The Green Issue, Summer 2019
I grew up in a place known as “the city in the forest,” very near the base of the Appalachian Trail, and feel most at home under a sprawling canopy of green. When we moved into the house where I spent the majority of my childhood, the suburban lawn was merely dirt, and I helped my father and grandfather till the land, sheltered with them wrapped behind me as we prepared to lay down sod by hand, planting our vegetable garden last. The juxtaposition always thrilled me—a country club and golf course was located right on the other side of our back yard; I could eavesdrop on doctors and lawyers putting around the 18th hole while I tended to tomato vines
To me, that’s half the joy of farming and gardening in New York City as well. We live in a lush, vibrant place, despite its steel towers and industrial lands. New Yorkers bloom where they’re planting, growing seedlings on windowsills, turning to hydroponic gardens and tending to rooftop farms.
I’m very excited to introduce our Green Issue, which covers all aspects of the word—from the emerald-hued fermented tea leaves that ground the dish known as laphet thoke at Forest Hill’s newest Burmese eatery, Asian Bowl, to the enduring legacy of the Queens County Farm Museum, the way garden coordinator Sharon Keller and the New York Restoration Project revived a community garden in Rockaway after Hurricane Sandy and the city’s controversy over selling CBD-infused food and drink, we are reflecting on the growers and tenders of our farms and food systems in Queens.
With any luck, maybe these stories will inspire you to plant a seed of your own. Or encourage you to visit your local farmers market and support these inspiring urban farmers we’re lucky to call our own. It’s not easy being green, but we believe in you.
Verdant thoughts,
Abby Carney | Editor | @abbymcarney
