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Garlic Farmers Keep it Urban
June 20, 2007
Garlic Farmers Keep it Urban
Farmers' Markets DENISE MILLER For the Journal
EDITOR'S NOTE: Every other week, Denise Miller of the New Mexico Farmers' Marketing Association will spotlight local growers and their products, along with tips about how to cook them.
Eli Burg and Amanda Mione of Chispas Farm are not your typical farmers. They are urban, young and grow 270 varieties of garlic.
Burg, 30, and Mione 28, are among a small strata of young people willing to spend 10 hours a day on their knees in the growing fields. For them, farming is an ideal vocation.
"You take an empty palette, compost, seeds, water, make a guess about what it will look like, and then you have an end result that you can eat," said Mione.
Their four-acre farm, just three houses outside of the Albuquerque city limits, was a fortunate find for the couple -- and their landlord. In exchange for working the land, they live rent-free in a modern, comfortable house. Their landlord has a way to keep the land in agricultural production.
One-and-a-half acres are devoted to growing certified organic vegetables such as garlic, tomatoes, basil and winter squash.
"Farming on the urban fringes," as Burg called it, is a quickly vanishing scene. But living close to a major city has distinct advantages, such as being physically near their customers at both farmers' markets and restaurants.
Only a half-block off a major thoroughfare, the farm is completely unassuming, accessed from a quiet side street. Once inside the sliding gate, however, you immediately see what keeps Burg fully engaged.
"One day I'm a plant scientist, the next day an animal midwife, the next day I'm selling myself and my food, and meeting the people who are going to go home and eat my food."
Burg shows off one of his most exciting projects: the backup seed bank for 270 varieties of garlic protected by Seed Savers Exchange in Decorah, Iowa.
Burg and Mione started the project a year-and-a-half ago when two Wisconsin farmers stopped by the Albuquerque Downtown Growers' Market looking for someone interested in growing new varieties of garlic in a climate not as prone to serious frost as Iowa and Wisconsin.
It started with 210 varieties the first year and grew by 60 more the following. According to Burg and Mione, there are about 400 kinds of garlic worldwide.
"I love garlic. You plant in the fall, and it's up before the weeds in spring. You weed it a few times, and then when it is out of the ground you are free to plant a nice winter crop like winter squash," said Burg.
Last year they sold about 20 varieties at market. This year, they plan to sell 100.
At market, the couple provide written descriptions of the various types of garlic, including how they're best prepared and savored. Some, like Georgian Crystal, are so mild they can be eaten raw in salads. Others, like Turbans, taste great in foods like hummus and salsas, while more pungent varieties are best cooked in sauces or stir fried. Korean garlic is fiery and peppery; creoles are nutty and zesty; and Porcelain is great for roasting because of its extra large cloves. A favorite: Brown Rose, which is flavorful but has no lingering aftertaste.
