new roots

Volunteer Projects!

2012-01-23T09:56:00.003-06:00

Seeds are ordered, classes have begun, and we will be in the greenhouse before we know it. All the buzz around here has me thinking that it is almost time to be in the field and at market, which reminds me that we have lots to do! There are a few things on our "to do" list that could be accomplished by a handy volunteer, as a scout project, or by a church group. If you're interested in helping us out, send me an email at rpollock AT catholiccharitiesks DOT org ! Without further ado, here are the two projects.

1. A Picnic Table for Mary and Maku!
Mary and Maku will be in the second year of the training farm this season. Their plots are on the other side of Richmond, across the street from the training farm. It's kind've like the wild west over there. They have worked hard clearing sod, stringing hoses across the street, and carrying totes of veggies all the way up to the cooler. They have turned a vacant lot into a productive field in a year. The thing that is missing from their field is shade. We almost have enough donations to build them a shade structure like we've got on the other side of the street, and I'd love to put a picnic table under it.

Mary harvesting in her plot.

Maku picking veggies for the market.

A picnic table would make them happy!

2. A Storage System for our Market Trailer!
We've got a great little trailer that we drive to some of our farmers' markets. Inside we've got tables, baskets, tablecloths, veggies, and everything else that you need to set up a few farmers' market stalls. Currently, we just stack everything in the trailer, and once we've twisted and turned our way to market, everything is a mess! We'd love to build a storage system that keeps everything tidy and is easy to use.

Winter Workshops Underway!

2012-01-19T10:24:00.001-06:00

Workshops are a big part of our education program at New Roots. Throughout the winter months, we offer both farming specific English Language classes and classes focused on vegetable production and marketing. Farmers are required to attend these workshops to sign a land lease with us for space at the training farm. The workshops can get a little chaotic- yesterday's session on planting was translated into Nepali, Karen, Burmese, Maay Maay and Kirundi. They are also really rich- yesterday we spent time talking about the ways that people plant seeds all over the world.

To start off, our fearless horti-cultural-ist, Cathy B gave a pictorial powerpoint

on direct seeding and planting transplants.

Afterwards, we talked about measurement systems that we use in the US and introduced the inch and the foot. (Tell me again, why are we the only ones in the world that use this system!)

We used the rulers to talk about seed spacing. The Karen farmers showed us how they plant cucumber seeds staggered, 3 at a time.

First year farmer, Upendra, and Cathy B talk about planting cucumber and okra seed. We'll be planting before we know it!

2011 Program Report

2011-12-19T12:07:00.005-06:00

Friends,

Another year has passed so quickly and I can’t believethat I’m writing to you again. There is so much to report this year– newfarmers, a huge increase in sales, our first program graduate, and a newcommunity garden initiative.

There are so many stories of success that I’d like toshare with you, this post is just a start! Your choice to buy your food fromNew Roots farmers and support this program is making a huge impact- both in thelives of refugee families and the future of the food system in Kansas City.

THANK YOU for your generosity.

In the winter of 2010, we welcomed four new farmers to the training farm.

Maku is our first farmer from Bhutan, and Ma Than, Mary Mi, and San Dar Myint are from Burma. During the 2011 season, there were 17 farmers growing at Juniper Gardens.

Throughout the year, program staff held 14 workshops focused on financial literacy. Farmers opened bank accounts, made deposits and withdrawals, and learned to write their own checks. Although many New Roots farmers have experience selling, the level of record keeping and financial awareness necessary to operate a farm business in the US is new and challenging.

Nyakang using the tiller in her plot for the first time.

Seventeen workshops focused on production and marketing. Workshops are hands-on, in the field when possible. Farmers learn about cultivation in Kansas,

tools and machinery, and the basics of marketing– setting up stalls and writing price signs. For most of our farmers, writing signage is overwhelming and takes lots of practice.

In a very difficult growing season, New Roots farmers grew their businesses, selling at 8 weekly markets throughout Kansas City. In 2010, total sales at the farm were just over $60,000. In 2011, this number grew to $103,000. Farmers are cultivating more healthy soil, learning to produce better product, and increasing their marketing skills.

The Juniper Gardens Farmers’ Market exploded this year; farmers sold over $25,000 worth of vegetables to customers using food stamps. There was commonly a line of over 20 people waiting to use their benefits and have them doubled! Most of the customers are refugees from Burma who come to buy lemony greens, hot peppers, lemongrass and blue pumpkins.

Lay Htoo and family at the “All American Title”
Company after signingpapers.

Since the beginning of the training farm, we have been preparing graduates to move off onto their own land. This year was our first year to help a farmer through this process. In September, farmer Lay Htoo purchased her own home in Kansas City, Kansas on nearly an acre.

Move in day!

Lay Htoo has worked incredibly hard, and is bubbling over with happiness. The entire down payment was made with money she saved from selling at the Overland Park Farmers’Market, and she diligently studied credit, interests and loans during our workshops. She is in the process of moving her production off of the training farm and into her backyard.

Program staff and members of the Chin community visit
a possible gardensite.

Since the inception of the training farm, we have heard from many refugee families that are
desperate to be outside growing their own food, but cannot commit the time to running a farm business. In response, we’re working with three refugee communities to develop their own community gardens. The Bhutanese Community of Kansas, Somali Bantu Foundation of Kansas and Chin Community are dreaming of what these gardens can be– a place for the adults to teach their children about growing the foods of their motherland while planting real roots in Kansas.

We can’t wait to see what the next year brings.

Will you join us in our mission?
There are lots of ways to help New Roots.

1. Give
We need money for salaries! It’s been easier to raise money for tools and supplies and harder to find grantors willing to pay for staff costs. Can you help us? Please send tax-deductible checks written to Catholic Charities with New Roots in the memo to:
Catholic Charities
Rachel Pollock
2220 Central Ave.
Kansas City, KS 66102
Or give online.

2. Shop
New Roots farmers rely on your business. Thanks for shopping with us at your local farmers’ market, joining our CSA, and spreading the word!

3. Time
Come volunteer at the farm, the office, during an ESL class or teach a farmer to drive! We're currently looking for volunteers to help out with watching kids when their parents are in workshops on Monday afternoons and Wednesday mornings.

Volunteers Needed during Winter Workshops

2011-12-12T09:00:00.007-06:00

One of the most common questions New Roots farmers and staff get asked this time of year is “what do you do all winter?"

After finishing fall clean-up, November offers a short period of rest before the "winter work" really begins. Along with infrastructure updates at the farm we take time to focus on strengthening the program as a whole. This involves a great deal of reflection and planning from everyone involved in the farm.

Last week was dominated by the season’s evaluations, where staff met one-on-one with each farmer to reflect on the season. We celebrate successes, constructively acknowledge struggles, and plan for future seasons. While they can be a bit overwhelming at times, these meetings have re-energized each one of us, and I have left every single one astonished (once again) by the farmers. They are such smart women, and have fantastic plans for their businesses and the future of their families!

After evaluations it is time for the first English class of the winter. All New Roots farmers are required to enroll in, and attend, formal English as a Second Language (ESL) courses during the winter months – five days a week! To supplement this learning, we also require our farmers to attend agriculture/small business focused English classes taught by Catholic Charities staff. It is in this weekly class that farmers learn language relevant to farming, financial literacy, and marketing.

In addition to our English classes, we also require all farmers to attend regularly scheduled agricultural workshops. Since most of our farmers have a couple little children, we provide free on-site childcare during all of the classes and workshops we teach.

We are looking for volunteers to help with childcare during the following times:

Mondays from 1-3pm

December 12 through Monday March 19th

(no class 12/26)

Wednesday from 9:30-11:30 am

January 4th through May 9th

All classes and workshops are taught at the farm office, in Northeast KCK. While it would be fantastic to have regular help, we understand that life can be busy. If you are interested in helping, but can’t commit to the entire series, we would still love to have you!

Please contact Emily at elecuyer (at) CatholicCharitiesKS (dot) org or at 913.620.2080 if you are interested in helping, or have additional questions.

Thank you and stay warm!!

Community Garden Project is under way!

2011-11-01T12:45:00.002-05:00

As we move into winter, New Roots for Refugees is getting started on a new and very exciting project—developing three new community gardens to serve our refugee friends!

Because of limited space at the Juniper Gardens site, we have in the past few years had to turn away many refugee families who were interested in growing vegetables on a smaller scale. New Roots was approached by three refugee community groups in particular—the Chin, Somali Bantu, and Bhutanese—who are seeking garden space to serve their families’ needs. We knew this would be a worthwhile venture, but it would require a lot of additional time and money… so to address this request, New Roots staff and the three ethnic leadership teams applied for (and received!) a Community Food Projects grant to help fund the startup of a community garden for each of these three groups.

The first step on our agenda is proving to be a difficult one: locating suitable land for the gardens. Our hope is to acquire plots of land (0.5-1.25 acres each) from the Land Bank and/or local parishes and nonprofits, but we are open to other suggestions as well! If you or someone you know might have a vacant piece of land available to lease or inexpensively purchase, we would be grateful for your help. Please contact me, Rachel Friesen, at rfriesen@catholiccharitiesks.org with any suggestions.

The good news is that we already have one potential garden location in mind, and we are moving forward in the acquisition process! Our Site Developer, Steve, has identified a Land Bank property at 14th & Allen St. in KCK that is an ideal location for the Bhutanese community. Many Bhutanese families live within easy walking or driving distance from this land, and we have received affirmation and support from the neighborhood association as well—they love the idea of having a garden in the community! Here is a photo of the property:

Another goal for the near future is to find local churches, parishes, or community groups to partner with each of the three gardens during the startup period. We envision these partnerships as opportunities for hands-on assistance with specific needs from each community garden. In particular, each garden will need help acquiring new or used tools, seeds, and compost for individual families to use. Though the Community Food Projects grant money covers the bigger costs of developing the gardens (such as clearing debris from vacant lots, installing water hookups, and fencing), there is little to no money available for these smaller expenses. **On that note, if you are part of a church or group that may be interested in partnering with one of our gardens, please let us know! Again, you may contact me at rfriesen@catholiccharitiesks.org for more info or to volunteer.

Stay tuned for more updates throughout the winter and spring!

cookbooks for sale

2011-10-27T10:27:00.010-05:00

We still have a limited number of 2011 New Roots cookbooks for sale! For those of you who attended the Harvest Dinner earlier this month, this is a second opportunity to get a copy of the cookbooks that were auctioned off.

And for those of you who were not at the dinner, this is a very special, limited-edition compilation of traditional recipes from our farmers at the Juniper Gardens training farm. Each recipe showcases a vegetable that might not be familiar to you, in case you've been wondering what to do with those interesting greens our farmers sell...

Here is a sample page of the recipe featuring chin baung:

Cookbooks are $20 each. E-mail Rachel Pollock at rpollock (at) catholiccharitiesks (dot) org if you are interested in purchasing. Don't wait--our stock is limited, and the holiday season is almost here!

CSA End-of-Season Potluck

2011-10-13T09:50:00.005-05:00

From chilly mornings tending seedlings in the greenhouse, through the seemingly endless summer heatwave, and into a gorgeous autumn, it is now time to celebrate the successful completion of New Roots 2011 CSA! What better way to celebrate a successful season of growing food and sharing community than by sharing a meal with those who make it possible?!

End of Season Potluck

Sunday, October 16 from 6-8 pm

Join your farmers, their families, other CSA friends and Catholic Charities/Cultivate KC Staff for an end-of-season celebration! Please bring a dish to share & if possible, plates and utensils for your family. This will help us cut down on waste at the event J

The Potluck will be held in the Assembly Room at Catholic Charities of Northeast Kansas, 2220 Central Ave, Kansas City KS 66102

A successful evening!

2011-10-06T14:42:00.013-05:00

Thanks to everyone who was involved in or attended our Fall Harvest Dinner & Fundraiser on Tuesday evening! It was GREAT! We could not have asked for better weather, our chefs delivered excellent fare, and we had a great turnout of supportive guests and volunteers.

The evening began with appetizers prepared by our farmers, including delicious sambusas and a pumpkin & chicken curry (which was just one of many dishes featuring Burmese pumpkins--it must be that season!). Guests arriving could peruse the silent auction offerings, which consisted of some beautiful framed photos, newly-published cookbooks, and other New Roots gear. All items were taken home by satisfied bidders! Special thanks to all who donated. :)

We then progressed to the seated dinner portion of the evening, which featured many exciting and colorful tastes! Fud chef Heidi's raw food "rainbow course" was a hit, followed by a hearty pumpkin curry prepared by chef Todd Schulte of Genessee Royale. Finally we enjoyed a pumpkin dessert made by the talented chefs at The Farmhouse.

All in all it was a successful event, and we were glad to share a bit of the farm's bounty with new and old friends.

Fall Harvest Dinner & Fundraiser

2011-09-24T10:22:00.010-05:00

If you have been to the farm or Catholic Charities office lately, you have probably heard the buzz ~ we have been busy planning a big party and fundraiser at the farm on October 4th!

It is going to be a special night featuring food grown by our farmers. Attendees will dine under the stars on food grown, harvested, and prepared only inches from the table.

While sampling hors d’oeuvres prepared and served by New Roots farmers, enjoy a silent auction. As you find your seat, and are served the “rainbow” course prepared by Heidi VanPelt-Belle, Executive chef and co-founder of the Westside neighborhood restaurant Fud, live performances by refugee youth will begin. A hearty main course prepared by chef and restaurateur Todd Schulte of Genessee Royale Bistro and Happy Gillis Café will celebrate the farm’s bounty by pairing with Boulevard beer. The evening will culminate with a very special dessert created by Executive Chef Michael Foust of The Farmhouse, and will be accompanied by the second live entertainment portion of the evening, featuring ethnic dances by the New Roots community. Locally roasted coffee will also be in abundance thanks to The Roasterie's generous donation. We hope that you will join us to celebrate a great season!

Join us at the Juniper Gardens Training farm, 100 Richmond Avenue, KC KS 66101, on Tuesday October 4th, 2011 at 6pm (rain date Wednesday, October 5th) for an elegant and organic fundraiser in support of the New Roots for Refugees program.

Tickets for the 4 course meal are $65.oo per person or $330.oo per table of 6.

Dinner will be outside at the farm, please dress accordingly!!

To maintain an intimate atmosphere, seating is limited. Reserve your seat by calling 913.906.8981 or by visiting this Catholic Charities of NE Kansas webpage. We are happy and able to accommodate special dietary restrictions if notified of these preferences and needs at time of ticket purchase.

A new Rachel at New Roots!

2011-09-23T17:41:00.019-05:00

Hello from the newest member of the team! I'm Rachel Friesen, and I'm just beginning a year-long term with Mennonite Voluntary Service here at New Roots for Refugees.

(Already there is much confusion at the office and the farm due to having two Rachels around, so I am encouraging people to call me by my nickname "Scratch".)

In addition to odds and ends around the office, I will be primarily involved with the development of the new community gardens this year. At the moment, however, my main project is putting together a cookbook of recipes from our farmers. Some of these recipes have already been featured on the blog, but several are new! In the last couple weeks I have gotten the chance to cook with Mari Mi and Maku Gurung, and both of these women cooked me DELICIOUS food from their fresh veggies. Mary Mi made a spicy Karenni-style soup with pumpkin and bamboo shoots (it made me sweat a little, but was so good!), and Maku cooked me 4 different variations of vegetable curry. Here is her recipe:

Maku's Nepali Curry

Basic ingredients:
Vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
1 small sweet red pepper, chopped (seeds removed)
1 teaspoon turmeric
salt to taste
2 cloves garlic
1-2 teaspoons cumin seed
1-2” section of ginger
1 medium tomato, chopped
2 or more types fresh vegetables of choice--here are a list of the veggies in Maku's 4 variations:

1 medium potato, peeled and chopped thinly

1/2 lauka gourd, sliced thinly and quartered

5-6 Thai or Asian eggplant, stems removed, chopped

2 bitter melons, thinly sliced

1-2 Asian cucumbers or "luffa gourds," cut into 2” pieces and then chopped lengthwise

1 small blue pumpkin, thinly sliced

1 handful shell beans, chopped (Maku used cranberry beans)

Preheat oil in pan on stove, then stir in chopped vegetables (except tomato). Add turmeric and salt, stirring in water as needed to prevent sticking. Crush garlic, ginger and cumin seed in a mortar and pestle or food processor, then stir into pan. When vegetables are tender, add the chopped tomato and sauté a few more minutes. Serve alone or with rice. Yum!

2011-09-20T14:32:00.006-05:00

Last week we invited our CSA friends out to the farm to work along side their farmers. The cool breeze was refreshing while digging in the late afternoon earth, and these golden sweet potatoes were the perfect treasure to uncover!

Below New Roots farmer Nyakang and her CSA friend Ashley harvest together.

A nice tree shades produce and farmers at the Juniper Gardens Farmers' Market.

Children played the veggie guessing game and got their faces painted while their parents shopped for produce. The fall harvest festival was a hit this year!

tiny Thai eggplants!

A Chin Baung Harvest to Celebrate

2011-09-02T14:19:00.009-05:00

In last month's issue of Tastebud magazine, Editor Jennifer Roe poetically likened the month of August to a prolonged Sunday evening: a final bittersweet goodbye to summer heralding the return of homework, alarm clocks, and schedules. Well, September is here & while it may emotionally be the end of summer, the continued heat wave means local farmers (and their summer crops) are not through yet!

There are a lot of exciting things going on around here as we gear up for fall: we have said farewell to both of our summer staff & welcomed one new full-time MVS volunteer, are looking forward to two upcoming Work-the-Farm days for CSA friends, and are in the midst of planning an end of season potluck as well as an autumn farm-to-table fundraiser AND helping our first batch of graduates make the move onto their own land! whew. None of this, however, compares with the intense excitement surrounding the Chin Baung harvest.

Chin Baung, commonly known as Burmese Sorrel, is a species of Hibiscus. Culinarily & culturally significant for many different ethnic communities from Burma, the late summer bounty lends itself to a time of communal celebration. No where is this more evident than at the Monday farmers' market at Juniper Gardens. This market is hoppin' folks! And this Monday, September 5th will be even more so. We will celebrate not only the bountiful harvest, but the intense love and labor that New Roots farmers have poured into their fields this season. So join us for face painting, world music, free books, and food tasting!

Chin Baung is so important that at least one farmer has half of her 1/4 acre plot dedicated solely to growing it!

Estilo Pilipino

2011-08-30T10:19:00.003-05:00

On September 18th New Roots for Refugees will benefit from Estillo Pilipino: A Fashion Show for a Cause. The event will feature three top award-winning Filipino designers and local models, showing a modern take on traditional Filipino dress. We are excited to be part of this event! Join us for an afternoon of hors d'oeuvres, fashion, and fundraising in the Leatherwood Ballroom at the Sheraton Overland Park Hotel.

A big thank you to Gigi for her efforts to promote intercultural exchange among Kansas City's diverse ethnic communities and support of our program! To buy tickets & for more information please contact Gigi Mateo directly at gmateo (at) ehh-inc.com or (913) 526.0106.

Farewell New Roots!

2011-08-22T15:47:00.000-05:00

A little market lovin' at Juniper Gardens. Beh Paw and I.

This summer flew by, and as I am sitting here writing this and processing this summer's experience with New Roots, I can't help but already feel nostalgic. This summer's experience was rich, filled with many learning moments within the Nonprofit sector and several deep friendships I am sad to leave today. I was the girl updating twitter, facebook, photos, the website, and newsletter, which was a joy to update our supporters on exciting happenings at our farm. I appreciate the freedom Rachel gave me to form my summer role into what I envisioned; a little taste of everything. From going to market, filling out sale records, e-mailing, being at the farm, booking interpretors, taking pictures, and even laminating name tags; I loved it all. I wanted my first experience in a Nonprofit to consist of a little of everything, and it was perfectly fitting to spend a couple hours in the office and the rest of the time engaging in friendships with the people a part of the program. I grew a deeper understanding of the lives of newly placed refugees. The language barriers and cultural differences that became frustrating at times when trying to balance a life in America while still clinging to the roots of their culture. I learned a little Swahili and Karen and laughed more times then I can recall. Actions spoke louder then words throughout the summer (with verbal communication being a hindrance at times) and all those actions were done so in love for one another. I will deeply miss trips to the bank, Ma Than's pranks, Pelagie's hand painted t-shirts, the taste of fresh sweet tomatoes, Rachel and Emily's guidance, and all the other beautiful people within the New Roots community I got to know. Thanks for a wonderful summer, I admire all of those who are supporters of the New Roots program through facebook, twitter, CSA, and the community. I can assure you your time, energy, and support is being spent wisely :) Keep it up!

With Love,

Tori Litardo

Summer Staff Marianne Says Goodbye

2011-08-18T16:01:00.000-05:00

A fun photo shoot with Ma Than, Nyakang, Marianne, and Pelagie

After leaving college in Iowa in June, I took a Greyhound bus headed south not knowing much about Kansas City, or what to expect from my Summer Staff job with the New Roots for Refugees program. Little did I know that I would spend the summer working at the Northeast, KCK, and Brookside farmers’ markets, attending workshops on harvesting and fall planting, helping farmers get produce ready for market, and making trips to the bank, Homeland Security, and the rubber band store! Since my first days of work early in the summer, I have learned a great deal about the lives of refugees in the U.S., and the ways that sustainable agriculture can improve the lives of everyone involved in it.

Never having worked with refugees before, I was overwhelmed by the range of difficulties facing those who arrive in the U.S., including language barriers, change in diet, change in climate, learning to navigate a new city, and of course the loss of community and family support. While the women I worked with left much behind when they came to the U.S., New Roots allows them to reconnect with an important aspect of their past- farming. Through the program, New Roots farmers are empowered to use skills that they already have to support their families economically, while forging connections in their new communities with other farmers, CSA friends, and customers. Customers and CSA friends benefit from farmers’ labor when they receive delicious organic produce. In addition, the ethnic crops grown by New Roots farmers that have been largely unavailable in KC before this point, like m’chicha, chin baung, and bitter melon, diversify American customers’ diets and allow Asian and African people living in the area to enjoy produce from their home countries.

New Roots for Refugees demonstrates perfectly how local, sustainable farming can enrich a community, and the lives of farmers and customers alike. As the summer and my time here in Kansas City draws to a close, I think of the ways that working with the program has improved my life as well, especially in the friendships I have made with farmers and coworkers. I will miss talking and laughing with them, and learning from them- about urban agriculture, vegetables, cooking, cultural difference, and life!

Happy Monday!

2011-08-15T15:42:00.001-05:00

Despite the rainy weather we had on and off throughout the weekend, we have been doing well in sales at market and had a blast at this weekend's Farm Aid event! We had a booth set up Friday evening and all day Saturday handing out temporary New Roots tattoos, playing vegetables guessing games, taking pictures with vegetable Willie Nelson, and talking to folks about our program and how it works. We had several people stop by and we felt so honored to be a part of this weekend's event. Thanks to all of you who came out to support us this weekend. It was awesome getting to know people as passionate about local and organic produce as we are! Veggie Willie is below for those of you who haven't seen him yet!

and here is the real Willie Nelson. We saw him at the press conference on Saturday!

Support Local Businesses that Buy from New Roots Farmers!

2011-08-10T12:56:00.005-05:00

New Roots farmers enter the program with a significant amount of agriculture experience. Growing up in agrarian societies, cultivating the land is a natural extension of their culture. Many of these farmers have experience selling produce as well. So while American farmers’ markets are a little different to most, they aren’t completely foreign either. Other marketing outlets however, like wholesaling can be a little trickier for these farmers to navigate.

This year we have been able to expand our wholesaling markets, working with advanced farmers on all aspects of the exchange from invoicing to pricing and communication. This is new for us, and we are grateful to have a community of buyers willing to support us during this learning phase. Not only are they making an effort to buy local, but they are making an extra effort to work with refugees, teaching them about local marketing options. We will occasionally be featuring these fantastic local delights on our blog, so check them out!

We want to give a big friendly shout-out to restaurateur Todd Schulte, of Genessee Royale Bistro in the Stockyard District, and Happy Gillis in Columbus Park. He has been buying New Roots produce regularly all season, often featuring it at Genessee Royale’s monthly Grill Dinners.

Both Genessee Royale & Happy Gillis are less than 5 miles from the farm – which means ultra-fresh food on your plate! So take a break from cooking this week & support local businesses that share your same values of buying local, sustainable food from New Roots farmers.

Eating Seasonally through the Winter

2011-08-04T12:55:00.008-05:00

For many of us trying to eat seasonally, what is easy in July is daunting in December. However, for the well prepared eater, the exact opposite is true!

Hot & creamy heirloom tomato soup served with a grilled cheese (plenty of local options for this one!) sandwich doesn't sound so delicious as we sweat away today, but most of us will feel differently come a cozy winter afternoon 6 months from now.

New Roots supporters can all agree that fresh, organically grown food tastes better. So let us face this winter challenge together. Food preservation is making a comeback & with some basic tools it is accessible to everyone. The USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning is a great starting point – from the simplicity of freezing green beans (blanch 3 minutes, drain, and seal in a freezer bag!) to the artfulness of canned salsas & chutney. Not only will you eat well, but canned goods make an inexpensive, thoughtful gift come the holiday season.

For those wanting a little extra guidance I recommend the BADSEED homesteading classes. And don't forget your local extension agents. These accessible experts may be reached here.

Whether you are a regular at market or a New Roots CSA member, I recommend stocking up this summer. Your chilly winter afternoons will be richer & your dollars will have been spent supporting a local family as opposed to leaving our community. It's win-win!

CSA members, be sure to contact Emily or your farmer if you would like to place a bulk order. As CSA friends you are eligible for a wholesale price when purchasing items in bulk!

Use Up Our Tomatoes!

2011-08-01T23:53:00.001-05:00

Hopefully this is a summer inspirational recipe that will motivate you to come buy some tomatoes at your local market, we have so many! Great summer treat for parties and appetizers. Enjoy the recipe below.

Bruschetta with Tomato and Basil
recipe brought to you by: simplyrecipes.com
Ingredients:
6 or 7 tomatoes (about 1 1/2 lbs)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
6-8 fresh basil leaves, chopped
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 baguette French bread or similar Italian bread
1/4 cup olive oil

Preparation: Prepare the tomatoes first. Parboil the tomatoes for one minute in boiling water that has just been removed from the burner. Drain. Using a sharp small kitchen knife, remove the skins of the tomatoes (if the tomatoes are too hot, you can protect your finger tips by rubbing them with an ice cube between tomatoes). Once the tomatoes are peeled, cut them in halves or quarters and remove the seeds and juice from their centers. Also cut out and discards the stem area. Make sure there is a top rack in place in your oven. Turn on the oven to 450 degrees to preheat. While the oven is heating, chop up the tomatoes finely. Put tomatoes, garlic, 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, vinegar in a bowl and mix. Add the chopped basil. Add the salt and pepper to taste. Slice the baguette on a diagonal about 1/2 inch thick slices. Coat one side of each slice with olive oil using a pastry brush. Place on a cooking sheet, olive oil side down. You will want to toast them in the top rack in your oven, so you may need to to these in batches depending on the size of your oven. Once the oven has reached 450 degrees, place a tray of break slices in the oven on the top rack. Toast for 5-7 minutes, until the bread just begins to turn golden brown. Alternatively you can toast the bread without coating it in the olive oil first. Toast on the griddle for 1 minute on each side. Take a sharp knife and score each slice 3 times. Rub some garlic in the slices and drizzle half a teaspoon of olive oil on each slice. This is the more traditional method of making bruschetta. Align the bread on a serving platter, olive oil side up. Either place the tomato topping in a bowl separately for people to serve themselves over the bread, or place some topping on each slice of bread and serve. If you top each slice with the tomatoes, do it right before serving or the bread may get soggy. Serves 6-10.

Note: Canning season for tomatoes is also approaching. To learn how to can your own tomatoes, click here.

New Roots is apart of the 2011 Farm Aid Tour!

2011-07-27T11:52:00.000-05:00

We got accepted to be a part of Farm Aid 2011 at Livestrong Sporting Park on August 13! We are so excited to be a part of advocating healthy food and sustainable agriculture as the weekend unfolds with performers such as Dave Matthew's Band, Willie Nelson, Jason Mraz, John Mellencamp, Neil Young, and more! We will have a booth set up alongside many other small KC metro farming communities with interactive activities and information to share on our program. If you are interested in attending the weekend's festivities, click the link above for more information on tickets and come out to support us!

Know Your Tomatoes

2011-07-13T10:53:00.000-05:00

Tomatoes are beginning to be harvested and taken to market, finally! Many of you have asked us about our tomatoes, the different kinds, and the use for each. We decided to post some facts and pictures of the different kinds we have at the farm in hopes of making your buys easier at markets.

sun cherry tomatoes, standard red-when-ripe tomatoes

sun gold tomatoes, golden orange color with sweet flavor

black cherry tomatoes, very dark red when ripe

Tip: Never refrigerate your tomatoes so it doesn't lose its flavor or texture.

This is a great summer treat to try out with tomatoes from our farm!

Baked Parmesan Tomatoes (4 servings)

Ingredients:

4 tomatoes, halved horizontally

1/4 cup of freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano

1/4 teaspoon salt

freshly ground pepper, to taste

4 teaspoons of extra-virgin olive oil

Preparation: Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Place tomatoes cut-side up on a baking sheet. Top with Parmesan, oregano, salt and pepper. Drizzle with oil and bake until the tomatoes are tender, about 15 minutes.

Identifying Your Greens

2011-07-06T11:51:00.001-05:00

Our greens are almost gone, which means time to start experimenting with ways to put them to use! We have decided to provide you all with some recipes and nutritional facts that will motivate you to finish off your greens season strong. For those of you that enjoy experimenting with your foods, enjoy the recipes below. Here's the best part: most of the ingredients can be found at our markets. Enjoy!

Name: Swiss Chard

Nutritional Info:

- contains 13 polyphenol antioxidants

- the second most nutritious vegetable next to spinach

- boiling chard rids acidic taste, makes its sweeter

- excellent source of vitamin K, C, & E

Lentil Soup with Chard & Lemon

1 1/2 cups lentil

2 1/2 lbs fresh swiss chard

1/2 cup olive oil

3/4 cup chopped onion

3 to 4 garlic cloves

salt

1 stalk celery, chopped

3/4 cup lemon juice

1 teaspoon flour

chopped scallions for garnish

Preparation

Wash and pick over the lentils. Cover then with fresh cold water, and cook, covered, until tender. Wash the Swiss chard leaves and chop them. Add these and a cup of water to the lentils. Continue cooking until the Swiss chard is done, adding more water if necessary. Heat the olive oil on a skillet and add the chopped onion. Crush the garlic cloves with salt, and add these and the chopped celery to the onion. Continue cooking until the vegetable are tender and blended. Add to the lentil mixture. Mix the lemon juice with the flour and stir it into the soup. Cook gently, stirring occasionally, until the soup is rather thick. Taste for seasoning. Serve with chilled chopped scallions in soup bowls, and pass crusty French or Italian bread to sop up the juices.

Name: Collard Greens

Nutritional Info:

- high cholesterol-lowering abilities

- has cancer preventative properties

- excellent source of vitamin C, E, and zinc

- lowers the risk of heart attack and other heart problems

- same family that produces cabbage and broccoli

Pasta w/ greens & Tomato sauce (4 servings)

1 pound collard greens (12 cups), stripped from thick stems, washed, dried and coarsely chopped

3/4 cup sliced pancetta, or bacon, finely diced

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1 pint of cherry tomatoes cut in half

1/4 cup of water

3 cups medium pasta shells

1/4 teaspoon salt

freshly ground pepper, to taste

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano- Reggiano cheese

Preparation

Bring 2 cups lightly salted water to a boil in a large wide pan. Add collards and cook until tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain. rinse with cold water and press out excess moisture. Set aside. Put a large pot of lightly salted water on to boil for cooking pasta. Cook pancetta (or bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, stirring often, until golden, 5 minutes. Drain; discard fat. Add oil to the pan and heat over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring often, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add garlic and crushed red pepper; cook, stirring, for 30 to 60 seconds. Add the pancetta (or bacon), tomatoes and water; bring to a simmer, mashing the tomatoes with a potato masher or the side of a wooden spoon. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, until thickened, about 20 minutes. About 10 minutes before the sauce is ready, cook pasta in the boiling water, stirring often, until just tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Reserve 1/4 cup of the cooking water and drain the pasta. Add the pasta, collards and reserved pasta-cooking water to the tomato sauce. Heat, stirring, until the pasta has absorbed some of the flavors, about 1 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon into pasta bowls, sprinkle with cheese and serve.

Name: Kale

Nutritional Info:

- cholesterol lowering benefits

- provides comprehensive support for the body's detoxification system

- good source of vitamin K, regulating body's inflammatory process

Kale Chips (6 servings)

1 bunch kale

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon of seasoned salt

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a non insulated cookie sheet with parchment paper. With a knife or kitchen shears carefully remove the leaves from the thick stem and tear into bite size pieces. Wash and thoroughly dry kale with a salad spinner. Drizzle kale with olive oil and sprinkle with seasoning salt. Bake until the edges brown but are not burnt, 10 to 15 minutes.

Meet Marianne Olney-Hamel, Summer Staff

2011-06-27T14:26:00.001-05:00

We are excited to have another intern around this summer to help us at the farm and selling at market! Marianne is originally from Berkley, California but attended Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa where she recently graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in History with a concentration in Environmental Studies. She heard about New Roots from an alumnus at her college who has been involved with New Roots and Cultivate Kansas City for some time now. Her passion for farming and sustainability started when she studied a semester in Senegal where she worked with an NGO called Agrecol/Afrique, which works to promote organic agriculture in and around small villages. She helped with some of the organization's sustainable agriculture and fair trade projects. While at home, she has enjoyed working in a community garden in Berkeley and has also been a volunteer at a dairy farm in Osceola, Wisconsin. Besides her interest in sustainable agriculture, Marianne also enjoys singing, playing basketball, dancing, and rediscovering the joys of reading for pleasure since graduating in May. She is excited to be on staff with us this summer and has already established friendships with the staff and farmers!

Market Season Has Begun!

2011-06-16T10:58:00.016-05:00

We are a couple weeks into selling at markets now and our farmers have been successful in selling their produce! We had lots of great vegetables to start off with like kohlrabi, nappa cabbage, beets, spicy turnips, radishes, and scallions. We recently started harvesting potatoes and garlic, so keep an eye out for those at markets near you. Below are some pictures from Juniper Garden's market at 3rd and Richmond on Monday mornings (9:30-1pm). Just a visual of what the start to our season looks like and to tempt you to visit us and buy produce. Enjoy!

New Roots for Refugees Welcomes Summer Intern, Tori Litardo

2011-05-25T14:14:00.004-05:00

New Roots for Refugees hired a couple interns for the summer's market festivities and Tori Litardo started her position today at the Catholic Charities office in Kansas City, KS. Tori is a junior at William Jewell College in Liberty, MO and is currently studying Nonprofit Leadership and Spanish. She will be experiencing the Costa Rican culture in August as she embarks on her study abroad journey, but she is thrilled to experience the summer with our program before she heads off for the semester. Tori heard about New Roots through a benefit concert in Kansas City her school sponsored last fall (Rock Out Reach Out). She has always been eager to learn more about supporting local farmers and sustainable farming practices, so it was a complete blessing to have run into our information booth at the concert. It only took a couple e-mail exchanges before Tori was applying for our summer intern position and sharing the visions she had with our program. Being a Nonprofit major but also taking up photography and design as a hobby, Tori hoped there would be opportunities to integrate these passions into her summer position, and that's just what we did. We created a hodgepodge of jobs for Tori to dig into. She will be working at the Catholic Charities office one day a week, working on updating the blog, newsletter, designing profile cards for each farmer, and some other communication work. The rest of the week she will be harvesting out at the farm, selling at markets, helping with business interactions and communication, and snapping shots here and there throughout the summer to upload onto the blog! She is excited to live life with us this summer and be apart of the New Roots community. Stay tuned throughout the summer as she uploads photos of life here on the farm!

Spring Veggie Orders

2011-05-17T09:36:00.008-05:00

So many of us have been patiently waiting all winter long for the first bite of spring ~ well here it is!

It has been a beautiful spring out here at the Juniper Gardens Farm. So beautiful in fact, that we have plenty of fresh veggies for sale before our markets start! We are grateful for the Kansas City area's wonderful community of local businesses, like Nature's Own Market that support local & sustainable agriculture by buying our produce, but sometimes we have more available than these small businesses can buy.

We are going to try something a little different today, and if it works you can expect more in future seasons. Below is a list of items that we currently have growing happily in the field, ready for harvest.

Orders may be picked up at the Juniper Gardens Training farm any afternoon this week between 3-6pm. If this time does not work for you, let me know and we can work something out.

Baby Greens Salad Mix - $4/lb bag

Kholrabi - $3/large bunch

Broccoli - $3/lb

Arugula - $3/1/2 lb bag

Spinach - $5/1 lb bag

Asian Greens (bok choi & tat soi) - $2/head

Kale, Swiss Chard, Collard Greens - $3/bunch

Parsley - $2.50/bunch

Radishes (sweet spring baby radishes!) - $3/large bunch

Scallions - $1.50/bunch

Mustard Greens - $2/lb bag

A 15% discount will be given to Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) members.

So send Emily your wish list, she will respond with a confirmation and invoice and you can then stop by on your way home from work today, and be eating a deliciously fresh meal for dinner tonight!

Emily may be reached at 913.620.2080 or elecuyer (at) catholiccharitiesks .org

Community Garden Developer

2011-04-28T10:50:00.003-05:00

At the training farm, we always have more demand for growing space than supply. We've put all our energy into developing farm businesses, and along the way we've been constantly reminded that there are a lot of people that want to grow on a smaller scale. For folks who have grown up around agriculture their whole life, moving to the United States, living in apartments and working indoors feels strange and unfamiliar. Gardens help people feel at home.

The Chin, Somali Bantu and Bhutanese community leaders have been asking for assistance developing their own community gardens for the past few years, and we haven't been equipped to help.

In the fall, we wrote a proposal together with KCCUA and the three ethnic leadership groups to develop these gardens, and I'm happy to report that we got funding! We're hoping to host someone through the Mennonite Voluntary Service Program to coordinate these activities.

Here's a bit about the job:

The Community Garden Developer will work alongside ethnic community leadership from three refugee communities in Kansas City to start their own community gardens. The goal is that the Garden Developer will be empowering the community leadership to make their own decisions about the way that the gardens are run, so that they will be self-sufficient in a short time. We will also be hiring part time staff from each of the communities to translate and lead the development of the gardens.

We anticipate the major activities over the year to include:

1.) Helping to locate and acquire permission to garden on land
2.) Approaching local churches and groups to solicit donations of tools and equipment (hoes, spades, seeds, tillers, etc.)
3.) Helping ethnic leadership decide how the land will be split, and how individuals and families can access plots.
4.) Helping ethnic communities decide on rules for the gardens
5.) Locating free and cheap seeds
6.) Oversee the orientation and education process for new community gardeners.

We have met with the leadership and identified areas of town that they are interested in having gardens, and they are excited! A good fit for this position will have some experience working cross culturally, an interest or experience in gardening or farming and a desire to help develop effective refugee leadership.

Here's a bit about MVS from a current volunteer that is placed at the farm:

Volunteers live communally in a large house located in the Rosedale neighborhood of KCK -A full house would have 5 volunteers livinig in it, don't worry you will have your own bedroom but we share bathrooms, the kitchen, and living other living spaces.

We buy food together and eat together on a regualr basis -The unit covers all housing costs, food costs, local transportation costs, and provides the volunteer with $50 a month in spending money, part of the program is a commitment to living simply.

MVS provides health insurance for all volunteers -The house is owned by Rainbow Mennonite Church, and there are certain lifestyle expectations that come with the program. They are not seriously burdensome but they do exist.

I think there might be a requirement that applicants be members in good standing of a Chirstian Church, being a mennonite is not required.

Student loans can be defered and many placements are eligable for Americorps money -basically the biggest thing is that the potential volunteer is on board with living communally and is not hostile to expressions of christian faith.

Also they need to be on board with having NO MONEY, because they won't have extra for that thing that they want.

If you think that you might be interested in this position and want to see the full job description, please email rachel: rbonar AT catholiccharitiesks DOT org

New Roots Farmers Travel to National Farming Conference

2011-04-07T13:57:00.005-05:00

The first week of February, I had the privilege of taking four farmers from the New Roots for Refugees program to the Minnesota Food Association’s annual Immigrant and Minority Farmers Conference in St. Paul. There were 180 Karen, Hmong, Bhutanese, and Latino farmers, 30 interpreters, 30 presenters and 30 exhibitors in attendance. The workshops offered at the conference were practical, and ranged from pest controls to selling at farmers’ markets. Our farmers were particularly interested in the high tunnel workshop because of our newly constructed high tunnel at the Juniper Farm. The workshop, in which the conference presenter detailed how she constructed and grew in her high tunnel in Northern Minnesota, caused a flurry of ideas and conversations. We all sat there, dreaming and salivating over her photos of fresh spinach and tomatoes. The farmers decided that planting tomatoes in our high tunnel would be the best plan for this next season; it’s a high dollar crop that can greatly extend in the tunnel. They are also interested in planting Chin Baung- a sour Burmese sorrel- in the high tunnel. In Burma and Thailand, it flowers at the end of the season. The flower makes a traditional tea. In the United States, our growing season is not long enough to flower or turn to seed. I’m hopeful for my first cup of Chin Baung tea in 2011.

I was so pleased to offer them a training opportunity in their own language. Farming is often a solitary occupation, and large group meetings give us the sense that we are not alone in our profession. For refugee farmers, the opportunity for training of this kind is rare- lack of translation and cultural relevancy often prevents them from joining in other things that are happening in our city. It was an inspiring experience; we all came home excited and dreaming about the new growig season.

Lay Htoo, a second year farmer in the program made the trip to Minnesota and agreed to share with you about her experience. Her writing was translated from Karen by Htoo May.

My name is Lay Htoo, and I’d like to tell you about my family. I am married, and I have three sons and one daughter. I am from Klay Thoo, a village in the jungle of Burma. I am one of the Karen people, we have our own language and culture. Because the Burmese military came to our village to kill us, my family had to flee to Thailand. We crossed the border and lived in the Tham Him refugee camp. I lived in this refugee camp for 10 years. During that time I worked as a cook. I worked with my friend Beh Paw cooking and teaching other women to cook for 5 years, and then Beh Paw came to the United States. I missed Beh Paw too much. When Beh Paw moved to the United States, I decided to apply for resettlement too. It was scary, but I decided that I wanted a new life for my family.

I was resettled to Rockford, IL. I lived in Rockford for 5 months and we could not find work. Beh Paw told me that in Kansas City, we have jobs available and also gardens. I wanted to move to Kansas City, where Beh Paw was living. I wanted to have a garden. I had to pay someone to drive me to Kansas. My husband and my son got a job very soon after we moved here, so we rented a house. I wanted to work in the garden, so I talked with Rachel about starting my own farm in Kansas City. My first season working with the New Roots for Refugees program was in 2010. I worked in the garden, and everything went well. This past October, when things at the garden slowed down, I started going to school to learn English. I kept going to meetings for the garden during the winter, learning about many topics. During one of the meetings we started talking about a big farmers meeting in St. Paul, Minnesota. I heard that there were going to be many refugee farmers talking about farming in the United States. I said, “Yes! I want to go on this trip.” I was so excited.

Beh Paw, Pay Lay, Dena, and myself left for Minnesota on a Thursday. Somewhere in Iowa, we stopped at a gas station and went to the restroom. On accident, we went to the boys restroom, because I didn’t read the sign correctly. We laughed so hard.

It was a long drive, but we finally made it to St. Paul, Minnesota. There is a big Karen population in Minnesota. I was able to meet with family and friends that I hadn’t seen since the refugee camp. In the days, I went to the farmers meeting, and at night I would stay up with my friends talking about the past and our future until late in the night. In the mornings, Rachel picked us up and we went to the meeting. At the meeting they had headsets so that we could all hear the presentations in our own language. I had to give them my ID to get the headset for the day. I had to turn the dial to the correct number so that I could hear the Karen translator. I went to my seat and listened and then I learned about a lot of things. I learned how to do things to start my own farm. I went to different meetings about high tunnels, growing organically, using row cover to keep bugs away, and about selling at farmers markets. I am thankful to God that we had safe travels to Minnesota, and I’m excited to plant new things in this upcoming year, and I pray that the bugs will stay away from my vegetables this year. God Bless and Thank You.

This arcitle was originally featured in the April edition of KCCUA's newsletter, Urban Grown.

Greenhouse Work

2011-04-04T12:43:00.007-05:00

New Roots farmers have been working in the greenhouse for many weeks now, and everyday we are moving more and more cold-hardy crops over to the Juniper Gardens Farm. The pace is picking up around here as Springtime is undeniably upon us in full swing ~ Winter business development workshops have come to an end, the Juniper Gardens seed store opens this week, compost is being spread, beds are being tilled and our CSA is rapidly filling up!

New Roots farmers tending to their seedlings in the Gibbs Road Community Greenhouse

Zawadi seeding tomatoes

Pelagie watering her Seedlings

Work hard, play hard!

It was wonderful to see so many of our New Roots friends at the Eat Local Expos, and to those of you who were unable to make it we look forward to seeing you in a few short weeks at market!

13th Annual Eat Local Expo

2011-03-23T16:04:00.009-05:00

This weekend kicks off the first of two Eat Local Exhibitions put on by the Kansas City Food Circle, a grassroots organization devoted to promoting a permanently sustainable local food system in the Kansas City region.

Not only will there be dozens of local food vendors, as well as organic vegetable seedlings for sale, but also FREE how-to workshops on food preservation, seasonal eating and much more!

Check out the flyer below for more info & be sure to stop by the New Roots for Refugees booth - where we will be selling tote bags with the New Roots logo as a fundraiser. This is also a great time to come by & ask questions about our CSA shares. We look forward to seeing you!

If some real farmwork is more your style, we have plenty of that going on this weekend too! For the New Roots farmers to successfully feed our community, they must work hard to develop productive soil on what was previously a rock-strewn vacant lot. One way to do this is by adding loads of organic compost. This means lots of shovels, wheelbarrows, and community ~ Contact Rachel Bonar for more information or to sign-up!

We Love Drip Irrigation!

2011-03-16T13:24:00.012-05:00

From coordinating markets and recruiting CSA members to greenhouse plantings and packaging seeds, the New Roots farmers and staff have been busily preparing for the upcoming growing season. Broccoli, cabbage, collards & kohlrabi are all sprouting in the greenhouse. Onions are hardening off in our new hoop house and are ready for transplanting – just waiting for the ground to dry out a bit.

While the beds out at the farm might be saturated and soggy today, come mid-summer the sun-baked earth will be rendered inhospitable to thirsty roots unless we irrigate. Which brings us to a unique challenge associated with urban farming: water bills! While our rural counterparts have the luxury of land on which to build irrigation ponds, we rely primarily on city water.

Drip irrigation is a huge water saver & once set-up, requires virtually none of a farmer’s time to utilize. While most of the New Roots farmers bring with them a significant wealth of agricultural experiences, drip irrigation is often a new method for them. For this reason we gratefully accepted an invitation to visit Greely Gardens, a nearby sustainable urban farm, for some hands-on drip irrigation experience. Thank you Warren for the wonderful workshop!

Soils and Greenhouse Workshops

2011-02-21T09:40:00.005-06:00

We're getting to the end of our winter workshop series. Every Wednesday morning, we gather farmers, program staff and interpreters together and focus on a certain topic related to agriculture. Last week, we talked about the soil health as the foundatition for everything that we do.

Daniel and John led the workshop.

We talked about and felt the different components to soil.

We've also been working in the greenhouse. Two weeks ago, Cathy facilitated the

greenhouse workshop for new farmers. We started onions, cabbages, broccoli and scallions. Greenhouse work is new to most of the New Roots farmers, who are accoustomed to

warmer climates with longer growing seasons.

Lay Htoo's baby chinese cabbage.

2011 CSA Sign-up Time!

2011-02-03T15:14:00.010-06:00

Surrounded by the icy streets and enormous mounds of snow that have recently engulfed Kansas City, it may be hard to believe that the farmers at New Roots for Refugees are already well into planning their 2011 growing season. What better way to bring a little summer sunshine into your frigid day than by signing up for your New Roots CSA share?!

We are excited to welcome four new refugee farmers to our program this year: Amina Durow from Somalia, Shyam and Durga Khanal from Bhutan, Soe and San Dar Myint from Burma, and Maria John and Zo Wah Ni also from Burma.

This brings our total number of farmers in the program to seventeen! To accommodate this fantastic growth, increase economic opportunities for the farmers, and improve eater convenience, we will be expanding to new market locations this year – with a total of eight pick-up options throughout the Kansas City region. Please check out the map below for more details.

As a CSA member you will be building a partnership with one farmer, and pick up vegetables from the same farmer every week. This gives you an opportunity to know who is cultivating your food, and the refugee a chance to interact more long-term with English speaking Americans. You are also welcome and encouraged to visit the farm and spend time working alongside your farmer!

The cost of a share is $300 for a twenty week growing season, with $150 deposit due at sign-up. A weekly food share will include 4-6 different veggies. Our farmers will strive to bring you the freshest, healthiest, most delicious produce available this season. All produce is grown without the use of synthetic fertilizers and other chemical inputs. Although not certified organic, we abide by organic principles, emphasizing soil fertility through microorganism health.

Buying a share of vegetables from one of New Roots farmers goes well beyond a simple monetary transaction for goods. When you support a farmer through our CSA, you are providing her with money upfront, at the beginning of the season when she needs it most. You are supporting a project that grows more than just vegetables. Our training farm is unique in that it empowers refugee women to provide income and food for their families while increasing their integration in our greater community.

When you have decided on a pick-up location, or if you have any questions, please e-mail Emily at elecuyer(a)catholiccharitiesks.org or give her a call at 913.620.2080.

View New Roots 2011 CSA Pick-up Locations in a larger map

Welcome, Emily!

2011-01-31T13:14:00.006-06:00

Emily Lecuyer is new to the New Roots team! She will be coordinating the CSA program for 2011. You can reach her at elecuyer(at)catholiccharitiesks.org or at 913.620.2080.

Although a native of Missouri, Emily Lecuyer has only recently begun to set down roots of her own in the region. After growing up in a small town just outside of St. Louis, she studied Sociology and Anthropology at Truman State University in Kirksville as well as Arabic and Islamic studies at Al-Akhawayan University in Morocco. Shortly after graduating she moved to California to be with her new husband, himself a native of Kansas City.

Within weeks of moving to San Diego, Emily joined her first CSA and her life has never been the same! She immediately fell in love with the region’s strong local food movement. It was during this time that she began working with the International Rescue Committee on food security projects and sustainable agricultural policy.

Emily and her husband left California to pursue their dream of joining the Peace Corps together. They served almost three years on the island of Palawan in The Philippines where Emily worked with subsistence fishermen and farmers to improve food security and increase income for their families.

Emily and her husband returned to the Midwest in the winter of 2010, when Kansas City, Missouri was at a critical juncture for urban farmers. Witnessing this movement, they decided it was the right time to stay and put their energy towards improving their own home. Knowing she wanted more hands-on sustainable agricultural experience, Emily apprenticed at Fair Share Farm in Kearney, Missouri through the Growing Growers program.

Emily serves on the Kansas City CSA Coalition Core Group and is slowly developing her urban homesteading skills. She is super excited to be establishing roots in Kansas City and looks forward to working with a diverse group of farmers and hungry eaters.

Welcome, Emily! We're excited to have you!

High Tunnel Workshop

2011-01-26T12:51:00.005-06:00

Today's workshop was on high tunnel production. Now that the Juniper high tunnel is up and will soon be ready for planting, we wanted to see some high tunnel action first hand. We loaded up the bus and went to KCCUA, where their farm manager, Alicia walked us through their winter and spring production. The farmers were stoked!

Alicia showed the group how she sets up her beds.

The winter spinach was so sweet!

Eh Da Ler Htoo loves spinach!

Group shot! Thanks, Alicia for the great tour! We can't wait to start using our own tunnel!

Marketing Workshop

2011-01-05T12:43:00.005-06:00

Today's marketing workshop was the first one of 2011. Before we know it, we'll be planting, then harvesting, then marketing! It's all coming quickly again this year. For the workshop, we purchased bulk veggies from the city market and practiced setting up vegetabes on the tables.

Durga, first year farmer from Bhutan, did a great job for her first time!

Fourth year farmer, Khadijo, pretended to be a customer.

Soe Myint and San Dar are first year farmers too.

Second year farmer, Lay Htoo, pretended to be a customer for them.

We also talked about things not to do at the market. :)

Third year farmer, Nyakang, did a GREAT job of being a TERRIBLE marketer.

She crossed her arms, and set her table up all crazy.

Beh Paw also set up one of the "bad" examples. She is talking on the phone, ignoring customers and her table is in total chaos. Check out the table cloth.

Lay Htoo and Bay Htoo's table looked great.

Many of our farmers, staff and translators.

Can't wait to sell you our tasty veggies soon!

New High Tunnel Ready for Planting at Juniper Gardens Training Farm

2010-12-08T09:36:00.001-06:00

Fifty-four degrees Fahrenheit is about as cold as it gets in Burma, and Sudan does not drop below 60 degrees, even on its coldest nights. In fact, all of the refugee farmers growing vegetables at KCCUA's Juniper Gardens Training Farm and Community Gardens come from countries that have tropical climates. So you could imagine that Kansas winters are a bitter pill for them to swallow each year.

Yet on a blustery, rainy, 40 degree day in mid November we had several women turn out on the farm to assist in building our new high tunnel. The design is a simple 20' by 96' model that will provide the Juniper Gardens farm with almost 2000sf of warmer growing space in which the refugees and affiliate farmers can observe and practice cool season and winter production. The lion share of the cost for this new tunnel is covered under a grant through the National Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) High Tunnel Pilot Program. Our thanks to the local NRCS staff for awarding us the grant and for helping applicants with the application process and paperwork.

Tunnel construction began on Nov. 10 when Daniel Dermitzel, Sam Davis, Larry Davis, and I started setting the posts. The Juniper Gardens Training farm is named for the Juniper Gardens public housing development on which it is located. In fact, sitting on the land where the high tunnel was being installed was an apartment building as recently as 2004. This site history is of particular import when you are trying to drill 34 three-foot deep holes into the ground. Fortunately the most stubborn obstacles found were a section of sidewalk and a few pieces of rebar.

Once the holes were dug and the posts were set, the next piece of the process was to assemble and erect the arches for the high tunnel. This happened on Nov. 17, which was the first day that the training farmers came to assist in the process. It began simply cold and gray but by noon the rain had started and no one really wanted to be outside assembling a cold steel structure. Yet when the refugee farmers came in the afternoon (they all attend English classes in the mornings) the entire mood of the day really changed. They attacked the process with typical gusto and we made significant progress until increasing rain made it unsafe to work with electrical tools and we had to end the workday.

The next few days were spent mostly completing the frame and preparing to attach the plastic sheeting. Then we had another workday on Nov. 23 to finish the tunnel. Pulling a 100 ft long sheet of plastic over an 11 ft tall high tunnel is a rather interesting process, luckily we were blessed with a calm day, or Daniel might have flown to KCMO by accident. Tugging and stretching the plastic to create a taut surface took a bit of effort but many hands were there to help. For me the most striking part of the day was feeling the high tunnel start to heat up as we slowly enclosed it. As each new wall was added the internal temperature increased noticeably. By the end of the day the entire internal surface of the tunnel was steamed up due to the temperature difference. As we stood inside enjoying the fruits of our labor, some of the refugee farmers took the opportunity to practice their English penmanship by writing out “Green House for Refugees” in the water droplets on the inside of the plastic sheeting.

So, our newly minted high tunnel is currently sealed up tight waiting for our early spring production classes to start. Planting will probably begin in mid February for some of the hardier crops. The farmers are really looking forward to having a place to plant crops that more closely simulates the growing climate in their home countries.

by John VanderHeide

To see pictures follow this link the Kansas City Center For Urban Agriculture website.

http://www.kccua.org/ug-12-10.htm

Thanks, Big Time!

2010-10-12T13:30:00.004-05:00

Thanks to Catholic Charities' Commitee of Young Patrons who helped us out a TON this past Friday. The new road is awesome, the fence is cleared for winter, and the truck is in order! Come again!

Thanks to Evan for building the SWEET picnic tables. They are already so helpful.

Juniper Gardens Farmers Market: Update!

2010-10-07T13:14:00.003-05:00

The following article was written by our very own Ami Freeburg for the most recent issue of Urban Grown, KCCUA's newsletter. Enjoy!

Efforts To Boost Juniper Gardens Farmers Market Pay Off
Refugee farmers succeed after two seasons of sluggish sales.

By Ami Freeburg

Many people grumble when Monday rolls around and they have to return to work after a relaxing or rowdy weekend. For me, Monday has become my favorite day of the week since the official opening of the Juniper Gardens Farmers Market in July. The days are always a little chaotic with farmers coming and going, setting up their displays among early-bird customers waiting to make their purchases or with windy days blowing down tents. But it’s fun and always an adventure.

The market is located adjacent to the Juniper Gardens Training Farm on the corner of Third Street and Richmond Avenue, in Kansas City, KS. It began in September 2008 at the end of the first New Roots for Refugees growing season. With little advertising or outreach to the community, the market remained small. About five or six farmers would sell each week. Weekly customers barely exceeded the number of growers, so sales were low for the first two seasons. This summer marked a transformation at the Juniper Gardens Farmers Market. In July, the Kansas City Beans&Greens program debuted at the market, matching purchases made through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly food stamps). At the same time we launched an outreach campaign involving newspaper advertising, radio spots, door hangers and fliers. At the first official market, sales and attendance improved significantly from the past two years, but it was just a foreshadowing of what was to come.

Each week this season the market has grown. A dozen or more vendors are setting up weekly, and customer attendance has soared. At first, Catholic Charities, one of the partners of the New Roots for Refugees program, sent a bus around to neighboring refugee communities to bring customers to the market. Many Burmese families arrived on the bus and were excited to find chin baung, bitter melons and Burmese pumpkins. After a couple of weeks, the customers started coming on their own, bringing vans full of their friends and neighbors. At first the customers spent only a small amount of SNAP dollars (plus the match) but the average SNAP charge quickly increased, with many families wanting to exceed the $30 daily limit for the match. Bunches of chin baung flew off the tables and the farmers hurried back to their fields to harvest more.

Catholic Charities' Rachel Bonar, coordinator of the New Roots for Refugees program, noted the difference in the farmer-customer interactions when refugees sold to their own communities, with which they share a common language and food culture. In the beginning, the goal of the training farm marketing efforts had been to sell to customers at the higher end markets like Brookside and Overland Park. Many of the New Roots farmers have been successful at these markets, but it has taken time to adapt to the preferences of the customers and to develop communication in the face of language barriers. It has been eye-opening and inspiring to see the Burmese farmers have as much, if not more, success marketing to their own ethnic communities. Rachel also noticed that, having gained more experience selling in their own language, the farmers seemed to have a greater level of comfort and ease in communication with English-speaking customers. Seeing this transformation has lead to the idea of starting a new market in Northeast Kansas City, MO, where many of the African communities live. We have started conversations to create this market next year so that the Somali, Burundian and Sudanese farmers can sell to their own communities.

Another aspect of the Juniper Gardens Farmers Market is the challenge of integrating into the primarily African-American community. The area is a food desert, with fresh produce hard to come by. Many residents have lost the knowledge of how to prepare and eat fresh vegetables. In order to respond to this need, KCCUA is working with The Family Conservancy, which teaches a Healthy Parents, Healthy Kids class at the local community center. The idea is to work with a Healthy Eating Education Team to promote the market in the neighborhood, as well as to do cooking demonstrations using fresh vegetables from the farmers. Shifting the food culture of the Juniper Gardens neighborhood to include healthier, nutritious options will take time, but working with people from the area who are excited about fresh vegetables is a good first step.

Seeing the market grow so quickly in just a few months has been inspiring and rewarding for us, but even more so for the farmers. October 4 is the last market of the season, and everybody is talking about ideas for how to continue to improve next season. I am already anticipating next season because it gives me a great reason to be excited when Mondays roll around!

CSA Cooking Classes Episode 1 | Karen

2010-09-28T09:35:00.006-05:00

A few weeks ago, some CSA members and Karen farmers got together to share a meal. The farmers chose the menu, showing program staff and CSA members how to cook foods from their culture using food from their fields.

Please come in and join us!

First up on the menu was Sauteed Water Spinach, which has long skinny leaves.

Here's what it looks like raw, taken off of the stem.

See the recipe below!

Sauteed Water Spinach

One large bunch water spinach de-stemmed
¼ cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons chicken base (powder form)
6-8 cloves garlic sliced
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon golden mountain seasoning sauce
3 ounces of soy bean paste

Heat vegetable oil in a pan on medium heat.
Put everything except golden mountain seasoning in hot pan
until thoroughly wilted. Add golden mountain seasoning, serve with steamed rice.

Next up was my personal favorite, the steamed blue pumpkin! The farmers were so excited about sharing this recipe and their excitement was contageous. The blue pumpkin is beautiful to look at, a bit tricky to cut up and totally tasty. Check out the recipe below!

Steamed Blue Pumpkin

1 Blue Burmese Pumpkin
5- 6 Shallots
5 Tablespoons of white sugar
2 teaspoons of salt
2 Tablespoons of ginger
1/3 Cup of vegetable oil

Peel, seed and cut pumpkin into 2 inch chunks (like watermelon)
Cut Shallots and place in a large stockpan with 2 inches of water
Add sugar and salt
Drizzle vegetable oil over the ingredients
Grate 2 Tablespoons ginger root and add to the pot
Steam the ingredients with the lid on the pot for 10-15 minutes
Steam until the pumpkin is tender.
Serve and enjoy!

Last up for the evening was the Chin Baung Soup. Chin Baung is the most popular item at our Monday market. Karen, Chin and Karenni folks line up and take huge rubbermaid tubs of this stuff home. Literally. I've been so curious about it- its leaves are beautiful out in the field and it has a lemonny taste that suprises all of our guests to the farm.

Chin Baung and Fish Soup

One large bunch Chin Baung de-stemmed

4 cups water
¼ cup olive oil
2 shallots
one small bunch Chinese long beans cut into 1 inch lengths
1 ½ cups fish (tilapia, or other meat of choice)
1 Tablespoon chicken base seasoning (powder form)
1 teaspoon seasoning sauce
1 Tablespoon fish sauce

Bring water to a boil in soup pot.
In a small pan heat the oil and fry the shallots until translucent.
Add them to the water. Place the fish or meat of choice
into the pan and fry till done, then add to soup as well.
Put chin baung, long beans and spices into soup,
cook till greens are wilted.

These were the sauces, broths and oils added.

Pay Lay with Susan, her CSA friend for the past two years.

Pay Lay and Jessica.

Marion, Beh Paw and Pat who buys into Beh Paw's CSA.

The whole gang.

Cooking together was a blast. Stay tuned for cooking reports from our other farmers as well!

We're growing up!

2010-09-21T12:25:00.006-05:00

For the past three years, we have been guided by the dream of refugees operating their own small farms in Kansas City. When we started, we didn't know what we were doing or how to make it happen. Not that we had no foundation to build upon- refugee farmers posses significant experience, work ethic and will, KCCUA brings a city-wide network of farmers, resources and knowledge and Catholic Charities has been partnering with refugees for many years- but this was a new thing for us all. Each new phase of our life as a program has brought challenges and opportunities. Developing the urban incubator site (how many bricks can fit into 8 acres of soil!), building our CSA program, increasing food stamp accessibility, growing our ethnic crop availability, working with new populations, etc. Some phases have been more challenging than others, but they have all provided us with opportunities to learn from one another and work together.

We are now entering into yet another phase- moving some of our farmers onto their own independent sites. We are excited. We are overwhelmed. We can't wait. We are all dreaming together and pulling together all the ideas and resources that we've got.

A few weeks ago, some of the farmers took a field trip to a Hmong farm in KCK. The Hmong were resettled in Kansas City in the seventies and eighties, and now many are operating their own farms. It was a fantastic experience for all of us- opening our eyes to the possibilities and framing our conversation moving forward. Here are some photos from that day.

Yia, our gracious host, who has been in Kansas City for 30 years.

Beh Paw, excited about the dry land rice field, explains it all to Katherine.

Lay Htoo, Beh Paw and Yia communicate in their third language, Thai, that happens to be shared among them. Yia's innovative scarecrows.

Dena and Lay Htoo show me how to save seeds. Everyone was ecstatic to find many vegetables that they haven't seen since the Thai refugee camps.

Lay Htoo and Bay Htoo show the eggplants that are familiar to them. Thanks to Yia for being so generous with her harvest.

Bye Bye Summer Staff!

2010-08-12T12:08:00.006-05:00

Jared, Hannah and Elizabeth really rocked it this year. They woke up really early. They drove large vehicles. They worked long days in the heat of the summer helping New Roots farmers pick and wash for market. They had good attitudes. We will miss them terribly!!! We are missing them already!!! Thanks for all your work, guys! Come back and see us next summer!

Hannah's last day driving our bus!

Elizabeth and Lay Htoo at the OP market. How beautiful is that stand!!?!!!?

Jared's last market day early am at the farm.

Red Noodle Beans

2010-08-10T11:43:00.002-05:00

Right now we have a bumper crop of these gorgeous Red Noodle Beans and Im sure you all have had moments of "what do I do with these?"

Well...this Chinese long bean is really very delicious. Here are some recipes that you should try. We will have a hard copy at market this week to give you as well.

Red Noodle Beans with Cracked Black Pepper

Ingredients:

1 Tablespoon olive oil
1/2 small onion, thinly sliced
1 bunch red noodle beans
1/2 medium red or green bell pepper diced
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 cup water
2 Tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon cracked black pepper

Directions:

Heat oil in a large skillet or wok. Add the onion and cook over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about three minutes. Add the red noodle beans and red pepper and stir-fry until the beans are slightly softened and browned in spots, about five minutes. Add the sugar and stir to coat. Add the water, cover and cook over medium heat until the water has evaporated and the beans are tender approximately five min. Add the soy sauce and cracked pepper and cook for one minute.

and another one...

Spicy stir-fried Red Noodle Beans with Peanuts

Ingredients:

1 bunch red noodle beans
1/2 cup unsalted dry-roasted peanuts
2 teaspoons soy sauce
2-3 small hot peppers or thai chiles
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 Tablespoons peanut oil
1 Tablespoons chopped garlic
one small onion very thinly sliced
2 tablespoons lime juice

Directions:

Cook red noodle beans in boiling salt water for 3-5 minutes until tender. Transfer into a bowl of ice water to stop cooking then drain and cut into 1 inch pieces. Grind the peanuts in food processor till half are finely ground and the remainder are in large pieces. Stir together soy sauce, chilies, and salt in a small bowl. Heat wok or skillet until oil is pretty hot, add garlic and stir-fry until golden, add peanuts and stir-fry about 30 more seconds. Add beans, and onions and stir-fry about 2 minutes. Remove wok from heat, stir in soy sauce, drizzle in lime juice and season with salt.

Try these out and let us know what you think...

Deposit!

2010-08-05T14:05:00.003-05:00

Going to the bank is confusing. There are lots of forms that all look the same. There are many lines, many people. For new farmers, increasing financial literacy is an important step in establishing their business.

All New Roots farmers have opened a bank account. Until this point, staff have been making weekly deposits into their accounts. Each farmer saves 20% of all of their sales to pay for their farming. This week, we turned a corner. Many of our farmers will now be making their own bank deposits. We met with all of the farmers and explained how to fill out deposit slips and go to the teller's line.

Here is a video of our first meeting this morning with some of the Karen farmers.

At the end of the meeting, we took the farmers to the bank to practice what they had learned. Check out the photo below! Proudly showing our deposit reciepts!

Healthcare Foundation Video

2010-07-29T11:55:00.003-05:00

Check out this video made by the Health Care Foundation about the Juniper Gardens Training Farm. They wanted to highlight KCCUA's good work. We're so thankful for their partnership.

Love from The Urban Homestead Experiment

2010-07-27T17:26:00.001-05:00

Check out a blog update about our farmers at the OP farmers market here! Hannah and Kabibi are looking great!

Wrapping up a great week.

2010-07-23T15:52:00.005-05:00

What a great week! Yesterday we found out that we will be a recepient of the USDA's Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program grant, which will keep us up and running for the next three years. This is great news. We're PUMPED!

Today, we had some fantastic volunteers and harvested tons of veggies! At the end of the day, our staff and farmers were thrilled. Check it out.

Also, come buy some of the tasty things we harvested out at the market tomorrow.

Three farmers will be at Overland Park and seven farmers will be at Brookside!

Juniper Gardens Farmers Market

2010-07-21T10:51:00.005-05:00

The Official Grand Opening of the Juniper Gardens Farmers Market was two weeks ago, and it was fantastic. Through a Farmer's Market Promotion Program grant, we've been able to hire three folks from Juniper Gardens to promote the market. They are doing cooking demos, distributing door hangers, talking to churches and generally spreading the word. They are doing a great job! We're also running a bus route from refugee housing sites to the market. Watch the video below, which was shot just after the bus arrived full of Karen families- excited to buy from their friends, using their foodstamps that had been doubled at the market info booth! Thanks Beans and Greens!

Stop by next week!

Juniper Gardens Farmers Market

Every Monday 11:30-4:00pm

in the 3rd Street Church of God Parking Lot

3rd and Richmond, Kansas City, Kansas 66101

When customers use food stamps, they come to the market info booth and get tokens to spend with the farmers. At the end of the day, farmers come and cash in their tokens and get a check cut in their name. These farmers are happy counting their hard earned tokens.

Beets.

2010-07-14T15:59:00.001-05:00

New roots beets., originally uploaded by danielle larson.

I've got this thing for beets.
Check out this variety that we're growing this year, Choggia Guardsmark. So beautiful! Come get some this weekend at the market!

This Week at Market.

2010-07-01T08:00:00.002-05:00

This week at market, we welcomed a new member of the New Roots family. Ian and Whitney have been CSA members for the past two years, and now will bring Justus to the market!

We also saw the first of our hot summer veggies: squash, tomatoes, cucumbers and green beans!

Zephyr, Zuchinni and Crook Neck Squash.

Wax Beans! Yum!

CSA Veggie Identification #3: Mchicha!

2010-06-24T09:56:00.003-05:00

If your CSA farmer is from Burundi, chances are you've been getting some of this vegetable in your bag. You probably have no idea what it is, or how tasty it can be! In the US, we call it Amaranth (or pigweed). The Swahili word for it is Mchicha. Our friends from Burundi eat it all the time, cooked in many different ways. Check out a blog post from last year here about how to cook Mchicha.

Also, Zawadi will be teaching a brief Mchicha cooking class next Wednesday, June 30th at 6pm. Space is limited to 5 folks, so if you want to join us, RSVP to me at rbonar@ccsks.org

Today at Overland Park.

2010-06-19T14:10:00.002-05:00

Photos, Part II.

2010-06-18T10:20:00.005-05:00

Some photos from our friend, Maylnda Eshelman. She took these a few weeks ago, and I can't believe how much things have grown in just a little bit of time!

Thank you rain and sun!

Photo Op.

2010-06-16T15:18:00.001-05:00

We've had some great photographers out at the farm lately. These are from the Breaking Through Concrete guys.

CSA Veggie Identification #2: Kale

2010-06-10T13:37:00.003-05:00

Kale is a brassica, just like Collard Greens. There are many varities of Kale out there that are grown all over the world for lots of different purposes. This year, New Roots farmers are growing two kinds, Red Russian and Curly Leaf. Kale has thick, tasty leaves that are great for you.

Curly Leaf Kale

Red Russian Kale

From Wikipedia: Kale is considered to be a highly nutritious vegetable with powerful antioxidant properties; kale is considered to be anti-inflammatory. Kale is very high in beta carotene, vitamin K, vitamin C, lutein, zeaxanthin, and reasonably rich in calcium. Because of its high vitamin K content, patients taking anti-coagulants such as warfarin are encouraged to avoid this food since it increases the vitamin K concentration in the blood, which is what the drugs are often attempting to lower.

MMMM! More Kale, please.

A few yummy kale recipes to try:

Kale Cole Slaw

Raw Kale Salad

CSA Veggie Identification #1: Collard Greens

2010-06-08T17:19:00.007-05:00

New Roots CSA pickups started last week. Maybe you have been a part of our CSA for 3 years and are familiar with all of the greens that late spring and early summer time brings. You might be one of our new CSA members, excited to start down the path of eating seasonally, yet looking in your bag saying, "what the heck is this?!"

Even though all of our farmers grow different things, there are many common veggies that find their way into all of our CSA bags. Today, we're going to talk about Collard Greens.

Collards are brassicas, part of the family that includes broccoli and cabbages. Collards are most popular in the southern United States, and are a staple of soul food dishes. Widely considered to be healthy foods, collards are good sources of vitamin C (only when eaten raw, because heat destroys vitamin C) and soluble fiber and contain multiple nutrients with potent anti-cancer properties. Roughly a quarter pound of cooked collards contains 46 calories.

Here are a few new recipes to try (click on the name for a link to another website):

Collards Stuffed with Red Beans and Rice

Smoky Collard Greens (no meat)

A visit from Lewis Lewis.

2010-06-08T16:32:00.003-05:00

On Friday, New Roots recieved a visit from Breaking Through Concrete, a project documenting the urban farm movement in the United States. The BTC crew has been traveling around in a bus running on veggie oil named Lewis Lewis (after a friend that passed away) for the past few weeks. They are writing a book and documenting through film photographs and words.

Check out their take on New Roots here.

Welcome Summer Staff!

2010-05-31T14:19:00.002-05:00

Yea! We've got three new summer staff that started today. Hannah, Jared and Elizabeth will be with us all summer helping us get veggies ready to sell and takin' folks to market. We couldn't be happier to have them around. Look for them at market and say hello!

Thoughts on Farm Incubation and the Beauty of Shortened Learning Curves

2010-05-11T16:47:00.007-05:00

I think a lot about how we are training farmers. Are we using the most effective methods? There are many options. This week I was struck with some particular benefits to farm incubation. For the past two years, we have had major problems with drainage. Our soil is compacted, clay (that is improving) mixed with really low places and poorly cut drainage ditches. We have had entire fields that have rotted in standing water. These soil conditions, mixed with farmers who are used to growing in low water climates (who tend to plant IN the valleys to maximize water) has been an interesting challenge. This year, we talked with one of the advanced farmers about building raised beds. She really grabbed onto the idea, and worked diligently to build them by hand in her whole plot. Within a week, all of the other farmers started doing the same thing, learning by watching because of the proximity of their plots. The farm looks the best it ever has. The farmers have put hours and hours of energy into building their raised beds and as the rain is coming down today, I am so happy.

It's been a really amazing process for me to watch. Even the new first year farmers have jumped right on board, shortening the learning curve significantly.

Here is Kabibi with her raised beds. She has mulched in walking paths.

This is Ray Nay Paw's plot, a new Karen farmer. Her raised beds are planted with seed.

Besides building beds, another recent activity has been increasing our Nitrogen levels at the farm through organic methods. AKA shoveling chicken poop.

It stinks, but the plants love it.

In the community gardens, the Nepalis have been working hard building beds,

applying compost and seeding.

Tomatoes in the ground!

2010-05-05T10:41:00.003-05:00

On Monday we hauled over 2000 tomato plants over to the farm. We have 15 different Heirloom varieties so tomato deliciousness is on the way!

Each Variety had an area...
With a picture and name, so we wouldn't get confused

Each Farmer chose the varieties they wanted to grow, Green Zebra, Brandywine, Paul Robeson, Rutgers, Sungold Cherry, Sioux, just to name a few...

Yummm, get ready cause we will have some fresh tomatoes ripe in no time!

Stuff in the Ground. And Thanks.

2010-04-28T13:16:00.003-05:00

It's been a great month. We had three dry-ish weeks at the beginning of April that served as a great planting window for us. We were able to get a lot of soil prep done, and got lots of plants into the ground. New Roots farmers planted broccoli, kale, kolhrabi, cabbage (red cabbage pictured below) and collard plants. Seeds are in the ground too: lettuce, spinach, carrots, swiss chard, turnips, beets, radishes, potatoes, and greens galore. We'll be planting tomatoes this Friday. Things are looking good.

Also, a big fat thanks to Susan and Abby who volunteered with New Roots this past semester. They were great help in the office- sorting and packaging seeds, laminating a million signs for market and out in the field- picking up trash and organizing our greenhouse supplies.
Thanks Susan and Abby! We hope to see more of you this summer!

New Roots in Urban Grown

2010-04-01T11:04:00.003-05:00

KCCUA's newsletter, Urban Grown came out today and it's a nice edition. I wrote an article about the Juniper Market, below.
Farmers Market Takes Steps to Bridge Income Gap

Small growers look for ways to build farm business in NE Kansas City, KS

It’s almost that time of year. The plants are in the greenhouse. Farmers are watching the weather, eager to put seeds in the ground. Before you know it, the farmers markets of Kansas City will be in full swing, offering us the best local delights. According to the USDA, the number of farmers markets in the US continues to climb (another 13 percent between 2008 and 2009 alone). As eaters are reconnecting with their food, farmers markets are the first place they go. There is something unique and powerful about shaking the hands that grew the food you eat.

In lower income areas, where price is the bottom line, farmers markets have been slower to catch on. Small scale farmers need a higher price point to earn a living wage and people on limited incomes are trying to get the most food with limited resources. The Juniper Gardens Farmers Market was established in 2008 concurrent with the development of KCCUA’s incubator training farm at Juniper Gardens. The market and training farm are in northeast Kansas City, KS, where a single supermarket serves a six mile radius. The market started small, with just a few participants of the New Roots for Refugees program selling heirloom tomatoes and okra on folding tables. Some neighborhood residents wandered by, introduced themselves, asked questions about unfamiliar items and purchased vegetables grown a few hundred feet from their homes.

In 2009, through a partnership with the KCK Greenmarket, the Juniper Garden Farmers Market began accepting SNAP benefits (formerly food stamps) through the use of a wireless terminal. A few new vendors from the neighborhood joined. Traffic increased slightly, but still the market was not viable. At the end of the season, friends from the Healthy Parents, Healthy Kids program (a community-based healthy lifestyles initiative) conducted a survey among area residents. Results indicated that neighbors were largely either unaware of the market or didn’t know how to cook with fresh vegetables.

In 2010, our market plans to increase awareness and accessibility for its neighbors. We will participate in the new Beans and Greens initiative. Funded by the Menorah Legacy Foundation, this initiative offers a 1:1 match on SNAP benefits and Seniors' Farmers Market Nutrition Program vouchers. The Juniper Gardens Farmers Market will be one of ten markets throughout Kansas City participating in Beans and Greens in 2010. This initiative is exciting because it reduces the gap between small scale farmers and low-income eaters. In cities such as Boston and San Diego, similar programs have energized markets and increased sales tremendously. The farmers are excited about the possibility of additional revenue. At a recent meeting, I explained the Beans and Greens concept to several refugee farmers who smiled and started asking questions about how the program works and offering suggestions on getting new customers to the market. “Is the match really 1:1?” “Can our friends buy from us using their SNAP benefits?” “We should bring a bus from other housing sites to the market!”

Four residents of Juniper Gardens, participants in the Healthy Parents, Healthy Kids Program, have been hired as market ambassadors, working with program staff to develop an effective marketing plan for the neighborhood. Refugee farmers are meeting to figure out how to get the word out to their communities. The buzz is building as transplants are growing in the greenhouse. Participants in KCCUA’s Farm Business Development Program will sell alongside refugee vendors, adding new faces and products to the multi-cultural market. Special events are planned to cultivate a community atmosphere, and market hours have been extended to increase access. Partnerships have been formed between the Housing Authority, Healthy Parents Healthy Kids, the KCK Greenmarket, Catholic Charities of Northeast Kansas and KCCUA--all working together to grow the vegetables and spread the word.

The Juniper Gardens Farmers Market will be open every Monday, June through October, 11:30am - 4:30pm. On the first Monday of each month, the market will have additional evening hours from 5pm - 7pm. The Juniper Gardens Farmers Market is located in the parking lot of Third Street Church of God at the corner of 3rd and Richmond in Kansas City, KS.

Rachel Bonar is Program Coordinator for the New Roots for Refugees Program. You can reach her at rbonar@catholiccharitiesks.org.

The Storytellers Project

2010-03-12T11:19:00.009-06:00

Hannah Nusz is a social work practicum student from KU who has been working with us in the refugee program for the past school year. She has done some work with the New Roots program, some work with our orientation and some casework. She loves to tell stories and listen to the stories of others. She had an idea last fall to help refugees tell their stories of resettlement. For the past few months a few of us here at Catholic Charities have been working with a group of refugee students at Northwest Middle School helping them write and illustrate books about their lives. Northwest is in the same neighoborhood as the New Roots farm, and several of the students that we worked with were kids of farmers. It has been fantastic. Below is one of the books written and illustrated by Ah Bay Lay. And although its a little long for a blog post, I'm also including a written reflection that Hannah did about this process because I think it gives a great picture of the power of story. Thanks, Hannah for all your work.

Hannah's Reflection

For awhile, I have been intrigued by the importance of storytelling. I have heard that a good story can be broken down to a simple concept: A character that wants something, and overcomes conflict to get it. This formula can be applied not only to books and writing, but also to our lives. In addition, I realized that it is not only important to live or write meaningful stories, but to also share them and bear witness to the stories of others. These notions are a big part of what inspired me to envision and implement the narrative-storytelling project at Northwest Middle School with the refugee students.
I believe and research shows that storytelling can be very therapeutic for individuals that have experienced some sort of trauma or conflict. Simply giving people the opportunity to tell their story and bearing witness to it can be valuable. I wanted to create this sort of forum for the refugee students. Many of them are thrown into inner-city schools and American life with no time to express the atrocities that they saw or the experience of uprooting and relocating to an entirely new country. While children are incredibly resilient, they also have feelings and emotions and can be shaped by these events.
To begin the process I approached an English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher at the middle school and proposed my idea. She was immediately receptive and enthusiastic about the project. I was surprised by how easy it was to begin, and in fact throughout the entire process it seemed as though everyone was in exactly the right place at the right time. Through a collaborative effort with the ESL teacher, we contacted eleven students to be in the group. They represented a variety of cultures: Burmese, Somali, Karen, Karenni, and each spoke, understood, and wrote English at varying levels.
At our first meeting, we all sat in a circle and made identity maps. In the maps, we included different hobbies, interests, people, or events that made up our identities. I was shocked when a few of the students immediately jumped into sharing about their lives as refugees. One girl shared how she was afraid to sleep at night, because of gunfire from rebel armies. Another boy that did not write well in English only drew pictures of men fighting. Many of the students seemed willing and ready to voice their experiences and all that they had already seen in their young lives. On the other hand, some students were reluctant and shy and shared only surface level details about their lives, testing the waters I suppose.
When we began the actual writing process it was interesting to see the different ways that students reacted. I remember one boy in particular who immediately launched into writing page after page about his experience in the refugee camps. We quickly realized that some of the other students needed to verbally process and tell their stories, while we wrote down what they said for them. I am glad that we incorporated drawing and artistic expression into the project. Some of the students preferred to tell or support their story through illustrations.
I remember a moment when the collection of students seemed like a real group and family. For me, this occurred while we played musical chairs during a break from writing and illustrating. We shared a simple joy and laughter with one another as we waited to see who would win in the end. I was surprised to learn that in Burmese culture, the person that wins at musical chairs is required to act like an animal in front of the others. The boy that won was timid, but soon he launched into making monkey noises and gestures, while the rest of us could not stop laughing. It was around this time that a teacher came to take a photo of the group for the school yearbook, and she wanted to know what the name of the group was. “The Storytellers” seemed appropriate, and this is what we referred to one another as from that point on.
One of the most beautiful memories from the entire experience was at the final presentation of the books. The students were so excited to see the final printed and bound version of their work. After school, most of them went home to change and prepare for the evening. I went and picked up a few of them to come back to the school to practice reading excerpts from their stories during the presentation. They had invited all of their families, friends, a few teachers, and case workers from the Catholic Charities Refugee Resettlement Program. The librarian set up the library with the books displayed on stands similar to an art showing. One of the Catholic Charities social workers went around with a bus to pick up the family members. There were so many people that wanted to come that she had to make two trips in the bus, and additional chairs were hastily set up in the library.
The presentation began with one of the students reading her story about what life was like in the refugee camp, traveling to the United States, and her life now. I stood next to her and thought about how brave she was, telling some of her most vulnerable moments to an audience. Overwhelmed with emotion, I looked out at the audience’s faces as she continued to read. I saw her family, and thought about what a unique opportunity this was for her parents to hear about what their child was thinking and feelings throughout their entire journey, especially for some of these cultures that do not talk about feelings or emotions often. The reason why many refugee families go through the difficult relocation process is for the prospect and hope of a better future for their children. Many of the students touched on this theme in their books, that they were thankful and glad to be able to go to school and receive an education.
Sometimes the concept or desire for “world peace” seems like an elusive and intangible dream. However, I felt like I experienced world peace in a real and concrete way at the book reading and presentation. Each of these refugees came from war zones and fled for their lives. Many of the students grew up in conflict regions. Now, they were all in a room sharing their experiences and understanding one another. They were realizing that they were not alone. I watched as a Burmese boy read his story called “My Life as a Refugee” and a Somali mother listened and lit up with recognition at the details described in the story. After each page that the boy read we would have to pause to wait for all of the translators to translate into the various languages. It may have seemed that there was nothing that these individuals from such distinct and different regions of the world had in common. However, this idea was quickly dissolved as the walls and barriers of communication were destroyed. I felt a deep sense of our shared humanity, and wondered if this was what heaven would feel like.
I remembered back to the first meeting that I had with the ESL teacher. She told me that these were the students that got picked on the most, because they could not speak the language; they did not understand English; they did not have the coolest clothes, and were entirely out of touch with pop-culture. However, on this night, they were the local celebrities; they were the ones that everyone was listening to; they were living fully in their own stories and sharing them with others. I thought about my own life, and felt inspired to embrace my own story. Am I living a good story? Am I living a story worth writing about, reading about, or listening to? Am I embracing my own story and living as the main character? If so, am I inspiring others to do the same?

Refugee Works Focuses on Farming

2010-03-09T09:46:00.001-06:00

Check out this issue of Refugee Works, "The Time is Ripe for Refugee Farmers".

Seed Packaging

2010-03-08T13:32:00.002-06:00

Today we had the final seed packaging meeting. Several of the farmers and staff joined us and we got all of them done! this has been no small task, and it feels very good to have that project finished. Here are all the bins of seeds in the closet of our office, ready to be planted.

Ray Nay Paw was a huge help closing the envelopes and sticking labels on,
Bay Htoo counting out some peas,
Kabibi did so many zucchini,
The whole gang...
Our plants in the greenhouse are also looking fabulous, some of the broccoli is at least four inches high already, and the cabbage and onions are close behind. One of our next projects is to pick rocks from the fields and spread some chicken manure over everything.

we'll keep you posted for the next exciting events coming up.

Kansas City CSA coalition

2010-02-10T14:04:00.004-06:00

We're a new member of Kansas City's CSA Coalition and couldn't be more excited about the great work they're doing. Check out the coalition here. Check out our farm listing here.

RAPPin' it up and Blizzard of 2010...

2010-02-06T15:32:00.011-06:00

Marion and I are in Washington DC for the annual Refugee Agriculture Partnership Program conference. New Roots is largely funded through this grant administered and guided by a partnership between ISED and ORR. This gathering happens every year and involves other grantees working with refugees in agriculture. We've been here since Wednesday night talking about challenges and fantastic things going on around the country. I presented on Thursday about the opportunities and struggles that we've faced helping refugee farmers integrate into an urban neighborhood and farmers markets. All of the programs here are really unique based on their location and participant populations. Check out some other RAPP projects:

Josie Weldon, Association of Africans Living in Vermont, Burlington, VT
Mandy Davis, Intervale Center, Burlington, VT
David Beller, Mercy Corps Northwest, Portland, OR
Shemariah Blum-Evitts, Lutheran Social Services, Westfield, MA
Amy Carrington, Cultivating Community, Portland, ME
Lauren Goldberg, Kentucky Office for Refugees, Louisville, KY
Teena Hayden, International Institute of New Hampshire, Manchester, NH
Mitch Klasky, Massachusetts Office for Refugees and Immigrants, Boston, MA
Amy Lint, International Rescue Committee, San Diego, CA
Joshua Lohnes, Lutheran Social Services, Worchester, MA
Jon Vosper, Timothy Olorunfemi, International Rescue Committee, Phoenix, AZ
Pahoua Xiong, The United Hmong Association, Hickory, NC

At New Roots we've been thinking about the next step of our program process- we've got interested folks growing on a small scale and some process and infrastructure in place. We've got a vision of small urban farms and farmsteads throughout NE Kansas City, Kansas. Where do we go from here? This week helped shape our conversation as we move forward.

Also, DC is covered in snow! We were supposed to leave this afternoon, but we'll be here until tomorrow at least. It's beautiful from the 12th floor. We bought a pack of cards at the gift shop and wish we brought snow boots!

Green in the House! with Seeds...

2010-02-05T21:14:00.004-06:00

This Wednesday we had our first day of seed planting! We started out with broccoli, cabbage, and scallions. New Roots farmers gathered at KCCUA's community greenhouse where many farmers from Kansas City start their seedlings. Last week we mixed the soil, and so were ready to fill trays and inserts with soil and hundreds of seeds. One of the growers watered them, and now we wait for them to grow.

Seperating inserts and putting them in the trays,

Inserts are filled with potting soil,

And finally seeds!

America's Heartland

2010-01-27T16:31:00.004-06:00

KCCUA and New Roots Farmers were recently on a national PBS show, America's Heartland. Northeast Kansas City, Kansas is growing! Our good friends, Angela Greene (of Salt of the Earth) and Sammie Davis (New Roots' resident tractor expert) did a great job! Check it out.

Marketing Workshop

2010-01-20T11:56:00.006-06:00

Today's workshop was on selling veggies at market. We all piled into Juniper Garden's Community Center with boxes of veggies and dusted off the tables

and baskets from market season. And by dust, i mean DUST! Our market truck was used this winter to haul some brewery waste for our compost pile, so we've got barley and hops in our baskets, scales and bins! I've gotta clean that thing out, market will be here before we know it.

Katherine started the workshop by impersonating "bad" market farmers; sitting far from your table, legs and arms crossed, not saying hi or smiling. The farmers talked about what makes a market table look good and then set out setting up a fake market to practice these skills.

Zawadi and Pelagie are smiling with full baskets, but didn't stack or layer

their baskets for optimal visibility.

Warren (new affiliate farmer in 2010), Carolyn (sweet neighbor interested in gardening) and Sammie did a great job of layering baskets and assorting colors, but their tablecloth is a little funky.

Dena, Pay Lay, Lay Htoo (new farmer for 2010), Beh Paw and Ray Nay Paw (new for 2010) did a great job assorting colors and stacking but were a little shy!

We're working on it, and have made so much progress over the years. I honestly think that the New Roots stands are some of the most beautiful at the market!

Everyone is looking forward to 2010! We'll be at the following markets:

Brookside (63rd and Wornall) Saturdays, 8-1
Overland Park (79th just west of Metcalf) Wed. and Sat., 7:30-1
KCK Greenmarket at Juniper Gardens (3rd south of Quindaro at the Community Center) Mondays 11:30-1:30

CSA Shares Open!

2010-01-11T16:09:00.002-06:00

CSA shares are filling up, but we still have a few openings. Check out our Local Harvest Profile for more information or email at newrootsforrefugees@catholiccharitiesks.org.

Farm Photographs

2010-01-11T14:44:00.003-06:00

Danielle Larson, a CSA member and friend of New Roots came out to the farm this past fall during field walks. She is a fantastic photographer and took a few shots of life out at the farm. They can be found here. Thanks, Danielle for helping us tell our story.

CSA 2010!

2009-12-28T09:29:00.004-06:00

Happy New Year!

We have now officially re-opened our CSA. This coming season we will have some different payment options as opposed to 2009, and will once again be working to grow delicious veggies for you.

If you have an interest in becoming one of our CSA members for Spring-Summer-Fall 2010 email Rachel rbonar@ccsks.org and we will give you a more detailed description and information about the New Roots CSA program. For now here are some of the changes...

1.) In the past we have asked customers to bring cash every week to market. This year, we will be using a more traditional CSA model where customers pay a bulk payment at the beginning of the season. The cost for the whole season is 300.00, which can be paid in installments if necessary. For more information on this, check out the attached CSA FAQ’s.

2.) We are adding an additional market day. This year, CSA members have the following options for pickup:

a. Overland Park on Wednesdays

b. Overland Park on Saturdays

c. Brookside on Saturdays

Thanks so much for partnering with us in the past. Our CSA is truly a huge encouragement to our farmers as they are getting stated here.

Please let me know if you have questions and are interested in participating again this year. Let me know if you would like to be with the same farmer or a new farmer AND what market you would like to pick up at.

All the best to you in this new year!

Winter Update

2009-12-21T12:22:00.003-06:00

Everybody always asks "what do you do in the winter" well... life does not slow down at all and there are so many exciting things that the New Roots farmers and staff are doing.

One of our winter activities we do is a series of Agriculture workshops every Wednesday morning until we can plant things in the ground. These range from planning and mapping of the field, how to improve soils, record keeping, responsibilities of renting land, best practices for conserving water, systems for marketing and many others that I cant think of right now. These will continue through March.

In January we also will be doing two mornings a week of English class. In these we learn words and phrases that will help at market and with interacting with the English speaking population. Learning English is challenging and we spend lots of time wrapping our brains around making change, the names of coins, and how to manage a bank account. Its real fun, and if any of you want to come and be involved, or learn along with us that would be great!

Another exciting thing is we have a new office in the housing apartments right next to the farm. The address is 1979 north 2nd st. Kansas City, KS 66101. We have all our workshops and English class here and Rachel and I have had fun painting, putting up pictures, finding chairs, tables, and office supplies to furnish it. We feel so legit now and its a real step up to be in a proper building instead of the mobile mini units that we were in previously. Its also nice to know that on cold days we can actually keep warm, and wont have to use the cooler section of the unit as our classroom (those who have been to the farm know what this is).

We are busy ordering seeds, and choosing all the fun things we will grow next season. It is more exciting than I can say to be looking at the catalogs and imagining all the fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce mixes, and flowers...aahhhh summer. Even some strange and wonderful veggies may come out of our garden again so be ready New Roots fans!

Oh man, why did I wait so long to tell you this? We have three new farmers who joined the program last month and this brings us up to 14 growers! The new Participants are all Burmese Karen (said: Ka-wren) and their names are Bay Htoo, Ray Nay Paw, and Le Htoo. They are now first year farmers, and its awesome to think that so much of what we used to teach the farmers is now passed down from the second and third year growers. The happy looks on everyones faces when we show them their 1/4 acre of garden space, and dream of the planting and harvests yet to come.

Coming up is a CSA 2010 update, and a report of some of the interesting conferences we have attended to aid our development.

WINNER WINNER! Michelle you are the winner of our awesome raffle! let us know if you prefer a sweet tote bag, or $10 gift certificate for the market. And thank you to everyone who entered the raffle you are the BEST!

New Roots Blog Raffle!

2009-11-04T17:36:00.004-06:00

Hello New Roots friends! We've got a new look and want to see who is reading our blog. Leave a comment here! I'll put all the names in a hat, and pull out one lucky winner who will receive their choice of either a New Roots tote bag, or a $10.00 gift certificate to spend at any market next year!

I'll do the drawing next Friday, November 13th.

Good Luck!

EDIT: You have to click on the individual post to leave a comment for now. Still working the bugs out :)

Thank You New Roots CSA Friends!

2009-11-02T14:52:00.008-06:00

We had INCREDIBLE CSA members this year. A massive thanks to each and every one of you.
At the beginning of October, the New Roots family shared a meal together- farmers, their families, staff, and our wonderful CSA members. It was really meaningful to spend an evening together trying one another's food. For many of our CSA members, it was ther first time out to the farm and their first time eating Sudanese Nuer food. For many of our farmers, it was their first time trying zuchinni bread!
The Agne's bought a subscription from Kabibi for the summer. It was great to have their whole clan out to the farm. (And great job on the chili!)

Nyakang brought an entire table filled with deliciousness. She brought the entire get-up: table cloths, plates and cups, drinks, and serving gloves. From the smile on her face, you can see that she was excited to share food from her culture. Teresa Van Zant and Toby and Maureen Lunn purchased a CSA from Nyakang for the season.

Kabibi and Zawadi made yummy mchicha! (see post below)

Danielle (Dena's CSA) and Beth (Pay Lay's CSA) are so lovely.

Here is the spread!

A big thanks to Marion and Gina for washing dishes!

One of my favorite parts of the night was after all of the CSA members left. Marion and I looked at each other thinking "how are we ever gonna clean all this up?" All of a sudden all the army you see above jumped into action and cleaned the whole place in approximately 10 minutes. It was amazing. The kids helped take down tents and clean off tables. The teenage girls washed dishes and put up food. The farmers knew where everything went. The farmers showed total ownership of the evening and our farm. I can't wait for the dinner next year.

We'll start CSA sign ups for 2010 in January!

Adventures in Diversification.

2009-11-02T14:35:00.005-06:00

Last season, all of the NR farmers grew the same veggies. This season, we opened up our seed store with the intention of giving our farmers more control over what they grow while still retaining the ability to source organic seed. The seed store was a great success. We bought seed in bulk, had an army of volunteers put the seed into packets and organize them in one of our containers. (did I ever say thanks??) A pictorial seed catalogue let farmers see what was available and dream up what their fields could look like. Farmers grew what they wanted and we saw some interesting new crops out in the fields and in the market.

Vermont Cranberry beans are a delicious sell bean that stays pink when you cook it! Fresh shell beans are such a treat; the amount of work that goes into growing, picking and shelling is ridiculous, but the taste is WORTH IT!

Pelagie grew beautiful decorative corn in an array of fall hues.

At the end of the season, we met with second year farmers individually to discuss paying for their seed. As part of the program, each year farmers will absorb more financial responsibility until they are able to cover all of their expenses. The picture above is Pay Lay writing a check for her seeds. To me, this was one of the most exciting moments of the season.

Mchicha!

2009-11-02T14:07:00.009-06:00

Any New Roots customers who bought veggies from our Burundian farmers this summer have surely heard us talk about Mchicha! In the US, we refer to is as pigweed or amaranth. Mchicha is a swahili word, commonly used in East Africa. It grows as a weed around here and we typically pull it and compost it. I was suprised when two of our new Burundian farmers planted it in their fields. On purpose! They brought some to market and I was so confused. One afternoon this summer, Marion, Ben and I went home with Ntibi, Mariam and Zawadi to experience a little piece of Burundi and learn how to cook it (and sell it to customers!).

Step one: Acquire mchicha! You can pick some up from your friendly New Roots farmer next summer!

Step two: Chop the mchicha into inch long sections. See photo above.

Step three: Wash mchicha and put into pan for cooking.

Step four: One version of mchicha (my personal favorite) includes chopped tomatoes.

Step five: Sautee the mchicha with a little bit of water over the stove. Add salt to taste.

Enjoy!

Three types of mchicha.

On the left is mchicha with chopped tomatoes, onion and salt.

(according to Zawadi, this is for daily consumption)

In the middle is plain mchicha sauteed in a little water. (this is for people who are sick)

On the right is mchicha fried in oil. (this one is the kid's favorite!)

Each has its own unique taste, but all of them are delicious.

Update of the Century (or the season...)

2009-10-19T18:12:00.006-05:00

So, its been awhile. I've been absent from the blogging world. Internet time has been sparse and I lost the freakin' USB cord for the camera. But we're back in business now. We've been truckin' through market season and now that things are slowing down I've got some time to update you on how this year turned out and what we've been up to.

Let's backtrack...

In June, we were a part of the Kansas City Urban Farm Tour put on by KCCUA. This sweet event connected eaters with the multiple expressions of food production in KC; home gardens, urban homesteads, educational and charitable gardens, and urban farms. It was a blast. We had several hundred visitors out to the farm, our farmers sold some veggies, Angela Greene and the Salt of the Earth Youth Market Gardeners were out in full force and we had a few stellar performances by the Gateway Steppers.

Our lovely ticket takers, Sarah and Marion

Aye Aye sold hats and veggies.

Gateway Steppers!

Pelagie and sweet Suzana Gusave watch the excitement.

At the end of June we got a massive load of straw to mulch our fields. This helped cut down on weeds and added organic matter to our soil. Every little bit helps. It was such an exciting day. We had great help from the YouthBuild crew who unloaded it and helped us carry it to our plots. Thanks, YouthBuild!
We started selling at the Wenesday Overland Park market at the beginning of July. We welcomed 4 new farmers this year and had to find additional markets for them to sell at. OP was a great home for us this summer- the customers were supportive and excited about organic produce (we were one of two organic vendors) and the other farmers were welcoming.
Ntibi, Mariam and Zawadi are a wonderful Burundian family that specialize in Machicha- Amaranth that is really delicious!

More updates to come!

One Year Later...

2009-08-21T13:06:00.004-05:00

My name is Ami Freeberg and I spent two months last summer as an intern with New Roots for Refugees. In a week I will be starting my senior year studying Sociology and Global Development at Grinnell College in Iowa. I stumbled across the New Roots project through the Kansas City Center for Urban Agriculture which was a perfect combination to fit with my academic and personal interests. During my first week on the job Katherine Kelly told me this would be one of the most incredible experiences of my life. I nodded but brushed it off saying, “well I’ve already been skydiving so I don’t know…” She was right.

Last weekend I returned Kansas City after a year back in school and studying abroad. It was inspiring to see the growth and transformations that had taken place on the farm since I left last July. My first day on the job last May happened to be the first day the women put plants and seeds in their rocky plots. Throughout the season I saw the empty field become a productive farm, but not without many challenges and frustrations. It took many weeks to get a functional irrigation system in place. The rows of vegetables snaked and crossed through the plot making it difficult to weed, walk through it or lay drip tape. We moved all the rocks and bricks that had been pulled out of the tilled land to a big pile on the edge of the property but as soon as we had finished more appeared that had been thrown out of the gardens into the aisles. Everyday was an adventure trying to communicate about how to trellis tomatoes or the importance of putting waste in the trash cans or compost. The storage shed looked like a tornado had hit with tools, seeds and equipment scattered everywhere.

Going back a year later I was happy to see that everything was much more organized. The storage sheds had shelves and were neatly organized. They created a seed bank with a corresponding book including pictures to help the participants select what to plant. The rows looked much straighter and the plots better cared for. Harvest ran smoothly with volunteers helping pick, weigh and wash as needed. At the market on Saturday the women set up their stands and made their transactions mostly independently. It was fulfilling to see the progress that had happened in just a year. Yes, there are still challenges and will continue to be ways to improve the operations of the New Roots for Refugees project and farming and marketing knowledge of the participants. But from being part of the very first day of planting to seeing the harvest and market last weekend, I was so proud of the women. Katherine was right; working on this project was one of the most rewarding and life-changing experiences of my twenty-one years.

Recipes!

2009-07-06T19:31:00.002-05:00

Hey everybody, I wanted to add some info and recipes for the new stuff the farmers at New Roots have been bringing to market.

Many of you have seen and tasted and even bought purslane, a succulent green that grows as a weed at our farm. It is a succulent herb high in beta carotene, Omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin C that can be eaten fresh in salads or boiled into cooked dishes. In addition to purslane, just this week some of the market gardeners brought "machicha" to harvest. After consulting with our neighbors at the Brookside market, we figured that "machicha" is just Swahili for wild amaranth!

The amaranth we are selling and the grain amaranth sold in the grocery store are different varieties. Like corn, grain amaranth was domesticated by ancient Mexicans and can no longer propagate itself. Those plants can produce up to 150,000 pale white seeds per one plant! The plants we bring to market are so-called wild amaranth, which is grown primarily for its very nutritious greens and grows from small black seeds.

The greens can be cooked just as you would leaf spinach or eaten raw in a salad. Content of vitamin A, calcium, iron and other minerals will be highest fresh or blanched in as little water as possible.

Recipes:

Cucumber Purslane Salad:

5 large Cucumbers, cut into quarter-round slices
1/4 pound Purslane, large stems removed, washed and drained well
2 tablespoons each, Fresh chopped mint, cilantro and chervil
4 cups Whole milk yogurt
1/4 cup olive oil
3 cloves garlic, puréed with the blade of a knife
2 teaspoon ground coriander
Salt and pepper to taste

Place the cucumber, purslane and herbs into a large bowl. In another bowl, stir together the yogurt, olive oil and garlic, coriander and season to taste with salt. Add the yogurt mixture to the vegetables and mix well. Add a pinch of ground black pepper. Taste the dressed cucumber-purslane salad for seasoning, adding a little more salt if needed. Serve chilled.

Purslane potato salad:

• 6 medium potatoes, sliced and cooked
• 2 cups chopped purslane
• 4 scallions, sliced
• 1 stalk celery, sliced
• 1 cup mayo

Amaranth:

Scalloped potatoes:
• 5 potatoes, sliced with skin
• 2 cups cooked amaranth greens
• mushroom sauce or cream of mushroom soup
• 1 cup grated cheddar
• pepper and paprika to taste

Cook potatoes in boiling water. Butter a 1.5 quart casserole dish and layer amaranth and potatoes, seasonign with a dash of pepper. Cover with mushroom sauce, sprinkling cheese and paprika on top. Bake at 350 for one hour.

Marinated Amaranth salad:
• half cup vegetable oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 3 tablespoons dijon mustard
• quarter teaspoon each pepper and cumin
• half teaspoon honey
• 2 pounds amaranth greens
• quarter cup chopped scallions
• one or two hard boiled eggs, chopped

Pour oil into jar or other container, add garlic, vinegar, mustard, pepper, cumin and honey. Cover and shake to blend, set aside.

Cut greens into half-inch strips and steam until tender, 5 minutes or so. Cool to room temp, combine with onion, and add the dressing. Chill for at least two hours and garnish with egg.

Enjoy! We hope to see you all in Overland Park on Wednesday and in Brookside Saturday! Have a good week!

Harvest!

2009-06-26T12:00:00.008-05:00

We harvested so many vegetables today for market this weekend! Come visit us at the Brookside Market tomorrow from 8-1:00 at 63rd and Wornall. We've got beautiful swiss chard, all kinds of salad greens, Chinese cabbage, green beans, peppers, onions, tomatoes and a whole lot more! The farmers will be selling outside the farm on Sunday during the KC Urban Farm Tour too (3rd and Richmond in KCK)! With no further ado or blah blah-age, here are some pictures of people harvesting and cleaning their veggies! Dena and DILL!!!!
Halima and Swiss Chard

Pay Lay and Ma Tha after a hard day's work.

June Update

2009-06-25T12:30:00.009-05:00

It's been a very busy summer so far at New Roots, and we are happy to share many of the exciting things we've accomplished the past few weeks, and all the things we are looking forward to in the weeks to come. Two interns have joined the team, and will be taking care of your communication needs for the rest of the summer.

Ben is a reluctant KU student (only one year left!) who is loving hanging out in the heat with all the refugees and volunteers and staff down here in Juniper Gardens. I can't wait to see you all this weekend at market and show you around during the Urban Farm Tour!

Sofie is a student at DePaul University who just started this week-the hottest of the summer so far! She has really enjoyed getting to know all the growers and volunteers, and can't wait to meet everyone who supports New Roots at markets!

We have spent a lot of time on building projects this year, and are really proud of how the farm is looking. The trainees at YouthBuild made us a wonderful shed which we've painted in mango and blue. On Tuesday, a group of volunteers from Olathe Bible Church helped us move it halfway across the farm to our community garden plots. It was quite the operation--it took many pushers, 2 by 4s and a giant pickup truck, but thanks to their help we'll have a convenient, pretty place to store tools for community growers!

The interns also helped us put down mulch and even helped one of the growers weed her plot. We are so thankful to have such hardworking helpers.

It's taken many months of planning, planting, and lots of patience, but we're fast approaching one of the most exciting parts of the year--MARKETS! You can see how hard Pelagie (and her sa-weet fedora) and our other growers have been working, and it's about to all pay off . We'll be at the Brookside Market on Saturdays from 8:00-1:00 and the Overland Park Market from 7:30-1:00. CSA members can pick up their bags from their growers at these markets.

We also hold a market at the farm on Mondays at 3rd and Richmond so neighbors can buy fresh vegetables. We love being a part of this community, and like to make it better by sharing what we do here. So far it has been very successful--everyone sold out last Monday and we even went around the neighborhood spreading the word so more people will come this week!

Finally, this Sunday (June 28) we are taking part of the KCCUA Urban Farm Tour. Over 20 urban farms in the Kansas City area are opening their doors and plots for people to visit. We can't wait to show off all our hard work. We will have food venders, drill team performances, live goats, and many other exciting activities, so we hope you can make it out!

There's a lot going on this weekend, so we will let you know how everything went soon!

Pay Lay's Writing

2009-03-31T11:45:00.004-05:00

Here is Pay Lay hauling rocks last season.

We asked Pay Lay to write an article for Urban Grown, the newsletter of KCCUA. She wrote it in beautiful Karen script and it was translated by our sweet friend Htee Law Sue. Here is what she wrote:

First of all, I would like to thank every staff of the New Roots for Refugees who assists us to become successful farmers. I’m Pay Lay, with 5 children. I’ve been living in Kansas City, Kansas almost two years, and I’m from Burma. This year is my second year as a farmer in this program. Being a farmer is my first occupation in the United States and it’s also the career I hope to do in the future. I know some basic knowledge and background about farming as I used to be a farmer in my own country. However, it wasn’t the same as farming here. We planted rice and corn and vegetables. Mostly, we planted on the hill or the mountainside as we couldn’t afford to buy flat land. We had to work harder there so I prefer farming here as its more convenient and I get a lot of support and encouragement.
I really enjoy being a part of this project and I’m glad for having a good chance to do the things I want. For me, financial problems and limited English are two of my biggest concerns. I don’t have enough money in my own pocket to start this business. For example, I don’t know where to get the seeds, plan my business and more than that I feel like I know nothing. However, the staff helps us as much as they can and work hard for us to learn more about farming every year. The program starts everything for us even small things. They provide equipment that we need, financial help to buy seed, pay water bills, and so many necessary things to do farming. I learned to become a better farmer last year. In the meantime, I learn to do business and learn new English words as well.
Not only earning money and learning about farming, my family also gets to eat fresh vegetable without chemicals in it. I’m so proud to keep my children healthy and have a happy life. One advantage for me is I have plenty of time to spend with my children and husband when compared to other jobs. I think farming is a good career to start for the people like me that know little English. My friends in my community also support me so it gives me more strength and encourages me a lot. I took all of my leftover vegetables from the market to my friend’s houses last year. I did it the whole season. I sold all of my vegetables and kept some for my family so we don’t have to buy vegetables from the grocery store.
At last, I would like to let everyone know that all of us, the farmers will try our best and work really hard this year and in the future. Each year we continue, we all want our farm to improve, cultivate more and earn more money.

Pay Lay

ESL Graduation!

2009-03-27T15:47:00.002-05:00

Today was our ESL graduation. We handed out certificates,

flowers and aprons to the women with the best attendance.

Aye Aye, Pay Lay and Beh Paw all had great attendance!
Here is the whole gang!

New Roots Cooks!

2009-03-25T15:03:00.003-05:00

As part of our ESL curriculum, we held a cooking class this Monday. We used vegetables unfamiliar to some of our growers: parsnips, celery, turnips, and leeks (and red peppers, cabbage and carrots!) and recipes that we will be giving out to our CSA members and market customers. It was fun to break out of the mold of the classroom and put our words to use. We even put on the matching aprons that our market volunteers wear.

Here are some of the ingredients ready to go!
Zawadi was in charge of the Creamy Cauliflower and Lettuce Salad. It had crisp apples and was really yummy!

Beh Paw made the potato leek soup that was creamy and just spicy enough. Isha (in the background) is cooking the beef cabbage wrap.

Pelagie, Khadijo and Nyakang representing Burundi, Somalia and Sudan. One of the most rewarding parts of this program is the relationships that have developed between women across cultures.

Pelagie cleans up!

Part of the gang after we finished eating our creations. It will be much more fun when we can cook with the vegetables that we have grown.

Volunteers Needed!

2009-03-13T15:14:00.002-05:00

Volunteers are needed for a project this Tuesday, March 17th. We will be sorting bulk seeds and putting them into small packets for use in our seed store!

Meet at Catholic Charities, 2220 Central Ave., KCK 66102 at 9am and will work until we're done. Show up whenever you can and help out!

If you need more info. email me at rbonar@ccsks.org, or give me a call at 913-909-1027.

February Update

2009-02-27T10:40:00.005-06:00

We started working in KCCUA's Community Greenhouse at the beginning of February. Our first step was mixing soil. I have such vivid memories from mixing soil last year- it was our first hands on experience with all the growers together. I could sense their excitment as everyone took turns (fought) for the shovel. Everyone was eager to stomp the peat moss and get a little dirty. This year was no different, and it was awesome to see experienced soil mixers

helping our new growers along.

Here is Pay Lay (a second year farmer) and Beh Paw (a first year famer) mixing soil. They are sisters from the same refugee camp in Thailand.

Here we are starting garlic! Mmmmmmmm. I'm getting hungry already.

Hawo was pretty excited about starting her garlic.

Our Market English classes started in January. Participants attend on Monday and Friday morning at the Catholic Charities office. Classes focus on the basics: recognizing coins and bills, adding money, using the calculator, making change, weighing vegetables and the names of vegetables in English.

Rukia has been practicing the names of coins (we have a little song that we all sing, "penny, nickel, dime, quarter") and bills for weeks. It's tricky!

Pelagie is working really hard on using the calculator. When we started, she had a hard time even recognizing numbers, so she has come a long way.

Beh Paw and Rukia practice being farmer's market customers and farmers!

Beh Paw is selling Rukia a big cabbage.

Marion, our faithful bus driver/rock picker/English teacher, works with the women on memorizing the names of vegetables. Everyone's favorite to say is "Brussel Sprouts!"

If you are interested in volunteering with our ESL program, let me know.

While the Catholic Charities team is busy working on human development, the KCCUA team is working on our land. We've got truck loads of composted leaves ready to spread, goat manure and chicken manure on the way, seeds are ordered and we're starting to envision our irrigation system. It's all happening!

Blessings from all of us at New Roots.

New Roots love!

2009-01-25T22:18:00.004-06:00

I'm slightly ashamed to say that I just found this picture of my friends Michaela and Michelle on facebook and just posted it right away. I was so proud of their New Roots love (even in the off season) that I couldn't resist. It appears to me that their love and support of the New Roots program has actually increased their cooking skills. Just keep that in mind...

And by off season, I mean things are getting started! Look for an update about the past few weeks- starting ESL classes, starting transplants, starting to get so excited about this next season!

Can you help us?

2009-01-13T11:44:00.004-06:00

We're getting busy thinking about next market season. Our Market fees are paid (thanks to a generous donation!), the seeds are ordered and we're fixin' to get into the greenhouse. As we've been thinking about this next season, we've been thinking about stuff we're gonna need. Like everyone else, our budget is tight tight tight! Do you have any of the following items sitting around your house? Would you be willing to purchase some on our behalf? Or hit up a couple of thrift stores?

Let me know if you do! Any help would be awesome. (And we can get you a tax reciept!)

kitchen or utility knives for harvesting
sharpies
scissors for harvesting greens (kitchen scissors preferred)
plastic grocery store bags for market
folding tables for the Juniper Market
folding chairs
Laminating sheets (11.5" x 9")
big cooler for CSA bags
colored copy paper for flyers
Baskets (all sizes)
rubberbands
table cloths
gallon-size ziploc bags
dry-erase markers
blue 10-gallon size tote bins from Target
gardening tools (hand tools, hoes, spade forks, utility wagon)
accordion-style expandable file folders (for our clients to organize their paperwork)

Winter Workshops

2009-01-12T16:46:00.005-06:00

The New Roots farm doesn't sleep in the winter! We've been busy throughout the past few months with our workshops. We started with the introduction workshop- this one was open to our 9 returning farmers and our 4 new farmers. We felt like it was important information for everyone to hear. We talked about the training farm model... the things that growers can expect from Catholic Charities and KCCUA, and what we expect of them.
Subsequent workshops have included marketing for the farmer's market, introduction to vegetable growing, and making our field maps. The field maps workshop is really hard. Most refugees are not familliar with maps so we have to start from scratch, explaining that a map is a picture from above a place. As simple as this sounds, is can be really confusing. Here are a few pictures from the field maps workshop.

The growers looked at pictures in the seed catalogue and thought about what they wanted to plant in their field. Here is Dena and Pay Lay working with Joanne on theis maps.

Daniel Dermitzel from KCCUA taught this workshop. Here he is working with Zawadi to pick out crops she is interested in.

This is Zawadi's map. This season will be her first year selling at market.

This past week's workshop was on paying sales tax. Throughout the season, the growers have been saving their sales tax to pay the state. We all started checking accounts so that we can pay the money. On Thursday, we went through the forms and actually wrote out the check. Before we wrote the check, we tried a few practice checks. Most of the growers have never written a check before, so once again we have to start at the beginning.

Here is Hawo's check. She did a great job of painstaikingly copying "Missouri Dept. of Revenue" on her check. Although she needed a little help with the rest, we were so excited! Maybe next year she will be able to write the check herself!

CSA Enrollment is OPEN!

2008-12-30T11:39:00.005-06:00

Here is some information about our CSA program, please contact me if you are interested in having a subscription!

What Is Community Supported Agriculture?

Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is an alliance between farmers and adventurous eaters. Families and individuals who join the CSA receive a share of produce every week during the growing season (Mid-May thru October). In exchange, members sign a contract for the season, and agree to pick up their vegetables every week. Both partners share in the risks and rewards of small-scale farming: weather, insect damage, and bumper crops. The New Roots for Refugees CSA is in its second year, the season will most likely run from the middle of May to the middle of October and members will pay weekly on reception of their share.

“Who” is New Roots for Refugees CSA?

This is the second year for the New Roots for Refugees CSA, and these farmers have been growing in Kansas for up to four years now. All of the New Roots farmers are refugees; some are from Somalia, some are from Burma, some are from Burundi, and one is from Sudan. Most of the farmers from Somalia arrived in the United States in 2004, those from Burma began arriving in 2007. The New Roots for Refugees project provides an opportunity for refugee women to build on their strengths and experience while learning English, growing vegetables, and making money.
All of the farmers are women because this program grew out of Refugee Women’s Programming. Most refugee men take full-time positions in factories, hotels, or other places depending on their employment history. Farming income is supplemental to the family income.
As a CSA member, you will be building a partnership with one farmer. You will pick up vegetables from the same farmer every week. This gives the eater an opportunity to know who is cultivating your food and the refugee a chance to interact more long term with English speaking Americans. You are also welcome and encouraged to visit the farm and spend time working alongside your farmer!

What Is My Share of the Food?

The weekly food share will include 4-6 different veggies. The bag may be enough for a family of four, but if you really love your veggies, you may need to supplement the share from other sources. You will receive two New Roots for Refugees tote bags, which will be rotated each week when you pick up your share. Every week the share of produce will be different depending on the season. Here are examples of what a share might look like:
Spring: green peas (sugarsnap or snow), baby beets w/greens, green onions, carrots w/tops, lettuce, radishes, chives

Summer: tomatoes, peppers, eggplant or okra, melons, cucumbers, onions, green beans, squash/zucchini, basil, corn

Fall: lettuce, broccoli or cauliflower, cabbage, winter squash, swiss chard, carrots, potatoes, garlic, dill

Along with growing these traditional American veggies, New Roots for Refugee farmers grow a variety of ethnic crops that will also be a part of the CSA bag. If you don’t know what any of these are, or how to cook them, just ask!

Who Can Join?

Anyone can join! Last year, our CSA was a pilot program with limited membership. This year, we have opened registration to any adventurous eater that can commit to picking up every week (or have someone else pick is up from you).

What Does It Cost?

Usually, CSA members pay an initial deposit, with the balance being paid by the beginning or middle of the season. Because it is helpful for our growers to have consistent income throughout the season, New Roots CSA members will pay weekly upon reception of their share. The share costs $15 per week, which includes sales tax. Please pay in cash or check made out to your farmer.
Approx. 4-6 items depending on time of season.

Share cost: $300 for approximately 20 weeks (start date closer to the season)
Weekly payment: $15.00 per week, which includes sales tax.

How Does It Work?

For this season, there will be two pick up options. You can either join the CSA that picks up at the Brookside Farmer’s Market on Saturday mornings (8:00-1:00) OR the Overland Park Market on Wednesday mornings (7:30-1:00).
Season:20 Weeks – May through October. We will be in contact as the start of CSA pickup approaches with more finalized details.

How Do I Join?

Sign up by contacting Rachel and saying that you want a spot! She will send get some basic contact information from you so that she can stay in touch. We are limited to 40 shares in 2009. Membership will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis.

What if it is a terrible year weather wise?

Will we still get our vegetables? Part of the joy of supporting local agriculture is that we are subject to the whims of Kansas weather. We do our best to guarantee a steady and generous supply of all types of vegetables, but one of the lessons agriculture teaches us is just how little control we have in the world! If we come up short on individual crops, we will try to be creative, but our intent is to give you vegetables grown seasonally on our farm. This also means that when there is an abundance of a particular crop, you can expect larger quantities.

What if we don't like all the produce we get?

Part of what we hope to encourage is an adventurous approach to eating vegetables. While tomatoes will always be a favorite, bitter greens and crunchy fennel and different herbs add depth and breadth to meals. We’d like to encourage you to get creative with your cooking; we also hope to develop recipes based on your farmer’s ethnic cooking to share with you as we develop our program.
What is this leafy purple thing? Sometimes customers don't know what a particular vegetable or herb is, much less how to use it. We recommend a two-step approach to this. First, do an internet search or crack open your cook book for creative ideas on how to prepare it. Second, give Rachel a call to find out what it is.

What if I can't pick up my produce?

Please make arrangements with a friend to pick up your vegetables if you can. If you absolutely cannot be there, give us a heads up! You can take a double share some week when you need extra produce. You are financially responsible for every week, so if you miss one, you’ll have to pay double the next week. If you do not pick up your share twice in a row with no warning, you forfeit your subscription.

How do the New Roots for Refugees tote bags work?

We rotate the bags each week so that we aren't using so many of those darned plastic grocery bags. At the end of the season, we will return both the bags to you.

I don't like beets. How do I make sure I don't get any in my bag??

Unfortunately, we can't accommodate individual likes and dislikes even though we would like to. We suggest making arrangements with a friend, neighbor, or co-worker to take the vegetables you’re not so fond of.

How can I get more involved in the farm?

We love having people come to visit and to volunteer! You should always call a day in advance, so that we can plan to offer you a good experience. We can arrange group tours if desired.
Other questions? Contact Rachel Bonar at rbonar@ccsks.org or (913) 909-1027.

New Roots Recap!

2008-12-19T11:49:00.007-06:00

Objects in motion stay in motion, objects at rest stay at rest...
And I have been the latter.
As our season has drawn to a close, I've slowed down a bit... and its been nice! Sorry for the lack of updates, I'll try and make up for it today. So, let's take it back to October!

At the end of October, we harvested for the last time and attended our last market. This is Pelagie with some of her sweet potatoes. They were small, but really tasty.

Rukia had TONS of greens and spent much of the day sitting at the salad spinner.
Rukia is consistantly joyful at the farm.

Khadijo and her flock help clean their greens.

Aye Aye and her last green beans of the season.

At the end of October, we had the privilege of hosting the National RAPP (Refugee Agricultural Partnership Program) Workshop. Colleagues from across the US came to Kansas City to talk about Refugees and Agriculture. It was a great few days, and I've got pages of notes to prove it. I'm excited to be a part of a supportive network interested in growing good food and empowering refugees.

The first two days were spent inside hearing from one another about our projects and the lessons we have learned. The third day we headed over to KCCUA to learn about their high tunnels and community greenhouse.

Katherine shows RAPP participants around the greenhouse!

Daniel talks about the different high tunnels at KCCUA.

Showing high tunnell construction.

Some of the participants aboard the Catholic Charities bus!

The last night we all went to Al Towfiq, a Somali restaurant here in Kansas City. The food was plentiful and tasty, and it was great to be together in a non-formal setting.

More Al Towfiq...

After the RAPP conference ended, we got back to work and had individual conferences with all of the farmers. We talked about all of the good things that happened this year, and what they want to do different next year.

Our growers workshops started at the end of November. All of our farmers from last year and our four new farmers have been included in the workshops, which have focused on field maps, marketing and the basics of growing vegetables. Its been incredible to see how much the women's knowledge has grown in just one year. I cannot wait to get planting again...

(ok, maybe I can :)

Meet two of our new farmers:

Zawadi Daniel is from Burundi and lived in a refugee camp in Tanzania. She cares for her niece and nephew, Mariam and Ntibi who are in elementary school. Zawadi had a wonderful community garden plot, and I am thrilled that she will be going to market this year. She is an extremely warm person, and is loved by everyone that knows her. Zawadi lives in Juniper Gardens and will able to walk to the farm everyday.

Kabibi is also from Burundi via Tanzania. She lives in Juniper Gardens as well with her two sons, Felix and Elias. Kabibi is a wonderful singer and a great gardener. Her plot last year was meticulously cared for, and I'm looking forward to helping her make money at the farmer's market.

Look for bios of our other new farmers soon!
Merry Christmas from New Roots.

2008-12-17T13:13:00.000-06:00

Maku's Nepali Curry
The best part about this curry recipe is that you can add whatever veggies you have on hand!

Basic Ingredients:

Vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
1 small sweet red pepper, chopped (seeds removed)
1 teaspoon turmeric
Salt to taste
2 cloves garlic
1-2 teaspoons cumin seed (or 1/2 that amount of fresh ground cumin)
1-2" section of ginger
1 medium tomato, chopped
2 or more types of fresh vegetables

Maku's favorite vegetable additions:

1 medium potato, peeled and chopped thinly
1/2 lauka gourd, sliced thinly and quartered
5-6 Thai or Asian eggplants, stems removed & chopped
2 bitter melons, thinly sliced
1-2 Asian cucumbers or luffa gourds, cut into 2" pieces and then chopped lengthwise
1 small blue pumpkin, thinly sliced
1 handful shell beans

Preheat oil in pan on stove, then stir in chopped vegetables (except tomato). Add turmeric and salt, stirring in water as needed to prevent sticking. Crush garlic, ginger and cumin seed in a mortar and pestle or food processor. Stir into pan. When vegetables are tender, add chopped tomato and saute a few more minutes. Serve with rice.

Thanks for the inspiration Maku - It was so delicious that I forgot

to take a picture until it was almost too late!

2008-12-17T13:00:00.000-06:00

Burmese Stir-Fried Pac Choi
Here is a simple recipe from some Burmese New Roots farmers.

3 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
6 cups pac choi
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon oyster sauce
Heat the oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Sauté the garlic for 2 minutes. Add the pac choi and cook for 2 minutes, tossing to cook evenly. Add the soy sauce, salt and oyster sauce and toss to coat. Cook for another minute.
Serve hot as a side dish or over rice.
Serves 4 to 6.