Category Archives: farm

8th Annual Immigrant and Minority Farmers Conference

“If you are not growing you are dying.” – Ellen G. White (paraphrased)

This is one of my favorite quotes. The author preceeds by saying we are much like plants and when we are not growing we are dying. But the author adds that this is the same for our mental and spiritual capacities as well as our physical. I find that there are few better ways to grow as a human being then to spend time with people from a variety of backgrounds.

This weekend we were blessed to participate for our 5th year now in the 8th Annual Immigrant and Minority Farmers Conference. This was also my 2nd year on the planning committee and 2nd year as a presenter. It is such a rewarding experience to be surrounded by people from all over the world speaking many many languages but who all acknowledge and crave a connection to the land. For these farmers it is not about trends or politics or ideals that brings them to the land it is about survival. They understand that without this personal connection they would somehow be less then who they were meant to be. That’s why they come to this country as refugees and immigrants–citizens at the lower end of the totem pole if we are honest with ourselves as a country. And then they chose to enter a professional that is not known for it’s financial security.

Along the way they face language and cultural barriers certainly and sometimes discrimination and racism. But they do it because that is who they are.

This year the conference included farmers from Africa, Asia, Central and South America. And there were alot of young farmers. As the USDA acknowledges that the average age of farmers is aging at a fast rate, there are at least some young people interested in farming. Here are some pictures from a great weekend.


 
Glen Hill, Executive Director, Minnesota Food Association, Ly Vang, Executive Director for the Association for the Advancement of Hmong Women, Minnesota Commissioner of Agriculture, Dave Fredrickson, State Senator Foung Hawj, after the welcome on Saturday.

Farmers visiting booths to learn more about resources, funding, organic certification and more.

Aaron Blythe showing farmers a hand transplanter from Japan.

Hmong farmer getting a close up view of t he transplanter.

The conference is held the 1st weekend in February in St. Paul.

Blessings

Entitlement. It’s amazing how much this term is bandied around. Often it is used by those who have to describe the way those who have think those who have not think. It is meant as an insult and often said in a scoffing manner. But on this beautiful fall day 9 months after we moved into our dream home and life and with the season closing and a much needed rest coming I am contemplating–I am not entitled to any of it. A whole crazy scenario had to fall into place for me to be here.

Back when I was a Junior in college I was taking a class in a building I rarely went to. On the way I stopped at a bathroom I hardly ever used and saw an advertisment seeking a rape crisis counselor. The training was provided for free and through my county. I applied, was accepted and went through an intensive 40 hour training. Months later one of my fellow rape crisis counselors called me out of the blue to offer me a job. She knew I was a writer and the paper she worked for was hiring. Was I interested? Now 10 years later I am still writing for that publication and many months my income from here has meant our family survival.

Around the same time I was looking for a summer internship. I applied with Metro Transit and got an interview. But after attending decided it was too far to drive. They called to offer me the paid internship and I turned them down. Then they called me back to see if we could work something out. We made a part time arrangement that just happened to have me working the same hours as Proeun. 

Proeun for his part never wanted to be a bus driver. But when he was looking for work it seemed like the opportunity kept popping up. If he hadn’t taken the job, or if I hadn’t or if we worked different hours we never would have met. Now 12 years later he has a good income, good insurance, and His work allows me to be home with our children. 

Then there is the whole story about how we got into farming by running across information about the Minnesota Food Association while we were at the Living Green Expo, the only time we went. Then all the things that had to come together for us to find this perfect place and get financing and set up the farm. 

 Whether you chose to believe it was divine blessings (as I do) or fate that orders our path in actuallity none of us our entitled to anything. Right now I am feeling really blessed. I am incredibly aware of the fact that I have so so much to be thankful for and we are in a very good place. I wish more people, especially those in power would be aware of the fact that if they have much they have been given much and should therefore forgive much. Cut people a little slack.

I just read a series of books that take place in Ireland around the time of the potato famine. I discovered that there really was no wide spread famine in the land. Only the potatoes were affected. But that is what the poor people ate. Those in power, the wealthy, often English and Absentee landlords, could have chosen to ease the people’s suffering by allowing them to eat some of the grain they grew rather then exporting it for top dollar to England. Instead they chose to look at it as an act of God passing judgement on the Irish. When the poor couldn’t pay the rent whole towns would be sacked by gangs of “destructives” which forced already starving families to the street. Over 1 million people died of starvation and 1.3 million emigrated to America before the crisis was over. Ireland has never recovered its pre “famine” population.

The belief that “those people are just different from me or us” is what allowed this to happen and really any other humanitarian crisis around the world results from a similar line of thinking. But really none of us deserve anything and all of us in the end are the same. The haves often deserve less then the have nots. I chose instead to focus on my blessings and know that I deserve none of it, which makes the blessings all the more sweet.

Fall Slow Down

I have always loved the fall, but this seasonal living shows me why I love it. I love the cooling weather, the warm clothes, the evening walks through the leaves. And now I am discovering the pleasure of slow meanders through the fields. I haven’t actually farmed much this year, most of the heavy labor has gone to Proeun while I prepare for the coming baby, but now as the season slows I have really enjoyed quiet mornings with him. The rush to get out to the field is lessened a hit, the weeding and planting are done, now is the fun time of harvesting and eating.
 

Effie and Jack join us on the morning’s walk to the fields. Here one of the last things we planted, the fall greens continue to go strong.
 

Proeun’s pride and joy. The water spinach field has served us well this year and often graces our table. This plant is actually considered a “noxious weed” by the USDA and requires a special permit to purchase the seeds and grow the plant. We are one of the few farms in Minnesota with that permit.

One of the last tasks of the year, fertilizing. Here Proeun sprays fish emulsion on the summer squash trying to encourage them towards the last hurrah.

Just some of the amazing produce from our field. This year’s watermelon is particularly nice. The lack of rain in the 2nd half of the summer really concentrated the flavor. Yum. More about the yummy food on our table lately on Friday.