History

CommonWealth Urban Farms formed out of a small group of people who began meeting in the fall of 2010 with the common goal of turning vacant lots in near NW OKC into productive green spaces that would benefit the local community. Since then, many more people have joined in and CommonWealth has evolved and grown far beyond our original dreams. We are a neighborhood based urban farm, powered largely by volunteers.

Urban Farm

Our farm now encompasses a quarter acre in vegetable and cut flower fields, plus a hoop house, compost-heated greenhouse, food forest, multiple pollinator and rain gardens, and a community composting operation. Education is interwoven into all aspects of our farm: we offer monthly tours and weekly hands-on volunteer opportunities, gardening classes, special workshops and educational videos. We also have a partner-farmer program to encourage and support beginning farmers.

Composting

At CommonWealth, we grow our own compost, which provides the nutrient base for the farm. Our team of volunteers mixes leftover produce and food from grocery stores with wood chip waste. We use vermicomposting (composting with red wriggler worms) as the final stage in composting to produce a high-quality end product full of worm castings. Our compost is now available for sale here.

Education

Every Saturday morning year round, we offer a work/learning experience for volunteers to come help with composting and gardening, and learn how to grow food and build healthy soil. We offer frequent workshops on topics ranging from growing veggies, to rainwater harvesting, to raising backyard chickens. You can find a schedule on our Garden School page here. Tours of the farm are available on the first Saturday of each month at 9am.