Murphbell Urban Farm

Murphbell Urban Farm Cultivating beauty, wildlife, and a slower pace of life on a small urban lot.

Sharing the gardens, wildlife, and everyday moments that make a backyard truly feel like home.

This evening I spotted a monarch butterfly visiting the garden.I was excited. I've planted milkweed and native flowers f...
06/17/2026

This evening I spotted a monarch butterfly visiting the garden.

I was excited. I've planted milkweed and native flowers for years hoping to create a space where monarchs would feel at home.

A little while later, I checked a milkweed plant that sits well off the beaten path and found something even better.

A monarch caterpillar.

Not a tiny newly hatched caterpillar, either. One that's been there for quite some time.

The funny thing is that I only check that particular milkweed patch about once a week. While I've been admiring the flowers, counting swallowtail caterpillars, watching birds build nests, and keeping up with life, this little caterpillar has been quietly growing right under my nose.

It made me think about how much of life happens that way.

We're often waiting for the big moments. The obvious ones. The milestones we can point to and celebrate.

Meanwhile, some of the most meaningful things are already taking shape in the background. Quietly. Patiently. Without asking for our attention.

Not everything announces itself when it begins.

Sometimes the most beautiful parts of life have been growing for a while before we're lucky enough to notice them. 🦋

For years, I thought the goal was to stop being tired.I thought that if I worked hard enough, organized better, and got ...
06/16/2026

For years, I thought the goal was to stop being tired.

I thought that if I worked hard enough, organized better, and got everything just right, I'd eventually arrive at a life where I wasn't exhausted at the end of the day.

But I've started to think tiredness was never the problem.

There is a tired that drains the joy from everything. The kind that leaves you with nothing left to give.

And then there's this kind of tired.

The kind that comes after warming chicken feed for Laverne and Squiggy, my little crossbeaks, watering gardens and greenhouses, filling bird feeders and bird baths, checking on the four tiny swallowtail caterpillars I've found tucked among the dill and parsley, and admiring the volunteer squash plant that chose to grow in the resting garden. It wasn't part of the plan, but I've decided to leave it be. Sometimes the unexpected things deserve the space to become exactly what they were meant to be.

It's the kind of tired that still leaves enough of you to notice. To admire pink yarrow glowing in the evening light and listen to distant thunder rolling across the sky.

Tonight, I realized something.

Maybe the goal was never to build a perfect life.

Maybe it was simply to build one that feels like coming home.

I'm tired.

Wonderfully, unapologetically tired.

And happy.

The kind of happy that isn't loud or extraordinary, but quietly woven into the ordinary moments of an ordinary day.

I've spent a lot of time this year noticing the unexpected gifts: volunteer plants, surprise caterpillars, and small mom...
06/14/2026

I've spent a lot of time this year noticing the unexpected gifts: volunteer plants, surprise caterpillars, and small moments of joy that arrived without invitation.

So it feels fitting to introduce Murphbell's next chapter: a tea, herb and butterfly garden.

The first of five raised beds is finished. It's empty for now, but not for long. Sometimes creating a beautiful life starts with something as simple as building a place for it to take root.

And sometimes hope looks like preparing a place for beautiful things before they've even arrived. 🦋

This morning I stood in the garden trying to force eggplant starts into the spaces I'd originally planned for them.The m...
06/13/2026

This morning I stood in the garden trying to force eggplant starts into the spaces I'd originally planned for them.

The more I tried to make it work, the more obvious it became that the garden had other ideas.

The revised plan turned out better than the original one.

Instead, I now have two eggplants framing a volunteer sunflower.

Maybe that's true outside the garden, too.

Sometimes life isn't asking us to hold tighter to the blueprint.

Sometimes it's inviting us to trust that there's beauty in the adjustments.

Sometimes the thing you plan for isn't the thing that thrives.I evicted the summer squash from the greenhouse veggie gar...
06/11/2026

Sometimes the thing you plan for isn't the thing that thrives.

I evicted the summer squash from the greenhouse veggie garden today.

I had high hopes for it. It looked like it was thriving. But between rotting fruit and squash bugs setting up shop below and on the leaves, it was time to admit that not every experiment ends in success.

Meanwhile, tucked beside the cucumbers was a volunteer ground cherry looking very healthy and very happy to be a greenhouse resident. So I relocated it to the space that was occupied by the squash where it will have room to grow.

Gardening has a way of teaching the same lessons over and over. Not everything we plan will thrive. Sometimes the things we never expected are the very things that deserve the space we were saving for something else.

Pull what doesn't bring you joy.

Make room for surprises.

Water them well.

And see what grows.

Repeat.

Now, sitting here watching the thunderstorm roll in that the gardens have long anticipated, I can't help but think that life is a lot like this. Not everything we planned will thrive. Sometimes the unexpected gifts are the ones worth making room for. 🌱⛈️

There's something special about creating spaces that nourish the body, inspire the soul, and invite nature home.Thank yo...
06/09/2026

There's something special about creating spaces that nourish the body, inspire the soul, and invite nature home.

Thank you for stopping by Murphbell Urban Farm.

Consider this photo your official invitation to spend some time here—to slow down, find beauty in the small things, and discover inspiration in the everyday moments that make a space truly meaningful.

We're glad you're here. 🌼

Welcome back to Murphbell Urban Farm!It's been about four years since we've seen you, and for that, I apologize. But I a...
06/09/2026

Welcome back to Murphbell Urban Farm!

It's been about four years since we've seen you, and for that, I apologize. But I also have to tell you—we've learned a lot in those four years.

We've learned about life and loss. We've learned about inspiration and failure. We've learned that creating a space that feeds your body is important, but creating one that feeds your soul may be even more so.

So we're back with a different purpose.

Our goal is no longer simply to grow as much as we can. Instead, we want to inspire others to create spaces that bring meaning, beauty, and joy to their everyday lives—whether that's through a basket of homegrown vegetables, a garden full of flowers, a backyard pond, or simply a quiet place to enjoy your morning coffee.

Over the next few weeks, we'll share what has changed here at Murphbell Urban Farm, what we've built, what we've learned, and the beauty we've discovered along the way.

We hope that somewhere in these stories you'll find inspiration to create a space that brings beauty, purpose, and heart to your own days.

Welcome back. We're glad you're here.

Hey there farm friends! It's been almost a month since you've heard from us, and I feel like I owe you all an explanati...
09/15/2022

Hey there farm friends! It's been almost a month since you've heard from us, and I feel like I owe you all an explanation. So here goes...

Life.

That's what's going on.

I apologize for our absence. Over the last month there have been so many changes here for us.

I was blessed to accept an opportunity to work outside of the farm. I am now the farm manager for an incredible non profit that serves as a day program for autistic adults.

My days, which were busy before, are now chalk full of new fun and exciting opportunities.

Because of this, we made the difficult decision to break down our farmstand for the season. We want to thank each and every one of you who have supported us through our farm fresh produce!

We also had our first loss on the farm today. My sweet chicken Opal flew through the gates of heaven this morning. I am grateful that I was able to be with her when the moment came.

Even with life's recent changes I want to assure you that Murphbell continues to rock and roll.

I will continue to post updates as often as I can.

Thank you all for your support. I hope you've got your hands in the dirt and have been blessed with a bountiful harvest!

We busted out both canners today, ya'll! Over 50 lbs of produce preserved between crushed tomatoes, squash, sunflower s...
08/16/2022

We busted out both canners today, ya'll! Over 50 lbs of produce preserved between crushed tomatoes, squash, sunflower seeds and peppers.

God bless country (and urban farm) livin' 💛
08/12/2022

God bless country (and urban farm) livin' 💛

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Akron, OH

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