The U.S. Department of Agriculture doesn’t have a reputation for thinking outside the “Big-Ag” box. So it might come as a surprise that it’s taking one of farming’s most upstart efforts pretty seriously: Urban agriculture.

Last month, the USDA published an urban agriculture tool kit, which is a guide to programs at the department that can be useful to urban farmers. It’s things like funding for hoop houses (low-tech greenhouses) and micro-loans with streamlined applications. “People think of USDA—and they don’t think of urban agriculture,” says Elanor Starmer, administrator of the department’s Agricultural Marketing Service division. The guide was prompted by conversations with the U.S. Conference of Mayors and other groups asking the USDA for help in addressing requests from