Old City Farm & Guild

I want to love this place — so convenient and a great find in the city! But they are never open when they say they will be. Not only that, they keep changing the sign out front with hours and then not even keeping to that.
I started collecting my food scraps under the impression I could contribute to their compost bin, but given the issues with hours, I’ve had to dump it all in the trash numerous times since they’re never open.

I want to support this place, but they make it hard. On a recent visit at 9:30 on a Sunday morning, I saw a lot of sad looking plants and an overall feeling of neglect. Their own vegetable garden was completely wilted, and someone was spraying it with water in the hot sun. With such a beautiful spot and mission, you expect more.

Old City Farm & Guild is one of my favorite spots to shop for my garden and holiday needs. The quality of their plants is consistently high, and they frequently have nicer or more interesting varieties and decorations than can be found at less specialized vendors. The prices tend to match the quality, so expect to pay a bit more than you would for something similar at Home Depot, but… if you’re careful & selective, you can come away from here with something more beautiful than you’ll find elsewhere.

We were in search of some places that sold Christmas Trees in the city and I drove past this one a couple days before. Came here on Sunday and saw that they had a bunch of trees to choose from. The lady that helped us was so friendly, nice and helpful. We got a 6 foot Fraiser and had her trim it down on the top and bottom. The tree cost a little more than I had anticipated ($ 59.95, but I guess that’s what you pay when shopping at a locally owned garden shop). They also have shorter and taller trees (for more and less). I even saw real mistletoe! lol Since the lady was so friendly and helpful we gave her a nice tip!

I come here to pick up my weekly fruit and vegetable CSA shares and, since I’m already there, browse the plants and other offerings. The place is a great community gathering spot. They host a variety of community oriented events and make it easier to meet your neighbors.
There’s always open street parking on Thursday afternoons when I come to pick up my shares.
Since I started picking up my shares in late spring, there have been a few people who have been on-​site to help with the check-​in process. They’ve always been unbelievable nice, knowledgeable and incredible accommodating.

This is for the second annual home grown dc fair. I have it 2 stars because I was hoping for more vendors and the Washington, D.C. Fair that was part of it was A small section of 10 tables.
The concept of this event was amazing. Love the idea of supporting local growers and farmers. I just wish there were more vendors.
The Washington, D.C. State fair~seriously not worth the time.

Good little shop that I recommend for advice on specials occasions. They recommended me to buy a house plant instead of flowers for my friend now that we are past dating and moved on to something else.

Very convenient place since they are right in the city. Especially, they are open until 7.30 during the work week. I can leave work at 6 pm in georgetown and still make it!
When one of the plants I bought from them died, the owner was kind enough to let me bring it to change. They are really cool.
I highly recommend this place and can’t wait to go back there again to get my next plant!

I came here last weekend on a friend’s recommendation hoping to find at least some of what I needed to start my balcony container garden while supporting a local business/​co-​op and avoiding Home Depot. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find anything I was looking for.
I had a list of things I wanted — seeds for lettuce, arugula, regular basil, thai basil, spring onions, cilantro, rosemary, and whatever else looked good. I was also hoping to find a cherry tomato plant and potting soil. I assumed I’d have to look elsewhere for plastic pots and containers. Unfortunately, Old City had none of these things. I wandered around without anyone coming over to help me, but quickly realized that most of the seeds were out of stock and they had a limited selection of already-​started herb plants. For example, while they had a lot of Chef Jeff’s lemon basil plants, they didn’t have any regular basil plants. They had some regular tomato plants, but I don’t think that will grow well on my balcony. I also didn’t see the kind of soil I was looking for, nor any containers for sale. They did have some interesting fruit plants, like blackberry plants and pomegranates. However, I would advise them to get the basics down first…
Maybe they’re more oriented toward people with backyards? It seems a shame, since there are a lot of people in the city who would like to grow things in their windows or on their balconies. In the end, I caved and went to Home Depot, and found everything I needed.
There were two guys working, and only one other customer there when I went (around 1 pm on a Sunday). Parking wasn’t too bad, but Rhode Island Ave was really busy and a pain to navigate.

Lovely business, run by friendly, knowledgeable people. I came for a Christmas tree; they had a variety of sizes and styles, all reasonably priced. All the ones I touched were very fresh and in excellent condition. The «table top» one I eventually settled on even came with its own tree stand made from recycled materials. I’d love to visit again in the spring — it’s a great use of space and things are well-​priced. My only complaint is that parking is kind of an issue: you have to circle the block for a while until find someplace to do parallel. I’m told they’re moving to a new space a few blocks away, so I’m not sure how this will affect it. Anyway, I highly recommend this place!

Oof — I spent 50 bucks on a flat of wave petunias last year. 50 bucks is A LOT of money for petunias. Then, once I got them home, I found that many of them barely had root balls, and some were just stems stuck in the plugs, and were basically un-​plantable. Mea Culpa for not checking that before I bought them, but if I’m going to spend double (really more than double) for what a flat would cost anywhere other than DC, I’d expect good quality, which I didn’t get.
I enjoy that there’s a garden place in the neighborhood, and I’m sure they have to cover their rent, but come on.

I love this space and the idea of converting an unused lot into a garden center. I came here for a community garden fundraiser and they converted the space into a great venue to host an event. Tiki torches lit up the space and all the plants are arranged to create nice nooks for different groups of people to sit. The weather was perfect at night, cool but not cold. And people brought food to share and we all munched on a great assortment of dishes.
I’d love to come back to to check out the garden supplies they sell. They had a nice selection of plants, flowers, and vegetable seedlings.

And they sell Christmas trees! Went there this year to get my tree, wreath and garland. Even cooler that they have hot cider for the taking, an a nice bon fire in the middle of the yard where they burn tree scraps.

I pick up by CSA share here (from Lancaster Farm Fresh Co-​op) and it’s always a friendly face greeting me here. Owner lives next door. Support this local business, it’s worth it.

Great local business, friendly owner and knowledgeable staff. Very fair pricing and great selection

Great garden store centrally located in Shaw!
I’m glad I stumbled across this attractive plant-​filled corner lot.
Old City Green offers a wide range of garden, container, and house plants, plus pots, soil, fertilizer, some statuary… And great expertise.
The store’s charming employees and its owner Frank were all very helpful and friendly.
Everyone seemed happy to be there and passionate about gardening…
Much different from my usual experience at Home Depot!
Anyone who used to shop at the now-​closed Garden District should definitely visit Old City Green.