Grounding into The Soul of Food 2024

There was such a lovely turnout of folks this past weekend for our first Soul of Food Session: Seeding a Vibrant Afro-Indigenous Garden!

Pretty much everyone was super new to growing, was excited to get into the soil, and asked such great questions throughout our time together. We began with grounding in some historical context of the plants we’d be transplanting (seedlings/sprouts planted in the ground) and direct sowing (seeds directing planted in the ground) that afternoon, as well as talking a bit about the technologies and expertise people of African and Indigenous diasporas have brought to the agricultural field.

Then we got into transplanting collard (old timey blue and green glaze), Trinidad hill rice (with seeds saved from last year’s harvest), celosia, cotton (green, brown, and white) , and King Fisher pepper (from farmer friend/seed breeder Jesse Schaffer) seedlings. We also direct sowed some seeds saved from last year’s harvest including sorghum (African white and red sugar drip), sea island red peas, and honey beans.

After we watered the seedlings and seeds into their new homes in the ground, everyone gathered at the picnic tables to enjoy some light bites of fresh bread, spreads, and fruits as they connected with old and new friends. We closed out the day with a group photo and our hearts full from an afternoon of carrying on the legacy of collective land stewardship.

Big thanks to Farmer Alexx for hosting us at East New York Farms UCC Youth Farm site!

Participants/Green-thumbs-in-the-making getting seedlings and seeds into the ground.

Post-plant out bites!