jews d
on the cover
in
the
Urban Farmer
Root Revival Acres in West Bloomfield makes this woman happy.
JOYCE WISWELL CONTRIBUTING WRITER
PHOTOS BY JERRY ZOLYNSKY
J
essica Ratzow figured she’d be
ROCKS TO ROOTS
all settled into her career by now
Ratzow, 36, graduated from Wayne State
as an energy company geologist.
University in 2010 with a degree in geology.
Instead, she spends each day digging
“I like geology because it’s a blending of
in the dirt as part of the urban farm-
all the sciences — chemistry, physics, biol-
ing movement — and she couldn’t be
ogy — and it touches everything from water
happier.
to energy to farming,” she said. “But when
“I love it,” she said of her backyard
I graduated, all the energy-related jobs
organic farm in West Bloomfield. “Any
had bottomed out. I applied for two years
day out in the garden is better than
straight.”
sitting at a desk.”
She ended up working on and off at
Passersby would never suspect that
Emery’s Creative Jewelers in Farmington
behind the unassuming white house
Hills and, for the past several years, as
on Honeysuckle Road is a thriving
a secretary at Temple Shir Shalom in
garden producing some 40 varieties
West Bloomfield handling Sunday school
of vegetables, including squash, let-
and preschool. Meanwhile, she became
tuce, potatoes, garlic, tomatoes, mel-
intrigued by the burgeoning urban farm-
ons, peas, onions, radishes and herbs.
ing movement and decided to apply to
The food is organically grown with
the nine-month organic farming training
products approved by the nonprofit
program at Michigan State University. She
Organic Materials Review Institute;
was accepted, but only learned at the very
but it’s not certified organic because,
last minute that she’d also been granted a
Ratzow said, obtaining that designa-
scholarship.
TOP: Urban farmer Jessica Ratzow waters her peas.
tion is prohibitively expensive.
“I had to give the temple very short
ABOVE: The radishes are ready.
The neighborhood, located just
notice; so, from that March to June, I
north of Middle Straits Lake, was
still worked the school on Sundays and
established as low-income hous-
Wednesdays,” she said.
ing for factory workers in the 1930s.
PRODUCING FRUIT
“Everyone had a victory garden,” Ratzow said. “So, I picked the
She and her husband, Adam, were married in their backyard in
name Root Revival Acres for my business to show how I am
September 2015, where six fruit trees commemorate the occasion.
bringing it back.”
continued on page 12
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July 20 • 2017
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