Urban farmers scout out fertile ground in Ottawa

Matthew Mason-Phillips is only 31 years old, but he says some days, after hours of plantingand weeding,his aching back and knees make him feel like a sleep-deprived octogenarian

But between his soil-packed fingernails and the gentle way he picks heirloom tomatoes off the vine, it's easy to see thatdespite the hard work, Mason-Phillips lovesbeing a farmer in the heart of Ottawa.

"For me, working outside I don't know what I couldn't like about it," he smiles.

Along withMadeleineMaltby, 27, Mason-Phillips co-ownsBritannia Backyard Edibles, an urban farming operation now in its second year. Together they've transformed 10 backyards and one front yard into vegetable garden.

Mason-Phillips says there's a good supply of fertile butunderused greenspacein central Ottawa that could be put to work forfood production.

Maltby refers to their venture as "a hyper-local version of the 100-mile diet." It's also the perfect sustainable business model for wannabe-farmers who aren't ready to leave the city, and can't necessarily afford a large, rural plot.

Lawns become liability

To find the urban plots,Maltby walked around neighbourhoods and peeked over fences, looking for large yards withunobstructed sunlight. When she found a likely candidate, she knocked on the door.

"A lot of people were taken aback and they were like, 'You want to do what with my lawn?" recallsMaltby. "The lawn becomes a liability in the summer when you have to water and mow it, and a lot of people don't want to do that so we dig it up and grow food."

One mini-farmin a Westboro backyard is 6 by 9 meters. While the "hosts" aren't required to do any of the hard work, they may water between rainfalls.

In return for giving up a portion of their yard, homeowners receive a shareof the bounty from all the gardens. In addition to that arrangement, 25 subscribers pay for a weekly basketfull of eightdifferent vegetables. The selections change with the growing season.

It's all part of what participants call a community-supported agriculture program;consumers get a reliable supply of fresh, locally grown produce, and producers get aguaranteed markets for their harvest.

Making a living

Before starting the business last year,Maltbyinterned on a farm in eastern Ontario, where shelearned about planting, germinationand crop selection. Before that shestudied environmental science, whileMason-Phillips studied international development.

They work seven long days a week during the growing season,but say they are making a living. The two sell excess produce at the Wesborofarmers' market on Saturdays, and theyrun a greenhouse where they grow micro-greens for several restaurants.

Mason-Phillips says they'd love to expand their business next year, but they need larger yards to boost productivity.

Like Maltby, Mason-Phillips says he's also taken up scouting out potential plots, a habit that's become something of an obsession.

"It's almost become pathological ... Wherever I'm walking or driving I'm always scanning.'What kind of backyard is that?What could I grow?'"