Approximating a bit over 2,000 square feet of crops ranging from fruit trees to herbs, asparagus to lettuces, the farm is located about a block from Little Five Points in the Cleveland Holloway neighborhood near downtown.

Urban farming has been gaining ground, or rooftop, in many cases, but Darko Urban Farm is the first official farmlet, as I like to call them, trying out a CSA program. (CSAs are community supported agriculture programs and usually entail customers making a seasonal payment to farmers in exchange for weekly produce deliveries.)

The farm is essentially a backyard, save for a small front-yard plot, currently home to some sweet peppers stubbornly clinging to the vine, and a side herb garden.

From the backyard of 907 Cleveland St, home to Rochelle Sparko, her partner Will Durham (Yes, his last name is Durham. How jealous are we?), and Sparko's sister Alexis Sparko, you can see a number of commercial buildings still, er, on the upswing. But you can also take your pick of end-of-summer tomatoes, late summer squash, figs, and lettuces.

In a few more weeks, ruby chard, arugula, carrots and collards will be ready for the picking, and most of it will end up in the larders of five fortunate families - the inaugural batch of CSA clients Darko Urban Farm is taking on this fall season.

The CSA concept came to Alexis Sparko, 30, after she read an article in New York Times Magazine about a woman running a small CSA herself. An architect by trade, she has been living with her sister since getting laid off from her New York City job last spring. Now apprenticing for a local wood worker, she spends an hour or so each evening tending to the crops - something she never envisioned for herself while living in major cities. But she's enjoying it.

Rochelle Sparko, 32, and Durham bought the Queen Anne Cottage, largely rehabbed by the previous owners, in early 2009 with the intention of farming a large portion of the quarter-acre lot. They moved to Durham from Hawaii in 2008, and one of their goals was to really farm, not just grow a few vegetables. They went so far as to purchase over eight acres in Pittsboro, but sold them after falling in love with Durham.

"There's a strong family farming history amongst the Sparkos," Rochelle Sparko said - she and her sister can recall time spent on a now-defunct farm in Massachusetts when they were young. An attorney by day, much of her free time is spent laying burlap coffee bags down as mulch, transplanting seedlings and figuring out the best way to water the garden. She and Durham, also an attorney, are waiting the delivery of a 1,700 gallon cistern which will make that a lot easier.

"It's pretty small," Rochelle Sparko said of her urban farm, "but it's pretty big when you try to weed it."

Tidbits

BEER FESTIVAL: For the 15th straight year, beer lovers from around the country will convene next weekend at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park to learn, taste and share all things brew. Since 1996, Daniel Bradford, founder of All About Beer Magazine, published here in Durham, has been putting on the World Beer Festival with increasing success. With home brews, microbrews and beer generally taking a more prestigious place in the foodie world, Durhamites should be proud such a thing takes place in our own backyard. With over 8,000 attendees, 150 breweries and hundreds of volunteers, its worth experiencing. But the festival sells out every year, so buy your tickets early.

BEER DINNERS: If I liked beer (sorry, just don't have the taste for it), then I would be very happy to learn about the beer dinners Dos Perros is hosting. The next one is Wednesday and features the "wears of some of the dedicated home brewers in the area." The beer will be paired with a meal made from local produce! Proceeds will go to Earthshare North Carolina, which supports environmental causes.

HEALTHFUL COOKBOOK: A group of Duke Global Health Institute interns have developed a healthful cookbook with meals that average $4 a day per person: The cookbook, "Cooking Healthy, Easy Foods While Saving (CHEFS)" was researched using the Durham Country Health Department, as well as nutritionists at Duke.