what’s with the name?
Communitas Farm derives its name from the latin word for community. Communitas translates to “the very spirit of community” or “an unstructured community in which people are equal.”
The Greater Baltimore area has always been our community, our home, and we can’t think of a word that better captures our intentions with starting this farm.
farm size and layout
Our farm is one acre in size, with 1/3 of an acre in vegetable production. This scale enables us to grow, cultivate, and harvest largely by hand.
Each garden bed on the farm is 50-feet long and 2.5-feet wide.
The farm consists of 116 permanent garden beds for growing annual crops and several raised beds for herbs.
We also have a nursery and three tunnels that provide protected growing areas for sensitive crops.
Our farm is comprised of 116 permanent beds that are divided across two fields and three tunnels. The partially shaded tunnel in the bottom-left corner is our seedling tunnel, which is used for starting seeds and growing transplants.
growing practices
To help ensure we’re growing the highest quality food and supporting resilient food systems and ecosystems, we combine the knowledge and tools of modern small-scale organic farming with the deep wisdom of a practice that stretches back 10,000 years. This includes selecting quality seeds, minimizing soil disturbance, and promoting biodiversity.
We are not certified organic by United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). However, we follow organic standards, including compliance with USDA’s National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances. In short, this means that we protect the soil, crops, and environment—our ecosystem and community.
We never distribute or sell food that we would not consume ourselves.
We hold certifications in produce safety and Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) through the Produce Safety Alliance and the Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA), respectively. GAP “refers to farming methods that reduce the likelihood of contaminating produce.” This includes the “[i]mplementation of practices that address water quality, manure and compost use, worker health and hygiene and contamination from wild life, domestic animals and livestock” (MDA).
We look forward to creating and supporting a community of people who value fresh local food, those who want to know their farmer and understand how their food is grown.
We’re grateful to be able to create this dream with you. We’re excited and lucky to start with a strong network of neighbors, colleagues, friends, and family, and we’re committed to providing high-quality and sustainably grown produce.