The Fairhill neighborhood around 9th & Indiana Streets in North Philly has plenty of new life in the form of edible greenery & community, thanks largely to its partnership with POP! Throughout the season, neighbors of various ages have been planting, harvesting, & spending much more time in the Historic Fair Hill Burial Ground Orchard (900 block of W Indiana St), Evelyn Sanders Orchard (3000 block of N Percy St), & 9th & Indiana Corner Gardens.
In March, Fair Hill Burial Ground had a workparty with Philly Food Forests to remove all of its raised beds & redesign its garden for greater food production, better aesthetics, & expanded edible perennial plantings. The raised beds from Fair Hill were reconstructed in the nearby Evelyn Sanders Orchard, where there are now 8 beds exploding with vegetables in addition to the prolific perennial edibles lining the lot’s fences & a sturdy new bench where residents relax. The workparty was followed in April by a great POP volunteer day where 12 varieties of berries, 2 rose bushes, & 4 varieties of fruit trees were planted throughout the burial ground’s garden space. The corner of 9th & Indiana Streets has had a beautiful makeover due to new neighbor involvement, benches, new fruit trees, & colorful perennial flowers.
Community gathering at the revitalized Peaches Garden at 9th & Indiana.
The sites have come alive this summer with community meetings, first fruit harvests, summer camp visits, art projects, produce giveaways, & July 14th’s annual Fair Hill Summer Festival, proven to be the best attended yet! If you would like to visit the area & learn about its bounty, feel free to stop by any Monday, Thursday, or Saturday between 4-6pm when POP’s Orchard Liaison for the sites, Robyn Mello, has the Fair Hill gates opened. She’d be more than happy to give you a tour & a tasting!
Orchard Report contributed by Robyn Mello of Philly Food Forests, Occupy Vacant Lots, Fairhill Burial Ground, and POP’s Orchard Committee.
SUPPORT US! If you found this entry useful, informative, or inspiring, please consider a donation of any size to help POP in planting and supporting community orchards in Philadelphia: phillyorchards.org/donate.
