Back in August 2009 my friend Laura asked me if I wanted to take a quick jaunt out to the burbs to take some pictures of the Foodcycles farm.

At the time we had just finished putting the finishing touches on the book design and it felt like I hadn’t left my computer in what seemed like forever, give or take a millennium. While I had no idea what Foodcycles was at the time, I agreed enthusiastically to a car ride and a summer evening outdoors communing with something other than my keyboard.

The trip turned out to be a really, really nice surprise and a refreshing, inspiring way to unwind from months of madness. Foodcycles is a working market garden that sits on an acre of land in a former airforce base, right smack in the middle of several busy intersections in North Toronto. Imagine looking out of one of the hi-rise buildings nearby onto a view of a working farm with rows and rows of greenery right alongside strip malls and commuter traffic. If only something like this had existed back when I was a university student doing the daily, miserable bus commute right past this park!

They’ve got a huge greenhouse on site, too, that also houses a beautifully built wormery for composting as well as several raised beds.

Foodcycles was inspired by Growing Power, a city farm in Milwaukee that produces produce as well as fish, honey, compost, and more. They’ve come a long way in a year but as a not-for-profit they need help from the community to keep on going. This Thursday, Jan 28, 2010 (6:30-8:30 PM), Foodcycles is hosting a fundraising effort at Bloor Cinema (506 Bloor St W) where they will be screening the film Dirt!

They have offered me 2 free tickets to the screening to giveaway here. If you’re in the Toronto area and would like to attend the screening simply post a comment here stating your interest. There’s only a day left so I’ll draw one person for both tickets tomorrow morning (Thursday).