Part 4 of 6: Plant the Potatoes
In 1893, Detroit had two things sitting painfully close together: hungry families and empty land.
A nationwide economic collapse had wiped out thousands of jobs and paychecks. Parents were trying to stretch what little food they had while weeds grew across vacant lots throughout the city.
Mayor Hazen Pingree looked at both and asked a question so simple that people mocked him for it.
Why not plant po…