we are always happy to see you at market.

Herb Classes and Walks with Michelle

Join us this summer at Healcrest Urban Farm for herbal education with certified Herbalist Michelle Soto!

Register here http://www.healcresturbanfarm.com/events.html

A Rainy Day Photo Shoot!

By Michelle Soto

Meg and I thought we could use this rainy day to our advantage and show some photos of our muscle powered tools that we use to create the gardens.  As we were planning and budgeting to create new gardens and revitalize more green spaces at Healcrest, we made a decision to not rent heavy gas powered machinery and to invest in quality earth moving tools that we can use for years to come.

We still use lawn mowers for grass cutting, but pretty much everything else up at the farm is a hand tool.  This definitely increases the time and energy it takes to build a garden bed, but the finished products are high quality beds that will be around for years to come, completely free of knotweed roots, rocks, and anything else that might impede the growing process.

We’ve found that the beds that we built last year have needed a few wheelbarrows of compost of them and some leaf mulch in the aisles, but are free of invasive weeds.  The hard pan clay that is just right under our top soil was turned with compost last year and has matured into a dark rich layer of soil, perfect for growing.

Planting into these beds will continue for a few more weeks! Official volunteer days are on Sundays from 11-4.  We won’t make you jump on a broad fork for you can help some baby seedlings find a good home!

Michelle loves to use the little digging fork to turn earth

Meg attacks knotweed, clearing a new path through the woods

Michelle jumps on the broad fork, using all her body weight!

Meg is shifting soil with the brand new shifter that Suzy built or the farm

Family Time on the Farm

By Michelle Soto

This past week my family came into town ready to work on the farm!  Many of my memories of childhood involve helping my dad in the yard and in the garden.  Every spring we’d get a load of wood mulch delivered to the house and I would use my child sized shovel and wheelbarrow to mulch the rose bushes and the edges of garden beds.  I loved the smell of the mulch.  It smelled woody and alive and signaled that spring was here.  My dad’s biggest hobby was working in the yard, he’d come home every day after work, take a power nap, change into work clothes and spend the rest of the afternoon outside.  He’s the type of guy who only has ONE kind of grass in his yard, and absolutely no weeds.  Anywhere.

It was reminiscent of these afternoons to spend some days with him at Healcrest.  His assignment: tree stump removal.  And not just any tree stump.  A 50 year old black locust (he counted those rings during a break one day) which was in the middle of our newest garden.  While my dad worked on the stump, my mom and aunt weeded our garlic patch, which had mulched itself with garlic mustard plants.  They caught them all before they went to flower, and the garlic patch is vibrant and sending up what soon will be delicious garlic scapes.

Other areas of the garden are quickly growing as the days and nights are warming up.  The mints: lemon balm, peppermint, horehound, catnip, catmint, and chocolate mint are providing us with new herbs to harvest every week.  About half of our seedlings are moved into the greenhouse and awaiting transplant.  And of course, the lovely wild cherry trees are going to burst into bloom any day this week.

Till next time,

Michelle and the Farm Team

Healcrest Urban Farm Wish List

Hi Friends! ‘Tis the Season of Giving and Did You Know Healcrest Urban Farm Has a WISH LIST?! If you want to support our efforts we will LOVE you forever!
View our wishlist here http://www.healcresturbanfarm.com/

front loader
wheel barrow X2
rain barrels
trough
chicken feed
dehydrator
rakes – all kinds
tall ladder
shed organizers
cherry pickers X2
hedge clippers
hand trimmers
8’ black mesh fencing
pond liner
yurts

IMI for The Holidays 2013!

We look forward to seeing you this weekend at The Waterfront! FRIDAY & SATURDAY
Join US for a Wonderful Local Artisan Shopping Experience
The 6th Annual Holiday Artisan I Made It Nomadic Marketplace

AND

DEC 8th – Sterling Yoga Artists Market