04.22.20 City Farmers Nursery for Earth Day

When I sat with Bill in early March, I was guided into a slower, gentler analog space. It felt quite wonderful to release my to-do-list brain as we sat in a gazebo---nestled among trees and animals---where he told me the 47-year history of his nursery. City Farmers Nursery has the soul of a farm right in the heart of San Diego. It is emblematic of Bill’s guiding philosophy that the secret to a happy life is doing what you love. City Farmers Nursery is not about the money, it’s about giving our community a site for learning, playing and exploring all about plants and animals. He wants to leave a legacy, not just for his own children, but also for future generations. This comes in many forms: from passing on basic gardening skills to his 14 employees and clients, to propagating plants no longer available in nurseries, to simply offering the community a respite from the rat race and from the accelerated digital world. While I was there, I saw families bring their kids to pet the animals, people buying seeds and starters for their backyard plots, and many regular customers who come around for a chat with Bill. One in particular said he would rather be seen than viewed. Take that Instagram!

The main counter of City Farmers Nursery says it all. Bill has every kind of tool, soil amendment, and seed the home gardener could ever need. More importantly is the wisdom he has accrued through 47 years so that, every time you buy from him, he is ready to give you the necessary advice to keep your plant healthy. Bill believes that the most important part of owning a nursery is passing on the knowledge of how to propagate plants. But he also jokingly laments that he has the disease called “brain won’t stop” which ignites numerous projects around teaching basic skills and concepts. One such project is a finishing pond reconverted so it has become a demonstration site for hydraulics. With a flip of a switch, kids will be able to turn a big wheel in the water and watch it make energy. Bill worries about our kids who develop super texting capabilities but don’t have dirt under their fingernails. There is “sweat equity” in life. Not everything should come easy: some things should take labor and sweat. His motto is: “Leave the digital shit inside and get outside!”

City Farmers Nursery is anti-fragile, it has survived eight droughts and multiple recessions. In fact, when the economy tanks people stay home and learn basic skills again. This is something we have seen before in the Victory Gardens that sprouted as a response to the food shortages of the Second World War. I would guess that City Farmers Nursery will have no problem through the Covid-19 pandemic because there is now a renewed interest in growing food you can trust, and Bill has all of the knowledge you will ever need to get you started on your way to creating your own edible backyard.

Bill sent me home with three artichokes. I sliced them down the middle, added a garlic clove and a drizzle of olive oil to each one before roasting them at 475 for 20 minutes.