B'more's green scene has arrived. Grist, the cheeky online journal of environmental news and commentary, has a piece saying Charm City's become a hotbed of urban agriculture.

"Baltimore's urban agriculture movement has quietly taken off in the past couple of years, with the twin forces of sustainability and economic benefits providing the boost," Christine Chenot writes.

She ticks off a list of initiatives, several of which you may already have read about in The Sun.  There's the Virtual Supermarket project, for instance, a partnership between the city and Santoni's supermarket, in which residents without grocery stores nearby can have healthy food delivered to their neighborhood library branch, where they can pay for it with cash, credit card or food stamps.

The Grist story also spotlights Great Kids Farm, the city schools enterprise in Catonsville that teaches kids how to grow their own healthy foods.  Then there's Real Food Farm, (shown at left) the hoop-greenhouse operation at Clifton Park, and the Hamilton Crop Circle, (pictured at top) the northeast Baltimore initiative planting rooftop gardens on restaurants and stores.  And more.

Of course, teaching kids to grow and eat healthy foods is no substitute for learning to read and write.  Nor will fresh veggies alone solve the city's crime and poverty.  But advocates say they sure can't hurt, bringing people together and empowering them.  

(Baltimore Sun photos by Kim Hairston and Lloyd Fox)