Brentwood urban farm
sustainability in the city
Located just off the 405 freeway, the Brentwood Urban Farm is a Certified Wildlife Habitat and sustainable home and garden, described by the LA City Council as an example of sustainable urban living. This completely organic space has become a refuge for endangered species and pollinators and an official waystation for Monarch Butterflies — a beloved species that has rapidly declined due to garden chemicals, habitat loss and climate change. Through planting of milkweeds and meticulous hands-on practices, we’ve raised and released hundreds of healthy Monarchs — from egg to caterpillar, through chrysalis to flight. We also hand-raise Anise and Giant Swallowtails caterpillars. Our sanctuary is home to George, an endangered desert tortoise and a happy flock of backyard chickens.
With 16 raised garden beds and more than two dozen fruit and nut trees, our all-organic veggies, herbs and produce nourish both our home and community. We preserve harvest through canning and drying, donating excess to local food banks. We save our own seeds, and maintain a seed library built over a decade of plantings.
Our Farm boasts over 50 trees on less than 1/3 of an acre that provide shade, habitat, oxygen and beauty in an era of drought and heat. Through xeriscaping, drip-lines, gray-water-systems and rain catchment, our sanctuary prioritizes wise water use.
Solar panels and an electric car help reduce our carbon footprint. Composting is integral to going zerowaste — made especially productive through a vegan lifestyle and commitment to live without plastic or disposables.
An abundant array of wildlife have made our Farm their home — hawks, owls, raccoons, squirrels, possums, and coyotes raise their young here each year. Finches, kingbirds, phoebes, mockingbirds, hummingbirds and crows nest here. Native plants offer nectar for a variety of bees and pollinators.
We must cultivate our own garden. ~Voltaire
Other gardens we’ve launched & nurtured:
Bee the Change Gardens - San Diego, California
The Help Group School Garden - Burbank, California
Hickman Elementary School Garden - San Diego, California
Bel Air Country Club Garden - Bel Air, California
Tuhaye Mountain Garden - Park City, Utah
Shambhala Gardens & Sanctuary - Kilauea, Kauai, Hawaii
“Our students come alive in entirely new ways when spending time with Emily, John, Jason and other AWAKE volunteers in our school garden. We love harvesting and eating fresh, organic vegetables!”
What We've Accompished
Hands in the soil for school gardens in southern California.
We’re the captains of the Cool Block program for the city of Los Angeles, molding ways to build sustainable, resilient communities one block at a time.
We've helped five homes on the Cool Block start and maintain organic home gardens.
We give tours and hold events at Shambhala Gardens and the Brentwood Urban Farm where folks interact with George the Desert Tortoise, butterflies, chickens, fresh fruits and vegetables, xeriscaping, composting, and water-saving technologies.
We've adopted the streets surrounding the Cool Block and beaches near Shambhala Gardens by regularly cleaning litter.
We attend and sponsor quarterly beach clean-ups on Kauai and southern California.
We've transformed four residences into sustainable, organic homes with vegetable gardens, fruit trees, rain barrels, solar panels, compost bins and artistic xeriscaping.
We’ve raised and released over 500 Monarch butterflies, nurturing them from egg, through instars, into chrysalis, and finally flight! One of our many contributions to save endangered species from destructive human activity.