Southeast urban farmer rides bike, not tractor

SUSTAINABLE LIVING

By David F. Ashton

The Bee, Mar 5, 2008, Updated Oct 30, 2009

David F. Ashton / THE BEE

Kollibri Sonnenblume, a “bike farmer”, is weeding a garlic patch in one of his 18 Southeast Portland vegetable garden plots.

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Kollibri terre Sonnenblume is a proficient organic farmer. Throughout the growing season, dozens of families come to Sonnenblume every week, selecting newly-picked produce.

But, unlike traditional growers, Sonnenblume doesn’t own a tractor, nor does he raise his crops on the outskirts of town — or even on his own property.

“I’m what you’d call an urban farmer,” said the soft-spoken Sonnenblume as he wiped soil from his hands after weeding a patch of winter crop. “And I like to get around by bicycle. I’m a bike-based urban farmer.”

He didn’t create the concept, Sonnenblume added. “Look at cities all over the world, and you’ll see that urban gardening is typical, rather than being the exception. And you’ll find they get around by bicycle. It may be odd here in the United States — but as oil prices keep going up, it seems very practical.”

Instead of farming acres of land out in the country, Sonnenblume’s “farm” is distributed throughout Inner Southeast Portland. Homeowners allow him plant and care for a crop in a portion of their property, in exchange for produce during the season.

“Right now I have 18 plots of different sizes going. The largest one is just under one third of an acre. The smallest one is, maybe, 5' by 10'. I tend my crops by going from plot to plot on my bicycle. I use a trailer attached to my bike to carry tools and supplies, and to carry harvested crops,” he said.

Community-Supported Agriculture proponent

Sonnenblume’s been a “bike farmer” in Portland since 2005; and this season is his second year as a Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) producer.

“CSA started in Japan in the 1980s,” he explained, “and moved to Europe and the United States in the 1990s. With CSA, people in the community give resources — usually money — to a farmer in the spring, when most of the expenses are incurred for seeds and equipment, in exchange for a share of crops that are produced throughout the season.”

Instead of driving to a farm, or farmer’s market, “people come to my house right here in Inner Southeast Portland. For many folks who purchased winter crop CSA shares that live close by, I make deliveries by bike.”

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