Discover the Philadelphia Orchard Project

by Patricia A. Taylor

When I first heard of the Philadelphia Orchard Project—affectionately known as POP—I envisioned a naive, do-gooder effort. I was partially correct. Founded in 2007, the organization seeks to plant edible fruit plants in low-income areas of Philadelphia and not only provide sources of healthy food, but also beautify properties.

Gooseberry

Based on my experience, I thought its goals bordered on the credulous. When I had tried growing fruit trees 30 years ago, I learned that without sprays, disease ran rampant and even had I used selective poisons, bees, worms, and other critters would have feasted on any fruit before I did. I am happy to report that the Philadelphia Orchard Project has proved my fruit growing assumptions wrong.

Under the aegis of orchard director Phil Forsyth, POP is a savvy operation that creates what it calls “Edible Forest Gardens.” These are multi-layered permaculture orchards designed to have a functioning ecology. Strawberries and herbs form the groundcovers in the forest garden. The herbs tend to attract beneficial insects and also serve as mulch. The strawberries provide not only quick results but also abundant ones.

“We harvested several hundred pounds of strawberries last year,” Jacob Bortman, garden educator for the East Park Revitalization Alliance reports. “It was fun to see the excitement of the neighborhood kids and their parents, too. POP is a great program, one that not only creates community but also exposes children to how fruit is actually grown.”

Shrubs constitute the next layer. Forsyth particularly favors goumi (Elaeagnus multiflora), an Asian plant with fragrant spring flowers and leaves undercoated with silver. In summer it produces beautiful red berries that can be eaten on the spot or used for jams and jellies. Though goumi is said to require full sun, Forsyth has found that it does well in partial shade. As an added bonus, it fixes nitrogen and thus helps the big guys in the orchard—the various fruit trees—grow faster and healthier.

Now that the concept of Integrated Pest Management is wide spread, copious quantities of chemicals are no longer required to maintain healthy fruit trees. Forsyth takes this one step further by championing fig and persimmon trees. “These two,” he says, “have no pest or disease problems.” He adds, “And there is an unbelievably vast taste difference between a fresh fig and the dried stuff that you buy in stores.”

A planting of fruit-bearing trees by SHARE, an affiate in PHS’s City Harvest program

Not everyone, however, favors figs and persimmons. In its Southeast Philadelphia Collaborative orchard, POP involved the area’s youth in the selection and placement of fruit trees. “Unfortunately,” Forsyth reports, “they chose peaches, among the hardest fruit trees to grow.”  He adds, “But we did include some figs.”

“POP completely transformed a weed haven and junk dump lot,” Cory Miller, the Collaborative program director, reports. “Not only that, they started small and then came back to expand the orchard and to reinforce its initial training.”

POP does not just willy-nilly plant orchards. Rather, it reviews applications from groups and evaluates the proposed site and the group’s willingness to maintain it. After a successful review, POP provides the design, the plants, and the training to ensure the orchard’s success. Each organization owns its orchards and is responsible for harvesting and distributing the fruit.

Now heading into its fifth growing season, POP has planted 22 orchards throughout the city. And it has done this with Forsyth as the lone staff member and a part-time one at that as he earns his real living as proprietor of his ecological design firm, Forsyth Gardens (forsythgardens.com).

The board of directors and its orchard committee are crucial to its success. “It is rare,” Forsyth says, “to find volunteers doing all of the work—reviewing applications for an orchard, fund raising, outreach, scheduling—that a paid staff normally does. POP is truly something special.”

If you would like to learn more about this “special” organization, check its website at phillyorchards.org.

Tagged: philadelphia orhard project

Posted in: Green Scene, Trees