In this third “Behind the Seeds” interview in the international Slow Food convention in Torino “Terra Madre”, Clayton Brascoupe, from the north of Santa Fe in New Mexico, shares his experience with the legumes he grows on his farm.
In this video, we invite you to discover the story of the family farm of Clayton Brascoupe.
Clayton, the farmer behind the beans
Clayton is the Program director for the Traditional Native American Farmers association (Website here). In New Mexico, he grows vegetables and beans in his family farm: pinto beans, runner beans, peas, black beans, garbanzo beans (the local name for chickpeas)… He grows between 4 and 12 varieties of legumes each year depending on the climate. Clayton loves pulses for many reasons: they contain a lot of proteins, they are low in fats, they help other plants to grow thanks to the fixation of nitrogen in the soil, and they adapt easily to tough climatic conditions.
Varieties of Clayton’s farm
The Pinto Bean is a brown common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris), with darker spots, very prolific and tasty. It is the most popular bean type among producers in Northern Mexico and the Southwestern United States.
The Runner Bean is a light and a dark purple bean. The insect pollinators love them because they have a red blossom to feed on.
It is grown both as a food plant and an ornamental plant.
The knife-shaped pods are normally green, but there are rare varieties that have very purple pods.
Clayton’s favourite meal: the “Chico”
The people from New Mexico like to cook beans because they have different flavors and they can cook them in different dishes.
One of the favorite meals of Clayton is the Chicos. Chicos are corns at the milky stage, traditionally roasted in an outdoor oven (“horno”). Once rehydrated, they taste just like the sweetest roasted corn that you can imagine, and you can eat it with Pinto Bean with a herb, and sometimes a fresh green chili.
© Edible New Mexico
Behind the Seeds | The family farm of Clayton Brascoupe
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11th Seed Library Summit
We are excited that the 11th Seed Library Summit is just 2 months away! We hope you can join us for this virtual event on Saturday, February 11th. Registration is free at SeedLibraries.net.
We have an amazing program scheduled this year. Help us get the word out to other seed folks. Check out our social media posts. Some are also attached. If you share with other groups, please add that info to this promo doc so we can keep track of who has been contacted and who we may want to reach out to the next time we host our conference.
Here are some of the sessions:
– How to Start a Seed Library – Lauren Muscatine, Pat Sobrero
– Seed Gardens – Sara McCamant
– School Seed Libraries – Rebecca Newburn, Lexi Fickenscher
– Ask a Seed Librarian – Destiny Rivera, Carol Henderson, Janet Pasveer
– Landrace Gardening – author Joseph Lofthouse
– Seed Exchanges – Bevin Cohen, Saundi Kloeckener
– Seed Saving Basics – TBD
– Seed Libraries as a Response to Disaster – Tara Rodríquez Besosa
– Native Seeds & Pollinators – Danielle Carlock, Shawnita Onwuma
– Seeds to Expand Climate Adapation – Nate Kleinman, Gina Covina
– Seed Stories: Our Stories of Seeds – SeedBroadcast
The welcoming address will be given by Beata Tsosie-Peña from Santa Clara Pueblo and El Rito, New Mexico. She’s a mother, poet, advocate, seed keeper, and educator. She led the creation of the Española Healing Food Oasis demonstration garden and Seed Library with the local nonprofit Tew Women United.
Let’s Seed the Future!
Future!
11th Annual Seed Library Summit Feb. 11, 2023 8 AM – 3:30 PM PST Online, Free Register
Attachments:
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Start a Library Seed Library Summit IG posts.jpg
Landrace Gardening _2 Seed Library Summit IG posts.jpg
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