By Juan Lopez, 2024 Sembrador Apprentice
As the season comes to its half way point for the Los Sembradores program we can reflect on many of the skills and lessons we have developed as new farmers. We have been taught how to develop our land at our own individual spots to be efficient and fruitful gardening locations. We have learned how to amend the soil to be alive and healthy through practicing the four healthy soil principles, which are maximize soil cover, livestock integration, minimizing soil disturbance, and supporting living roots. This program has taught us the history and importance of the acequia systems here in New Mexico and how to utilize them to water our gardens at home. Harvesting and processing have also been a large part of the program which is essential for having produce that is viable at marketplaces.
There has been seed collections, plant identification, remedio making, workshops, fruit harvesting, tree pruning, and sheep shearing lessons all taught within this program as well. Sembrador Lali even spent a day teaching us plenty about how to make our own cleaning products, such as laundry detergent, hand soap, shampoo, and deodorant. Various other farms had been visited where we were able to learn about permaculture and agricultural research. The Sembradores also spent a few days at each other’s spaces helping with farm development and planting. There has also been great camaraderie and friendship amongst the Sembradores as they had spent many of their summer days together farming and sharing various meals.
By Elba Celeste Rudolfo, 2024 Sembrador Apprentice
Since the beginning of April apprenticing under Donne in this Los Sembradores program, I’ve developed so much in farming and as a whole person. I’ve also been blessed to see this development in my fellow apprentices. I’ve learned that in cultivating land we must also cultivate ourselves in community. With this comes patience, humility, and a desire for connection and sacred knowledge. I’ve learned how important it is to practice these critical aspects of humanity to succeed in restoring land and cultural connections. We continuously learn from each other and the water how to collaborate and connect. The plants aren’t the only ones growing, we are too!
Along with many other experiential education adventures around the Chamisal/Northern NM area we recently attended a soil health and carbon conference in Albuquerque. This conference reinforced the intersections shared between science and farm work. We were provided lectures and talks from experienced PhD researchers, and fellow land workers. The conference included a field trip on the second day. I joined the crop lands tour where we visited the NMSU Los Lunas Agricultural Science Center. We discussed cover cropping, flood irrigation, carbon sequestration, water run-off from rain, and much more!
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