Agnes has been farming since she was born. A farmer’s kid, her dad grew coffee and cocoa on their farm in Cameroon, while her mother grew all the vegetables the family ate and sold at market.
When Agnes came to the U.S. in 2002, she began growing vegetables in Georgia, a climate not unlike her home country. But the move to Minnesota in 2007 brought some real challenges. That’s what brought her to Big River Farms.
“Growing in a cold climate is difficult, especially for our African vegetables. Cold climate farming really means timing things just right. Big River Farms has been a big help for me. Before I got to Big River, I didn’t know how to calculate the spacing of my crops, how to calculate days to maturity, how to plan when to plant and replant.
“I did not know when and how to fertilize. The soil is different here. I learned how to do a soil test. We didn’t do that in Cameroon.”
“I’ve learned how to implement strategies for good weed control, how to cure vegetables, and how to store food safely. And I’m learning how to do marketing and business management.”
“I’m still trying to figure out the secrets to growing in Minnesota, but now I think very differently about farming and how I will farm in the future.”
Agnes has been growing on 3 acres in Otsego that she rents and farms with family and friends. Now she has ¼ acre at Big River Farms as well. Between her two farming locations, she grows garlic, okra, napa cabbage, tomatoes, green beans, habanero, jalapeno, and lunchbox peppers, common eggplant and bitterball eggplant, and traditional African greens – bitterleaf, waterleaf, and njama njama.
Agnes is a member of the African Immigrant Farmers Association, a nonprofit of farmers and gardeners “working to promote a culturally and economically viable, and ecologically sound food system in Minnesota.” Her goal is to nourish our community with the freshest, most nutrient-dense vegetables possible using sustainable farming practices that respect the land and create a healthy ecosystem.
