St. Pete Micro Farm
Welcome to the SPMF For the latest updates please follow us on social media. Or, if you’re going to be in the area schedule a tour and come see what we’ve got growing on.
Enjoy a Two hour tour highlighting our plants, planning, and infrastructure.
Visitors will be invited to taste any fruit that is in season. Available by appointment only, $25 per person, and we ask that you leave unruly children and pets at home. Thank you, we look forward to seeing you.
(Group rate is $100, maximum of 12 people please)
To Visit the Farm Contact Us
Founded in 2018, the SPMF is an ambitious project located in Saint Petersburg Florida. Resting on just 1/10th of an acre it hosts over 80 different species of fruiting tree and shrub. This density of plants and life is only possible through careful planning and is one of the topics we’ll discuss in detail on the tour. We also have an assortment of raised beds for veggies and greens, a chicken sanctuary, and participate weekly in a local food waste recycling program. We also take advantage of the city’s wood mulch delivery program and have spread over 150 cubic yards of wood mulch to date. If you want to have an oasis, you need a lot of water, so we’ve added multiple well water points, an innovative drip irrigation system, and 9 city water spigots to make watering chores as painless as possible. This is just a brief overview of the work happening around the property, and there is so much more to see when you visit. We’re glad you’re here and hope you’ll join us for a walkthrough of the micro-farm journey.
OUTDOOR KITCHEN
In the beginning, the SPMF project was a lot of work without a ton of edible rewards. But that’s ok, trees take time to mature and produce. Now as we approach the 6 year mark (2024), roughly half of the trees on-site have begun to bear fruit. And each year brings new surprises in the form of new producers, or existing fruiters producing more bountifully than they had before. Anticipating a time when we’ll have more produce than we’ll know what to do with, we are preparing an outdoor area for processing. Not only will the outdoor kitchen create a wonderful place for gathering and fellowship, but it will also be a robust part of our food processing system. From washing, peeling, cooking, and eventually freezing/drying/canning for long term storage, this outdoor space will allow us to take full advantage of the fruits of our labor.
OUTDOOR BATHTUB
Working in the hot Florida sun can be sweaty work. So, we wanted to create a place where we could rinse off and relax after a long day of gardening. Naturally, when we saw this lime green tub at the ReStore, we knew we had to integrate it into the project. Framed in by a large double-pane window that a neighbor was going to throw away, it’s now been upcycled to create a beautiful and cozy space. Also note the mixed cobble, paver, and brick pathways throughout. The majority of these stones were collected locally and many would have gone to the landfill had they not been integrated here.
CHICKEN COOP
Owning chickens has been one of the great joys of the SPMF project. Their quirky personalities and endless antics always bring a smile to our faces. They’re not just livestock, they’re part of the family, so naturally we wanted to build them a safe and solid home. This chicken coop started as a shed plan we found in a “Black and Decker Shed’s” book. But we only followed their design loosely, making up a good portion of the build as we went. A couple of interesting things to note. The floor of the coop is made from 1/2” pvc sheet material, our hope being that it will last a long time without deteriorating. We also used a couple of hurricane ties to secure the entire structure firmly into the ground. This is hurricane country and we don’t want the whole thing taking flight. We also installed a “Run Chicken” automatic door that opens and closes automatically at dusk and dawn. This feature is much loved and so far we’re very happy with the product.