Withrow’s Urban Grower Project

A community-led project developed by Withrow Park Farmers’ Market

Our project aims to foster and encourage urban agriculture and provide a space for urban growers to participate at our farmers’ market. Urban agriculture increases access to local fresh produce, reduces barriers to accessing farmland, creates green spaces that help cool the city and clean the air, tackles climate change, provides pollinator-friendly habitat, brings people together, builds stronger communities and so much more! We launched our pilot project in 2020 – you can learn more about it here. Are you an urban grower? Learn more about the application process here: Learn more. 

2024 Participants

Morning Comes Gardens Joining us for her second season, Grace lives steps away from the market and loves sharing her garden bounty with us. Grace says “I strive to cultivate a holistic growing methodology centering permaculture principles that take into consideration the entirety of the ecosystem and mimic natural processes to the best of my ability and employ planting techniques derived from polyculture practices. 100% of the vegetables, herbs, edible and native plants and flowers I grow in my garden are started from seed myself, both started indoors under grow lights from March to May as well as direct sown into the garden.”

Grace from Morning Comes Garden lives steps away from the Market! Farm

 Wil with his fresh herbs at Withrow Market

Edith’s Garden Goods (Wil)
The mint and catnip Wil sells often comes in small bouquets with a few seasonal flowers – a mix of the practical and beautiful, much like his approach to gardening.   “Growing food is a good skill to have, it’s a peaceful hobby, and the garden is full of small wonders,” said Wil. He regards his garden as a habitat and tries to focus on pollinator-friendly and indigenous plants. To minimize his impact on the soil, he also practices no-digging gardening techniques. The yield has always been more than he can use, and for years Wil has enjoyed sharing his produce with friends and family. For him, it was a natural step to share his herbs and vegetables at the market as the first-ever Withrow Market Urban Grower.  Now, the good things growing in Wil’s garden are available for all to enjoy – tomatoes, kale, cucumbers, bitter melons, herbs, and sometimes, a few flowers too! 

Wil’s backyard garden located in East York. Wil bikes all of his garden goods to the market every Saturday!

 Farm Cadet Fresh

Teri Freeman got her start volunteering at  farms in 2020. She completed the Homestead TO program at Downsview park and has hands-on experience at many of Toronto’s most notable urban farms. This year she is managing 1000 sq feet and is looking forward to engaging with the community and other farmers as she sells her products.