Farm Happenings for September 11, 2021

TIGER EYE Beans are back for a one time offering! An heirloom dry bean that has a nutty taste with a creamy, potato-like texture. Amber or gold with dark red or maroon swirls. I love it in soups and chilis.

We want to take a moment to thank everyone who came out to support our Rollz2Go launch. It was hectic but fun. We received so much positive feedback and can't wait to do it again this Saturday. We apologize to our Sunday members, as Rollz2Go is only being offered at Millcity Farmer's Market on Saturday.

As this may be a bit premature, but I do realize that the end of the CSA season is quickly approaching. This year we chose to go with a 16 week season compared to our 20 week season from last year. That means, we will still have produce in the month of October. We will make the best attempt to continue to offer our produce availability for farm stand purchase for the remaining weeks of each farmer's market. Please take a moment to chat with us about our next season when you pick up your farm share. We would like to know what worked for you this year, what did not work out, what new varieties of vegetables you would like to see available, what vegetable you disliked, etc. I look forward to chatting with you all. Don't hesitate to email us if that works better for you.

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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