Garrison-Trotter Farm

There are 2,600 vacant lots scattered throughout Boston—and they’ve got potential. The Trust for Public Land is working to transform unused, city-owned land into neighborhood farms that will create new job opportunities and provide residents with locally grown, nutritious produce.

We recently acquired two vacant lots in Dorchester for what became the first urban farm in the City of Boston allowed under the new “right-to-farm” ordinance. The Garrison-Trotter Farm is one of a dozen planned through a partnership between The Trust for Public Land, the City of Boston, the Urban Farming Institute of Boston, and Dudley Neighbors Inc. This partnership, part of our statewide Community Agriculture program, will invest $1 million in Boston neighborhood farms over the next several years, greening the city and providing healthy, local produce to the low-income neighborhoods of Dorchester, Roxbury, and Mattapan.

With the help of farmers trained by the Urban Farming Institute, Garrison Trotter now produces kale, beets, onions, garlic, watermelons, and tomatoes to local farmers markets. The farm also provides volunteer opportunities educating people of all ages on the process of growing healthy food.