Cooperative bearing fruit

The Table Top Food Cooperative that aims to mentor novice farmers and produce more local food appears to be bearing more fruit this year.

David White, owner of La Casa Verde Floral and Nursery in Tucumcari and president of the cooperative, said organization now has a half-dozen farmers "who now are successful and growing."

"This year, we should see a significant increase of vendors at the (Tucumcari) farmers market," White said. "We are cultivating the next generation of food farmers."

Table Top offers a land-access program that includes a yearlong curriculum that teaches business planning, soil improvement, drip irrigation lessons, a production plan and directions to agricultural resources that are available.

Among the cooperative's partners are Mesalands Community College, Rocky Mountain Farmers Union, Quay County Extension Service, New Mexico State University Extension Research Station in Tucumcari and Tucumcari Public Schools.

It also offers a mentorship program of farmers and ranchers willing to provide life skills to beginning farmers and ranchers.

The benefits of such entrepreneurship aren't just for food producers, White said.

"What we're trying to do is grow healthier communities by offering a healthy diet," he said, noting Tucumcari is a so-called food desert where residents have limited access. "We're not just growing food to ship out to the highest bidder. We're growing food for our community first."

Carlson Way

One example of a small farmer who's benefited from the program is Michael Carlson, who has expanded his garden plot from about 40 plants last year to more than 800 this year.

At his three-acre Carlson Way Farm on Tucumcari's northeast side, he's growing tomatoes, strawberries, Anaheim peppers, bell peppers, okra, zucchini, crookneck squash and butternut squash. And more plants are being cultivated.

Carlson said he had owned a sign business in Oregon for many years. A couple of years ago, he turned his company over to his employees, and he and his wife moved to Tucumcari so they could be closer to their children and grandchildren in northern New Mexico.

Carlson began with a 20-by-40-foot patch of land, became involved in the Table Top cooperative and "went a little nuts" with his gardening.

"It just kind of started as a little hobby last year, and I figured, 'Hey, if you're going to do it, do it.' I kind of believe in the go-big-or-go-home type of philosophy," he recalled.

"It was supposed to be semi-retirement, but I've found myself working more now than when I was up there (in Oregon)," he added, laughing.

He figured he spends 12 hours a day in his garden during growing season.

He said White and the cooperative proved valuable in making sure the right gardening methods are used in this semi-arid region.

"I would highly recommend that anybody who grows more than a tomato plant in their porch get involved because they're very knowledgeable and made me aware of how much I didn't know," he said. "There's a lot more than digging a hole and sticking a plant in it."

He said he definitely will bring some of his produce to sell at the Tucumcari Farmers Market later this month.

And that's not all.

"The wife does a lot of canning. We're going to can a bunch, and we're going to give away a bunch," he said.

Dexter beef

Zach Knox also grows produce, including squash and chiles, on his small patch of land southeast of Tucumcari.

He also raises Dexter cattle, a once-rare breed that originated in Ireland and are about half the size of a traditional Hereford cow.

Knox said Dexter cattle forage well on grass and other vegetation in poor soils and produce a meat that's well-marbled with streaks of fat.

He said he hopes to begin selling beef from one of his Dexter cattle sometime in August.

Those cattle also produce a high-butterfat milk that's easier to drink for some lactose-intolerant people, such as his wife. Dexters are dual-purpose, which means they produce both quality beef and dairy.

He said he bought 15 head of the cattle from Sandra Groves, general manager of the Tucumcari Farmers Market. He recently sold eight head to a private buyer.

Knox also had to recently purchase a replacement Dexter bull after a lightning strike a few weeks ago killed the one he had.

Knox, who came to Quay County from Albuquerque, said he enrolled in the Table Top program as a nearly complete novice almost two years ago.

"I didn't even own a pickup truck," he said.

He said he's learned a lot of agricultural skills in the relatively short time he's been a farmer.

Return the favor

Berlin Arellano also began in the Table Top program in 2018 by helping Darrell and Sally Baker grow and pick produce at their Genesis Gardens farm north of Tucumcari.

Darrell and Sally were the program's early mentors, though both have stepped away a bit from that role in recent years.

Arellano now lives in Mora, where she buys Genesis Gardens' onions, garlic, tomatoes and New Mexico-certified chiles and sells them at markets in Mora, Taos and Las Vegas.

"She's a big help to us in keeping our gardens going," Darrell Baker said.

Baker said he started mentoring beginning farmers in the Table Top program a few years ago "because I saw a real need for it in our community."

"My wife and I have some pretty special skills that we didn't realize were quite so special," he continued. "But it's becoming more and more evident we're short on people who know how to grow people food."

Now a mentor

White grows most of his produce on several acres east of the former Tucumcari Bio-Energy plant whose principals hope to eventually convert to methane production.

Much of White's food is grown to be sold at La Casa Verde in Tucumcari or at the Tucumcari Farmers Market. Other produce is sold to various restaurants around the region.

Long-term, White wants to get the greenhouse at the Bio-Energy site up to its capacity of 1,200 head of lettuce a month using hydroponic methods.

White also wants to raise and sell tilapia fish in the greenhouse because it's a protein source that doesn't require a lot of food. The manure produced by the fish also would help fertilize the plants.

Baker said White didn't know much about the area's agriculture when he first moved to Tucumcari from Colorado a few years ago.

"David had a real burning desire to do ag, but he didn't know that much about it," Baker said. "He didn't know that much about it, like Sally and I did. I planted my first garden when I was five or six years old. I've been doing it for about 60 years, and Sally's not far behind. Those skills are kind of being lost. We just wanted to pass them along and help the community."

White said he's grateful for the Table Top mentoring he's received, and he's happy to pass along some of that information.

Noting Tucumcari's proximity to Interstate 40, White said he envisions the city becoming a significant food supplier.

"We're eight hours or less to many major markets," he said. "Once we've got to where the local market is swamped, we can begin to transport things to other local markets in this region. We're not there yet, but that's part of the vision and the goal."