Check out our intern Amythest talk more about our project on KBOO's PDX Food Show: Mobile Orchards & Queer Farmers here!

We at Portland Fruit Tree Project are so excited to announce our new Mobile Orchards project! This program was created with the intention of combatting green gentrification while also increasing access to fresh fruits and vegetables in lower income communities. 

What’s Green Gentrification?

Green gentrification is a problem at the intersection of class and environmental issues. It describes the process of how introducing urban green projects and spaces into a lower income area has the potential to drive up property values and push out marginalized groups. An attempt at bringing in life-changing access to fresh fruits, vegetables, green spaces and urban farming can accidentally play a large role in erasing a neighborhood's culture and roots.

Portland Fruit Tree Project is learning how to best combat this issue while still working to increase access for these communities. Our solution came in the shape of up-cycled planter boxes made to house trees and gardens while still being transportable so we can make sure they are in the spaces where they are doing the most good. This means we could relocate the trees to follow families or remove them from a neighborhood if rent prices began to climb. The beds will be set up across the city in public locations such as in front of businesses, street accessible homes, and in housing complexes, with caretakers assigned who are equipped to tend to the fruits and vegetables the community wants to see.

Here’s what we’ve planted so far:

• Cilantro

• Kale

• Apple Trees

• Strawberries

  Use the Form at the bottom of the page to let us know what you’d like to see planted in an orchard near you!

Our Current Locations

We would love to hear from you!

Have some ideas about what you’d like to see planted in our community orchards? Maybe you want to host a Mobile Orchard of your very own, or know just the perfect place for one? Let us know! We are always excited to hear community suggestions!