Past Farm Projects
Westport Commons Farm
In the Spring of 2018, Cultivate KC began working to improve the soil in the former ball field at the old Westport Middle School located at 39th Street and Gillham Road to transform it into an organic production farm. Westport Commons Farm grew into a food and farming education hub as well as a resource center for community growers. It was a place where growers, students, businesses, and volunteers from all around the city connected with their food and with each other.
The 1.25-acre farm welcomed thousands of people for tours and volunteer opportunities. Visitors learned the importance of soil health, eating locally, and advocating for local food in their communities. They learned to become growers themselves.
Land Access in the city is a challenge for most urban farms, and we are no exception. In 2023, just after completing a capital campaign to build an outdoor learning classroom, a community greenhouse, a mobile tool library, and a walk-in cooler on the farm, our lease was terminated. The property owners planned to redevelop the site into an apartment complex.
We greatly enjoyed our time on this land and are extremely grateful to everyone who invested time and money in bringing this project to life and sustaining it over its five-year run. As we locate and develop plans for a new Midtown KC area demonstration farm, we continue farmer support and programming through a partnership with nearby Longfellow Farm.
Cultivate KC Food Forest
The Cultivate KC Food Forest is currently not open to tours. As we have shifted into other projects and transitioned staff members over the years, we don’t have the capacity to maintain the Food Forest as well as it deserves.
The Cultivate KC Food Forest, one of the first food forests in the KC area, was originally planted in 2011 with the support of a grant from the National Audubon Society and Toyota. The project grew into a thriving site, home to 39 varieties of fruit and nut trees and 12 different shrubs including apple, plum, peach cherry, pawpaw, Chinese chestnut, persimmon, fig, elderberry, serviceberry and Siberian pea. These plants work in harmony to benefit each other. Some are nitrogen fixers for the soil, others attract beneficial insects or repel unwanted pests.
Even now, this food forest continues to provide valuable lessons to the community, helps our farmers discover more about permaculture, and provides food and green space to neighbors.
Gibbs Road Farm
COMING SOON