ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Community and urban gardens are popping up more and more in areas that have a history of little to no access to fresh food.

The popularity of these new local farmers has gotten the attention of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and they want the community to know how they can help.

For a lot of people, when it comes to farming, they’re like a fish out of water. But that’s where Carla Bristol at St. Pete Youth Farm wants to bring people out of their comfort zone and into the garden.

“I believe it’s more in our nature than we believe. I flat out said, at best I’m an accidental gardener,” said Bristol.

She’s not just any gardener. She’s a gardener running a farm that is like so many popping up in urban communities that are in what is deemed a “food desert.”

It’s a term Bristol said she uses sparingly.

“That’s language I don’t even like to use because I don’t find anyone in my community that talks about where we live as a desert. I think there’s an issue with access and opportunity,” she said.

Getting fresh food from the farm and learning about it is an opportunity St. Pete resident Busara Pitts didn’t want to miss out on, and she doesn’t want the community to miss out on it either.

“What I have seen happen is you have one or two people who start the farm and then they move on and something happens, and then it just becomes dormant. So we have to make sure we have a succession plan, a strategic plan, to keep them going so one person doesn’t stop the show,” she said.

And that’s why the USDA is here digging into urban farms like this one, making sure people in the community know what options are out there.

“Urban agriculture is an area that we have been very much interested in and expanding and making sure our folks are aware of the programs and services. It’s in areas that may be historically underserved,” said USDA’s ASTC area conservationist, Walter Albarran. He said they have millions of dollars allocated for the state to support these kinds of farms.

It’s an invaluable tool in the toolbox for people like Bristol, who want urban farms to continue to catch on and feed communities like the one she lives in.