Meet a family who achieved what most people would think impossible in a big city. On less than 4,000 square feet of land in the heart of Pasadena, California, the Dervaes family gets all the food they need from their own backyard
The little peepers are sure growing fast! They graduated from the kiddie pool to the big one last week and are eating greens.
Khaki Campbell (a heritage breed) babies have arrived on the urban homestead. Khaki Campbell’s are an excellent duck breed for the urban homestead. Medium size, they are relatively quite, good layers (they don’t go broody) and are consider land ducks so all the need is a shallow tray of water to be happy.
It’s our Blogiversary! Sharing our urban homesteading adventures started one hot July summer day back in 2001 with our first “journal entry.” A entry which would eventually leave tracks that trail blazed the modern urban homesteading movement
Here’s a NEW but “old” video shot in Fall 2007 and FINALLY online by a USC student working on a sustainable news piece
Urban Homesteading not just about bringing food, goods, services closer to home but making the home center your life. One of the steps backwards we have taken is bringing “socializing” home.
Here’s a sneak peek!
We are almost ready for re-launch of the spiffy new Little Homestead in the City “Blook” (aka blog book)
Jordanne could use a bit of encouragement as she’s on the homestretch and dealing with all the headaches that come with moving and coding. A couple of pieces of chocolate helped her thru today [...]
A major tv media outlet is looking to:
” profile someone who is in the LA area (from San Diego to Santa Barbara) that is in process of transforming his/her life as a combined result of the economic conditions and who is taking the Dervaes’ message as the inspiration for that transformation. The more radical the [...]
The new Urban Farm Magazine dropped by and did a brief interview with city farmgirl, Jordanne, and city farmer, “D.”
The Dervaes Family: Pioneering the Urban Farm
Take a tour of the Dervaes family’s urban homestead in Pasadena, Calif.
In the bustling city of Pasadena, Calif., lives a family of urban-farm pioneers. Jules Dervaes has spent more than [...]
Thanks to those who wrote and offered us accommodations – appreciate all your offers.
Once again, here’s our Northern California itinerary schedule from Jan 15-23.
We kick off the year,right back where we started last year at the best environmental film festival in the West Wild & Scenic Film Festival
Here’s a blurb from their latest e blast:
Our [...]
A reader commented recently that she was inspired by LHITC to purchase her first apron – that’s great!
An urban homesteaders wardrobe is not complete without aprons (ok, I am speaking for us females!)
There’s something about aprons that really evoke a true pioneer urban homesteading spirit.
Aprons are very “eco conscious” if you think about it. In [...]
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2009
10:30 A.M. TO 3:30 P.M.
WHITE PARK, 3901 MARKET STREET, RIVERSIDE, CA. 92501
THE GREATER RIVERSIDE CONFERENCE OF SENIORS GIVING THE GIFT OF GREEN TO OUR GRANDCHILDREN AND GREAT GRANDCHILDREN
THE CRISIS: Scientists have determined that civilization is not sustainable if carbon dioxide remains above 350 parts per million. It’s now at 387 ppm and [...]
Check out BIG IDEAS FOR A SMALL PLANET Episode 303 promo which features the urban homesteaders
Airs on Tuesday, August 18 at 8:00pm e/p
Episode 3: Edibles. Industrial food production has nearly eliminated small family farms and access to fresh food. Can we imagine a healthy food revolution? Ideas include urban farming, immigrant farmers and healthy school [...]
Little Homestead in the City site of the day on European Radio Network.
Check out the little radio byte
Hmmmm…….
rather interesting part about “skipping through fields of buttercups!”
Sadly as Jordanne pointed out “there ain’t no fields of buttercups here – just concrete”
• Homegrown Revolution
• Urban Farming Documentary – 15 minutes
• Directed by Jules Dervaes, USA
HOMEGROWN REVOLUTION (15 min) is a short informational introduction to a homegrown project that has been called a new revolution in urban sustainability. In the midst of a densely urban setting in downtown Pasadena, radical change is taking root. For over twenty [...]
Courtesy of ONE RADIO NETWORK (February 27, 2009)
This is a powerful story. Jules Dervaes and his family have 1/5 of an acre in Pasadena, California and half of their homestead is filled with fruits, vegetables and animals. The Dervaes manage to produce nearly 6,000 pounds of vegetables last year – fed themselves and earned $20,000 [...]
An Amazing and Prolific Urban Homestead
How our family of four has created food and energy self-sufficiency on a fifth of acre.
by Jules Dervaes
Looking back at 1965, the year I entered college, I hardly recognize myself! At 18 I was headed — like everyone I knew — for life in the professional world. My dad was [...]
I didn’t have a chance to post what we urban homesteaders ate last week before hauled off to Nevada City.
Last week we feasted on green tomatoes and I couldn’t resist and went to the “dark side” and made some absolutely delicious apple fritters with the leftover apple pomace from the cider pressing event. By the [...]
Don’t You Miss It!
C.I.C.L.E. + Path to Freedom = Harvest Bike Ride and Potluck Social : Live Music from Triple Chicken Foot
November is a perfect time for acorn soups, warm casseroles, pumpkin pies, bike riding over fallen crunchy leaves, kick ball in the park and an Urban Expedition’s Harvest Ride and Potluck Social. On Saturday, [...]
It’s crazy! Everyone’s busier than a bee on a blue basil – well, our ’stead bees. Anyhow, we are just plum out busy.
Skuttlebut has it that the long overdue and anticipated upgrades to Freedom Gardens is close, really close! We’ve waited – and waited, biting our nails over delay after delay after delay. Hopefully this [...]
Poster courtesy of CICLE.org
PTF will be out & about the month of November spreading inspiration and hope.
There’s a flurry of activity before everyone goes into winter hiberanation so get out your calendar’s and mark these dates!
Nov 2 – Green Summit – Leap Frog Into a Sustainable Future, Pasadena City College (10 am – 1 pm) Path to [...]
Urban Homesteading – Tour from David Spancer on Vimeo.
We urban homesteaders always love to share with children, their curiosity and excitement are infectious. Unfortunately, though we like to do more, there are just too many tour requests from schools to fit them all (no kidding) our schedule.
Today the 7th Grade class of Westridge High School visited the urban homestead and discovered a whole [...]
Left to right: Jordanne, Blackberry (goat) & Jules, solar oven, backyard garden with earthen oven, outdoor solar shower
PROMISING RETURN TO THE PAST
A farm based in the middle of urban LA
August 9, 2008 La Opinion
Lourdes López
View Original Article
[English Translation]
The ordinary Dervaes house shines like any other one in the Pasadena area, located on the side of [...]
Another weekly meal wrap up of what we urban homesteaders ate last week.
With all the preservation that’s going on, meals have been simple. No matter the simpleness – this is homegrown gourmet! Nothing beats homegrown, sun ripe tomato or sweet fig sliced on top warm french bread, melted mozzarella cheese with a drizzle of olive [...]
Flashback
We’ve been brewing our own biodiesel (using free waste veggie oil) since Jan 2004 (also see out biodiesel photo gallery) and the book (and only book) that help us get started is the Biodiesel Homebrew Guide by backyard brewmeister Maria “Mark” Alovert. Maria’s been influential in the homebrew biodiesel movement. Her simple to read methods [...]
click here for more videos like this
PATH TO FREEDOM URBAN HOMESTEAD Part One
Host, Elizabeth Chambers, visits Path to Freedom, where the Dervaes family has steadily transformed their ordinary city lot in Pasadena, California, into an integral urban homestead. And, along the way, they are striving to become earth stewards, taking care of the precious gift [...]
Clay pot irrigation tomato bed. Cassidy, our cat, sleeps among the rows of tomatoes
Plants are heavy with sun ripen tomatoes. No salmonella worries on our farm!
Summer blooms.
It’s a jungle out there. Lady bug earth oven nestles amongst the garden greenery
Backyard garden growing up!
The garden giants take over! The four corners of the yard are [...]
Declare Your Independence
FIGHT FOR FOOD SECURITY
This July 4th PTF is excited to announce the relaunch of our new sister site for all you homegrown revolutionaries out there. Here’s your chance to connect with fellow food fighters from all over the world.
The site will features feeds for contributing bloggers, spot for highlighting ‘Freedom Gardener’ of the [...]
This morning, stumbled on a site which listed 25 things you can do to be the change. (btw thanks, POB, for the video nod!)
List are good – just like the list above. We urban homesteaders are avid listers. Lists keep you focused on the path that you wish to travel. Sometimes our list do get overwhelming… and long, [...]
For all those who wanted more looks like there is going to be more…..
View the site
View the trailer
A documentary about MODERN DAY URBAN HOMESTEADERS
HOMEGROWN follows the Dervaes family who run a small organic farm in the heart of urban Pasadena, California. While “living off the grid”, they harvest over 6,000 pounds of produce on less [...]
The “hub” of the urban homestead – outdoor solar shower, composter, garden/animal feed shed, parking for bikes, homebrew biodiesel operation, garage (for packing produce and other crafty projects like soapmaking) , solar oven and edibles (figs, bananas, grapes, tomatoes, herbs, huckleberries and more)
Blackberry and Lady Fairlight say “good morning, where’s our breakfast?”
Simple & practical. [...]
Liberated Yard (since 1990): Growing food not grass. Providing not only beauty but food, medicine and income.
The other day we received a phone call from a young lady who was impressed over the front yard’s edible landscaping and wondered if we paid for any “professional help.” I informed her that “no, we [...]
Jim, the truck driver unloads the supplies.
Under a sweltering sun in a parking lot in front of the Rose Bowl, me (left – in the homemade crohet hippie hat ) and fellow co-opers wait for the rest of our orders
On the pick up list this month for us urban homesteaders are:
100 lbs [...]
The Saturday presentation at Smith & Hawkens was an opportunity for us urban homesteaders to meet readers, supporters, fellow gardeners and answer any and all questions they might have had. Sorry we couldn’t get around to talk with everyone afterwards.
One (of many) such enthusiastic PTF reader approached us afterwards with positive accolades – “it was [...]
Urban farmers living off land 2:40 CNN’s Thelma Gutierrez reports on a family living the ultimate green lifestyle on an urban farm in Pasadena, California.
View Video
On-growing Efforts
Over the weekend our companion site has topped 150 members and growing stronger every day (besides the FG site hasn’t been “officially launched” just yet!).
Jordanne tells me that pretty soon FG will feature more nifty profile features, community forum, community contributed blog, printed propaganda material and more. The site is a work in [...]
The urban homestead and farming movement, pioneered online here, is really taking off and finally is on the mainstream media’s radar.
20 plus years ago when we started implementing our countrified homesteading lifestyle into our current citified surroundings it took us years to finally put all the key elements of urban homesteading in place – and [...]
A modern family’s journey of simplicity in the 21st century
So often as kids we were challenged to ask “what did they do back in the old days?” This practical exercise got us thinking – what do we really need, how can we do this in a simpler more back to basics way.
Since this blog is [...]
Is it neat, or is it slightly odd that in this Los Angeles community — it’s called Pasadena — a suburban mix of nice restaurants and well-tended front lawns, there is a home wedged in with the other houses where the entire front yard is edible?
From homemade fuel to outdoor baths, the Dervaes family takes [...]
We started off the year by saying this was going to be a year of growth – in both our personal lives and the extent of our outreach.
So far, we’ve launched 100 Foot Diet, Freedom Gardens, Grow for 10k, Harvest Keeper , revamp and relaunched the journal more (and there is even more in [...]
Breaking news, this just in:
Here’s the latest from the producer of Nightline when the Urban Homesteading piece will air:
“Probably Thursday or Friday — pending breaking news.”
This last year, we’ve seen a tremendous surge in the Urban Homestead movement. Urban homesteading is a growing trend among urbanites who are seeking self reliance by taking matters [...]
Earth Day LA
The PTF clan of urban homesteaders took a day off ( 7 am – 7 pm) to put on a urban sustainability display at the Earth Day LA
Some of us went down to Wilshire Blvd on bikes, public transit or cruised down in our bio burban filled with homebrewed biodiesel loaded [...]
Earth event at Vromans Bookstore, Pasadena
This week is shaping up to be a busy one! In between, spring plantings, caring for animals and other urban homesteading projects we are taking time off for outreach efforts promoting urban sustainablilty and inspiring urbanites to be the change.
Tomorrow PTF will be a the big Earth Day festival in [...]
Is back on track!
For all those of you who have been trying to join the Urban Homestead webring this week and were experincing problems, we are happy to report everything is (I think) back in working order. RingSurf was upgrading their website which caused a few glitches here and there for new members.
The ring’s [...]
