Farm Happenings for August 14, 2021

A much needed rainfall!

We spent the last few days scheduling around the rain to continue to weed, care for our plants and succession plant what we could for these last two months of this season. It is crazy how fast the end of the growing season is approaching.

This week we feature Carrots, Broccoli Raab, Loose-head Chinese Cabbage, and Ground Cherry Tomatoes. What! Did I just say ground cherry TOMATOES. Yes, I did. If you have never had ground cherries, you have been missing out. Ground cherries are little tiny husk tomato that are close relatives of tomatillos. Tangy and sweet, ground cherries are a great substitute for grapes and cherries. They can be made into jams, baked into a pie or just enjoy a handful on your deck as you watch the sun set. One bush will produce weeks of fruits that you can harvest and enjoy. We are so excited to share one of our favorite vegetable to grow with you all. Enjoy!

Mhonpaj’s Garden is a 9-acre certified organic vegetable farm owned by May Lee and her daughter Mhonpaj. With 5 acres in Stillwater and 4 acres in Marine on St. Crox, May and her family grow a variety of vegetables, bedding plants and herbs.
In 1980, May, her husband Chue, their children and May’s mother immigrated to the United States from Loas as refugees. They found work farming conventionally, but when May’s mother was diagnosed with cancer after working with pesticides in the United States, May knew she needed to start farming organically.
May’s daughter Mhonpaj was connected with the Minnesota Food Association (MFA) and learned about their New Immigrant Agriculture Program (now called the Farmer Education Program). The Lee’s were accepted into the three-year program, which gave them access to the MFA’s 60-acre certified organic incubator farm, Big River Farm, and connected them with a Hmong-speaking coordinator who helped them find resources and answer questions about organic farming. Together they resolved issues ranging from drip irrigation setup to product liability insurance to insect control.
In 2010, the Lee’s “graduated” from the MFA program and went on to become the first Hmong-owned certified-organic farm in Minnesota. May and her family now farm leased land along the St. Croix River.

In addition to farming, May spends lots of time educating other growers about organic practices through the MFA and as a Master Gardener volunteer for Ramsey County. She and her family also share their culinary heritage through cooking demonstrations and classes.

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