Newsweek explores why urban gardens -- including Detroit's Earthworks -- grow

Urban gardens grow during recession and economic hardship.

Excerpt:

Proponents say there are several reasons why urban agriculture makes sense in 2009. "Before the recession, there was an interest in greening and thinking about food systems," says Patrick Crouch of Detroit-based Earthworks Urban Farm. But he believes a perfect storm of economics, ecological awareness, and basic supply-and-demand could push urban agriculture forward in cities. "A huge number of vacant lots is usually seen as a detriment to a community," he says. But by turning these spaces into farms and gardens, they present long-term greening and financial opportunities for residents that lack basic health and nutritional care, not to mention radically decreased economic opportunities during the recession.

Read the entire article here.