Our Story

Jack started gardening while he was a chef in Philadelphia. One garden grew to four, and then a two-acre farm not far from the current location. Matt started farming at Rushton, another local CSA farm just up the street from the current location. He moved to Philly and met Jack while working on another local farm. Matt and Jack (and Savannah) moved Urban Roots to the current location, Garrett Williamson in 2017. Garrett Williamson is a school, child care provider, summer camp, and more. Agriculture is essential to their mission and their history, so it has been a wonderful opportunity for us. Jack and Savannah lived on site for many years while expanding the farm from 8 acres to 10, to 12, to 20, to 26, and now to somewhere a bit higher than that.

When we signed the lease, we walked Jack’s mom into the local Kubota dealership and she signed for the 0% financing loan on our first tractor. That probably will be the only new tractor we will ever have. Now we have at least eight much-loved tractors, mostly old Internationals and Farmalls. We love keeping quality old agricultural equipment going, and embracing modern technology that makes small farming so vital. You can reliably find us wrenching on something old and a little rusty to keep the plants going in and veggies and flowers coming out.

What we value the most is our team and our community. We are so grateful for this opportunity to do this with our lives, and so aware of how scarce that opportunity is, and how quickly that is becoming more pronounced. When we produce food locally, the connection we have with the people who eat it is strong. The food is healthier, it tastes better and it lasts longer, but it is more than that. It is how we value the land, and the people who grow the food.

The act of farming in 2026 can be almost absurd. Things feel hard for everyone already. Farmland is disappearing around us, and we have less of a say in what we eat and where we get it from. Our team works so hard and we invest so much in the farm. We try to create systems that can produce food sustainably and quality jobs that pay a living wage. We care a lot about our team and about our customers. We want to grow the best food possible, and be the best possible stewards of the land. We want it to be affordable. It can feel impossible to do all of these things. We have a lot going for us, but we know we need more. If small farms are going to be able to feed their communities sustainably, we need your support.

The best thing you can do to support our farm is buy our food. Sign up for our CSA. Come to the Farmer’s Market. If you have a restaurant or food business, we can relate. It is hard. Give us a call anyway and try to support local. It’s hard for everyone these days, but we hope to offer a real value. Our food is an investment in health: yours, the community’s, the land, and the people who grow it.