“Clang, clang, clang went the trolley. Ding, ding, ding, went the bell.”  As one of the enthusiastic trolley riders on the Austin Farm-To-Table Trolly Tour, I settled in and hummed those lyrics as sung by Judy Garland in MGM’s 1943 block buster film, Meet Me in St. Louis. 

The movie’s trolley riders were singing gleefully about their destination. I, like them, was humming the song in excitement and anticipation of my destination, a tour of several beautiful Austin Community Gardens.

An excited group of family members, friends, neighbors, out-of-town visitors and I boarded The Austin Farm-to-Table Trolley Tour in front of the Austin Townhall Field House on Lake Street enroute to the first of several visits to three or more of the 12 Austin Community Gardens. The Trolley Tour operates on the first Thursday of the month through October. Trolley riders gather around 11:30 a.m. for a noon departure. Depending on the Trolley riders’ interests, and the number of gardens visited, the tour often takes three hours.

Our first stop was the Patient Center Care Clinic ‘s Austin Community Garden. Located at 330 N. Lotus Ave, the garden sits behind the clinic at the end of a residential block. Chicago Botanical Gardens’ staff operates and maintains the garden. We were provided a tour of the garden, brief lectures and gardening tips. Like many of the gardens, PCC’s Garden was complete with a green house, irrigation system and a farmer in overhauls and straw hat.

The Farm Stand offers a garden variety of organically grown and harvested produce that tourists were able to purchase at below supermarket price. Among the harvest were a variety of greens including robust collards. There were an abundance of salad staples including kale, lettuce, tomatoes and fresh garlic.

The Farm to Table Trolley tours is organized by Chicago Austin Youth Travel Adventure and operates through a grant from Austin Eats in partnership with Austin Fresh.

“Many Austin Community residents are affected by diabetes, heart, and kidney disease,” said CAYTA’s founder and director, Crystal Dyer. “We want to give our residents not only knowledge, but tools to engage in a more healthy and productive life.”

CAYTA also works in corporation with  Action Coming Together and closely with Austin Garden Collective, which represents and support more than 25 Austin community gardens.

Austin Garden Collective’s mission is: “To build community through the creation and cultivation of Austin’s Community Gardens.” It offers support, resources and training for its members. through connecting, resources and supporting g the garden network. On Saturday, during gardening season, it recruits and train volunteers to help throughout the season with planting, growing, and harvesting.  Its vision is “to create connection between existing community gardens in the Austin Neighborhood and provide outreach opportunity to involve neighbors of all ages in the care and cultivation of these gardens.”

The tours are on one Thursday and one Saturday each month from June through October. The trolley departs from the Austin Town Hall Park Farmers Market on Thursdays and from the CAYTA Headquarters on Saturdays. Each is about three hours and is free for those who live in Austin.

If you go:

The next tour dates are:

Saturday, August 17

Thursday, September 5

Saturday, September 14

Thursday, October 3

Saturday, October 19

Departure locations:

Thursday departures: Austin Town Hall Park, Farmers Market, 5610 W Lake St.

Saturday departures: CAYTA Headquarters, 4952 W Chicago Ave.