Sweetwater Organic Farm hosts a night of music and home cooked foods under the night sky.
By JACKIE RIPLEY
Published November 7, 2003
TOWN 'N COUNTRY - If you've got a little gypsy in your soul, you'll want to be part of Sweetwater Organic Farm's First Harvest Concert and Potluck Under the Stars on Saturday. Not only will you enjoy organically grown home cooked dishes and wine in wide open spaces, but you'll do it to the eclectic sounds of the Urban Gypsies - a St. Petersburg group with a sort of Afro-Euro and Americana sound.
"We do our annual Pesto Festo in May every year, which is always a lot of fun," said Rick Martinez, owner of the farm. "But this is our first fall fundraiser."
Open to the public, the event starts at 5:30 p.m. with the dinner and wine tasting, followed by the concert.
The organic wine, supplied by Cremaschi Wine Imports of Sarasota, is free of synthetic preservatives and sulfides, Martinez said.
Traditionally grown "grapes are extremely bad on the environment because they use a lot of chemicals," he said.
Sweetwater Organic Farm, 6942 W Comanche Ave., is a nonprofit organization of about 100 members. It operates on 6 acres of suburban property along Sweetwater Creek.
Now in its ninth season, Sweetwater was started by Martinez, 49, who went into farming 24 years ago after leaving the engineering field. He also works as an organic farm inspector.
Last year was an expensive one for the farm, which spent $17,000 to buy two tractors. Martinez said proceeds from Saturday's event will defray that cost.
A $10 donation is requested. There also will be a raffle for a Tampa Theatre membership.
The farm gives members a chance to dig in the dirt and help grow their own organic vegetables. Or they can become members just to enjoy a nearly endless supply of fresh produce they can safely say is free of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides.
Growing season, September through May, provides about 30 weeks worth of produce. This includes your typical beets, broccoli and Brussels sprouts and some not-so-typical arugula, bok choy and kohlrabi. The farming community also grows 10 varieties of lettuce and numerous other vegetables and fruits.
If you go:
From I-275 in Tampa, take the exit for Tampa International Airport/State Road 60/Veterans Expressway. Pass the airport on SR 60, and take the Hillsborough Avenue exit. Turn west on Hillsborough. Turn right on Sawyer Road; the second traffic light after the Veterans. Take the second left onto Comanche Avenue, and drive to the end. Park on the left side of Comanche outside the farm gate. Overflow parking is available across the creek.
