Swale To Put Edible Forest On NYC Barge

Swale brings an edible garden to NYC this summer, on a barge

Rooftop gardens, vertical gardens, underground gardens—there's no lack of creative ideas in the urban farming space these days. But Swale—a floating art installation and "food forest"—is one of the first to make an edible garden portable.

In June, an 80-by-30-foot barge will set sail on the Hudson, stopping in places like the Bronx, Governors Island and Brooklyn Bridge Park. On it, a team of people led by founder Mary Mattingly will be growing a forest of perennials, like huckleberries, figs, sea beets and oregano, which visitors can forage as they walk through (foraging laws don't extend to the water). The idea is to help reimagine easy and affordable access to healthy food.

The project could produce as much as 6,000 pounds of produce in its first year, Civil Eats reports. But first, it needs to get off the ground. The team launched a Kickstarter to help with a second round of funding.

Here's a bit more about the project: