Food, Culture & Community: South Circle Farm

When thinking of a farm, especially in the midwest, one typically imagines a country road that leads to a long driveway at the end of which is a barn with some animals scattered about the property, surrounded by large fields of corn or soybeans along with other vegetables. While this certainly does apply to many farms in Indiana, there has recently been an increase in the appearance of farms found within urban city limits. For example, South Circle Farm run by Indiana native Amy Matthews can be found just a couple miles south of Monument Circle in downtown Indianapolis. With a new generation of people paying more attention to where there food comes from, Amy has turned her own love for vegetables in to a desire to provide the local community with organically grown, top quality produce.

Upon graduating from college and traveling abroad scouting different farms around the country, Amy was impressed at the resourcefulness and sustainability of the farmers producing exceptional vegetables. Other inspiration came to her through working at food banks and additional projects undertaken with urban farmers. She soon realized farming could not only be a way for her to make a living from but also be a way for her to provide a model for other urban farms in the city, exhibiting good use of land for organic farming with hopes of encouraging others to see the numerous benefits for the city of Indianapolis.

Since starting in 2011, Amy has enjoyed devoting her mind and body to the outdoor work she loves, tending to the various vegetables and herbs growing on her farm. The attention required in order to grow the highest quality produce is demanding, but Amy has a true passion for doing something that goes beyond just producing great vegetables, which is aiming for a greater standard of living by using organic growing methods and sustainability.

Amy would love to see other farms sprout up around the city, as the more farms there are, the more opportunities there would be for others to learn or get involved in the process. In the meantime, she continually works hard at making South Circle Farm as productive as possible, from providing items for sale at local grocers like Pogue's Run as well as ingredients for local restaurants such as Black Market. You can find her at the South Circle Farm's stand at the farmers market within the Indy City Market on Wednesdays during May thru October and the Indy Winter Farmers Market on Saturdays during November thru April.