College of Agriculture, University of Arizona,
Arizona Land and People, Vol. 47, Number 2
"Raise'em Right""Raise'em right," says Robert Sotomayor, agricultural specialist for the Pima-Maricopa Irrigation Project on the Gila River Indian Community. "Make it possible for children to grow up to be farmers. "Many of our people want to farm again, but they don't know how. They don't raise their own food." Robert began working on garden projects with children from pre-kindergarten age to the sixth grade at Estrella Mountain, Gila Crossing, and Sacaton schools. It wasn't an easy project, to begin with. They fenced gardens, put in water faucets, and Robert brought in organic matter, such as cotton gin trash, to encourage plants to grow. Acid residue from delinted cottonseed counteracted salt present in the soil. The children were anxious to grow a garden, and the teachers encouraged them. "They were turned on," Robert says, smiling. The youngsters planted onion, squash, and broccoli on raised beds. The enthusiasm didn't last. Teachers got busy; weather turned hot; and "we just plodded along." They sowed seeds at the very top of the raised beds. Unfortunately, moisture couldn't reach the seeds. "By accident, three of four plants came up, but we had to start over." Robert called on advice and help from the UA Maricopa Agricultural Center (MAC). Seed companies and Native Seeds/SEARCH donated seeds. This time, the gardens had flat beds with a border. "Small kids came out with small shovels to dig their gardens. They were determined that all the seeds got water this time," Robert says. One day, worried teachers called. Lots of green plants were coming up, but no one knew which were vegetables and which were weeds. Robert, and Peter Ellsworth, from MAC helped separate the two. "We were blessed; everything came up-lettuce, carrots, onions, pumpkins, Chinese mustard, and native crops." The children were eager to weed, even in the summer. When the mustard bloomed, bees came to pollinate, and ladybugs and other beneficial insects came. Tribal elders said they hadn't seen some of the insects in years. Earthworms made compost. And, the children learned. At first they thought worms were "yucky," but they learned to appreciate them. "We all learned a great deal of science." " Later, we showed them how to harvest and how to prepare the produce for good, healthy eating. It was a new experience-a brand new world. We were snowed under with bounty," Robert says. "Kids ate lots of new things; some of them had never before eaten a salad." Robert and the children have planted citrus and other fruit trees. A school principal wants pecan trees all around a school playing field. Robert realizes not everyone who gardens will grow up to be a farmer. But he says, "We hope enough people will be interested to maintain our agricultural economy." Document part of 1999 Native American Programs in the College of Agriculture |