AUA’s Listserv is Chicago’s largest urban agriculture communication hub. This free resource is a community forum for the latest urban agriculture news, current events, job postings, opportunities for collaboration, and more. Anyone can join, anyone can share. We ask that when requesting to join, please add a reason, otherwise you will be denied. This helps filter out spam requests. Join here

Chicago Public Schools have in-house gardens across the city. Those gardens are operated either by the schools themselves, and/or by third parties called vendors.

Guidelines for growing in those gardens can be found here. (A note that this is a living document and subject to change.)

The Chicago Safe Soils Initiative is a collaborative project between University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, University of Illinois Extension, and AUA to build tools to inform stakeholder decision-making and develop evidence-based guidelines to mitigate potential soil risks to food production in Chicago. Receive free soil screening for lead contamination from your urban garden, farm, or yard! See auachicago.org/soilfor sampling instructions and additional details

Chicago Urban Agriculture Mapping Project (CUAMP) is an on-going collabora- tion between AUA, DePaul University, NeighborSpace, Chicago State University, and community-based organizations to publicly map all urban farms and non-residential gardens across the city of Chicago. Register the growing site you lead or own, and search for urban farms and gardens near you! cuamp.org

Community based garden groups are a wonderful way to connect with like-minded individuals. See chicagocommunitygardens.org for one near you, or explore starting your own with your neighbors!

Chicago Community Gardeners Association coordinates shared resources, facilitates communication amongst gardeners, and hosts educational and networking meetings. chicagocommunitygardens.org

Chicago Park District

provides ways to learn about joining or starting a garden on Park District land. https://www.chicagoparkdistrict.com/facilities/community-gardens

NeighborSpace

is the only non-profit urban land trust that preserves and sustains gardens on behalf of dedicated community groups. 773-826-3240 neighbor-space.org‍ . Community based garden groups are a wonderful way to connect with like-minded individuals. See chicagocommunitygardens.org for one near you, or explore starting your own with your neighbors!

One of the best ways to support the local food system is to purchase directly from urban farms in the Chicago region.

Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) directly builds relationships with local farms through a season-long subscription for regular shares of freshly harvested produce. Learn more and find a CSA that works for you at: bandofarmers.org

Chicago Farmers Markets are a great way to meet your farmers and participate in your local community. A list of city sponsored farmers markets is at: chicagofarmersmarkets.usand independent markets can be found through the Illinois Farmers Market Association at: ilfma.org/illinois-mar- kets/ilfma-markets

Urban Farm Stands offer an opportunity to see urban ag in action. Visit cuamp.orgto find an urban farm near you; inquire with them directly about hours and availability.

Local Grocers & Food Cooperatives are an important year-round component in our local food system. See Zero Waste Chicago for a listing and search the internet for one near you - new organizations are being formed all the time! zerowastechicago.org/groceryshop

Cottage Food operations provide market opportunities for local farms through value added products. Explore resources and regulations with Illinois Stewardship Alliance: ilstewards.org/poli- cy-work and University of Illinois Extension: extension.illinois.edu/cottageOne of the best ways to support the local food system is to purchase directly from urban farms in the Chicago region.

Whether you’re looking to learn about growing your own food, continuing professional development, or starting a career in urban agriculture, the following organizations cover an incredible range of educational and networking opportunities.

Advocates for Urban Agriculture
Visit our Programs Overview page to learn more about programs for Soil Health, Chicago Water Access, and Farmer to Farmer Mentrorship.
auachicago.org/programs-overview

Angelic Organics Learning Center serves prospective, beginning, and experienced farmers through training in regenerative agricultural practices, business planning, and financial manage- ment at their sites in Chicago and Caledonia, IL. learngrowconnect.org

Bionutrient Food Association-Chicago Chapter offers grower and consumer education, provides soil interpretations and prescriptions, and hosts soil, seed, and inoculation workshops. bionutrient.org/site/chapters/US/chicago-il

Chicago Botanic Garden leads a wide range of classes, workshops, and certification courses at the Chicago Botanic Garden and Windy City Harvest urban farm sites. chicagobotanic.org/urbanagriculture

Garfield Park Conservatory hosts classes, workshops, and lectures on topics such as beekeeping, composting, and gardening. garieldconservatory.org

Midwest Fruit Explorers is a non-profit organization of amateur backyard fruit growing enthusiasts that coordinates lectures, workshops, events, and more. midfex.org

Openlands offers workshops on planning a school garden, eco-explorations for youth, and resources for teachers in developing outdoor curriculum, learning, and nature education. openlands.org

Permaculture Chicago Teaching Institute hosts events, workshops, certificate programs, and design services for urban permaculture design. permaculturechicago.com

Peterson Garden Project promotes pop-up victory gardens and educational resources whose primary purpose is to teach people in urban settings how they can grow their own food. petersongarden.org

Plant Chicago cultivates local circular economies and food production through education, research, and small business support. plantchicago.org

University of Illinois Extension serves Cook County by offering programming and resources around conservation, school gardens, cottage food and nutrition, and Masters courses in urban farming, gardening, and naturalism. web.extension.illinois.edu/cook

Chicago Partnership for Health Promotion at University of Illinois Chicago provides training and resources on food systems, wellness, nutrition, and container gardening. auachicago.org/resources

Urban Growers Collective offers agriculture, small business development, and equity building workshops to prepare growers to develop community food projects, commercial urban farms, and more. urbangrowerscollective.org

Many of the above organizations ofer a component of job skills training, and organizations like Chicago Lights, Chicago FarmWorks, Growing Home, Sweet Beginnings, and Sweetwater Foundation ofer workforce development for youth, and for adults with barriers to employment.

Learn about grant and funding opportunities for your urban agriculture projects.

auachicago.org/grants-and-funding-opportunities

Brew & Grow
3625 N. Kedzie Ave. 773-463-7430
brewandgrow.com

Chicago Roots: Hydroponics & Organics
4020 W. Irving Park Rd. 773-545-4020
chicagorootshydro.com

The City of Chicago has published available parcels of land for sale through the ChiBlockBuilder Program Urban Agriculture Land Access Application.  All listed parcels have been cleared of phase I and II environmental testing.

To view all lots available visit ChiBlockBuilder https://chiblockbuilder.com/

For lots approved for Urban Farms and Community gardens please review this excel sheet (additional tabs within sheet). 

Interested in a career in Chicago’s local food system? Our diverse economy needs growers, teachers, health professionals and more!

Whether you're a seasoned grower, newbie, or just passing along info, see our jobs board for opportunities.

auachicago.com/jobs-and-solidarity-board

Lake Street Landscape Supply
1810 W. Lake St. 312-226-0760
lakestreetsupply.com

ReBuilding Exchange
1740 W. Webster Ave. 773-252-2234
rebuildingexchange.org

Christy Webber Farm & Garden
2833 W. Grand Ave. 312-829-8200
cwfng.com

Gethsemane Garden Center
5739 N. Clark St. 773-878-5915
gethsemanegardens.com

Johnny’s Selected Seeds
johnnyseeds.com

Fasel & Sons Garden Center
10841 S. Cicero Ave. 708-422-5335
faselandsons.com

Kilbourn Park Greenhouse
3501 N. Kilbourn Ave. (773) 685-3359
kilbournparkfriends.org

Seed Savers Exchange
seedsavers.org

Depaul University Department of Environmental Science & Studies
1110 W. Belden Ave.
Email jmontgom@depaul.edu with 'soil testing' in the subject line

STAT Analysis
2242 W. Harrison St. 312-733-0551
statanalysis.com

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
1011 Plant Sciences Laboratory, 1201 S. Dorner Dr. Urbana, IL 61801
bit.ly/SoilScreeningUIUC

Loyola Environmental Testing Laboratory
6349 N. Kenmore Ave. 773.508.2056
bit.ly/SoilTestingLoyola

For information and good practices for complying with Chicago’s composting ordinance, see: auachicago.org/resources

Lake Street Landscape Supply
1810 W. Lake St. 312-226-0760
lakestreetsupply.com

Midwest BioAg
(800) 327-6012
midwesternbioag.com

Crop Services International
800-260-7933
cropservicesintl.com

Christy Webber Farm & Garden
2833 W. Grand Ave. 312-829-8200
cwfng.com

E-Z Tree Recycling
7050 S. Dorchester Ave. 773-493-8600
e-ztreerecycling.com

Midwest Organics
(312) 550-2464
compostmatters.com

Cowsmo Compost
cowsmocompost.com

Chicagoland Chicken Enthusiasts

is an advocacy and networking organization for urban chickens and hosts an online forum for advice, reviews, and articles. sites.goo- gle.com/site/chicagochickenenthusi/home

Windy City Bees

is a networking and meet up group of beekeepers to share good practices and mutual support. bit.ly/WindyCityBees

Belmont Feed & Seed

is Chicago's specialty store for people that keep pigeons, bees, chickens, small birds, and other poultry and farm animals in an urban setting. belmontfeedandseed.com

Chicago Honey Coop

delivers beekeeping classes and resources for individuals, community groups, and schools. chicagohoneycoop.com/classes

Goat Guardian Guild

hosts educational events at their West Side urban farm and across Chicago. glennartfarm.com/work-with-goats.html

Home to Roost, LLC.

offers poultry classes, phone consultations, school programs, assessments, health consultations, and even emergency house calls. 708-259-6877 htrchickens.com

The Hive

is a full-service beekeeping store that also offers educational classes on-site and across the city. thehivesupply.com

West Side Bee Boyz

offers classes and mentorship on beekeeping for both honey and native bees. facebook.com/westsidebeeboyz