Tropical Fruit Oasis
When it comes to bars and restaurants in the Florida Keys the choices are plentiful. Whether you are looking for lobster or steak, burgers or conch fritters, cocktails or wine, happy hour or late night music there are no shortage of places to choose from.
Yet what excites me about living in the Keys is discovering the alternative side of life here. Connecting with people that are striving to make a difference, that are offering something unique, showcasing the ‘greener’ and ‘eco’ side of life.
Being the founder of Help Yourself Organic Cafe in Key West, I am very passionate about real food. Over the years we have gone to great lengths to make sure we always had organic foods, local whenever available. There was even a period of two years that our distributor stopped delivering to us and I had no choice but to rent a uhaul and leave Key West at 2am on a Monday morning to drive to Homestead and pick up our food for the week. This was the only way we could ensure we didn’t compromise on the integrity of our ingredients. Because of this we built some great relationships with organic farms in Homestead, other likeminded businesses, and people up and down the Keys.
One such person that I admire greatly is Patrick Garvey. Patrick is the founder of Growing Hope Initiative, a non-profit that in 2013 bought the Grimal Grove property in Big Pine.
This property was once owned by a man named Adolf Grimal who invested large amounts of money and time into creating America’s most unique tropical fruit farm. Not only did Mr Grimal grow native fruits, he also imported tropical fruit trees from around the world. He trucked tons and tons of PH balanced soil down from the mainland and single handedly dug into the solid rock with only a pick and shovel to create deep growing areas for his plants. Some areas were up to 8ft deep and 75ft wide. He created water catchment systems for the rain and developed a labyrinth of underwater piping to keep his plants watered. He set it up so that each plant was able to have its own microclimate with different soil ph levels and watering schedules depending on their requirements.
Over time Adolf Grimal become well known in the tropical fruit growing world for his efforts on his farm in Big Pine. He was a very unique individual, some believed eccentric and almost definitely reclusive. Yet when you know the story of this land and indeed walk onto the property you cannot help but feel the immense passion and energy that he put into it.
When he passed away in 1997 there was no one to take over from him and the property fell into disrepair becoming an overgrown jungle. When Patrick first visited the property in 2011 it was unrecognizable as a fruit farm. All the fruit trees were smothered by weeds and huge overgrowth. It was impossible to walk from one end of the property to the other, let alone know what trees were still alive or in existence.
Yet the moment Patrick walked onto this property he had the vision of restoring this land and turning it into an edible community park promoting sustainability in the Florida Keys. This vision wouldn’t leave him and at the same time his inner voice kept whispering to him and encouraging him to pursue the possibility of buying this land and making his vision a reality. Like a true entrepreneur he risked everything, and did whatever he could to raise the funds.
On November 27 2013, the same week his wife gave birth to twins, Patrick took ownership of this property along with $850,000 in liens. Luckily with the help of a lawyer he managed to get this down to $50,000, shortly there after.
I remember going onto this property with Patrick when he was just thinking about taking it on. While I got his vision and was inspired by his passion, I felt completely overwhelmed by the overgrown state of the property. I knew it was going to take a lot of work.
However, just a year and a half later the property is already transformed. The trees are breathing again and bearing fruit, an enclosed nursery has been built, vegetables are growing, events are being held there and the park is beginning to take shape.
What truly inspires me about Grimal Grove and the vision Patrick has is that none of it is for his personal gain. Patrick, and his non-profit, believes wholeheartedly in the importance of creating a community park, being an educational center for sustainability and showcasing what can be grown here in the Keys. While Patrick may have had the vision and drive to get the project going, it is going to take us, the community, to make it sustainable.
There are many ways you can get involved, through memberships, donations and sponsorships. However if you haven’t visited the park yet I strongly urge you to take a trip there and see the story for yourself. It is a truly magical place that is right here in the keys! The park is currently open to the public on Saturdays from 10am – 4pm and free tours are given during this time. If Saturdays do not permit, call Patrick for a private tour at another time during the week. 305-923-6663.
On June 27th the annual Florida Keys Tropical Fruit Festival is being held there. From 9am – 2pm there will be live music, demos, educational booths, tropical fruit displays and tastings, auction, speakers, nursery selling fruit trees and kids events.
For more information visit http://growinghopeinitiative.org/ or email patrickbgarvey@gmail.com
