Squash in Sustainable Food Production

View the project final report

Commodities

• Vegetables: cucurbits

Practices

• Crop Production: no-till
• Education and Training: demonstration, extension, farmer to farmer, mentoring, on-farm/ranch research, workshop, youth education
• Farm Business Management: marketing management
• Sustainable Communities: local and regional food systems, public participation, community services

Youth from three Tribal communities across North Dakota will be guided through activities about sustainable agriculture, local foods, gardening methods, marketing, and concepts and practices of breeding and seed saving as the next step beyond Junior Master Gardener training. Over two summers they will learn the specifics of growing, marketing, eating, and breeding squash and will choose a species from which to select their seeds. They will also present extra produce to local Elders, sell at their local Farmers Market, talk with other growers and food marketers, and cook and eat squash at home to learn all facets of a sustainable food system (breeding, production, marketing, consumption, health). From these experiences we are going to develop a sustainable plant breeding manual for Junior Master Gardener and other youth development programs across the country for long-term educational outreach on both sustainable agriculture and plant breeding as tools for self-empowerment. These Tribal youth will take part in public outreach via speaking and video towards the end of the project, and we hope some will continue with their projects and provide improved seeds, good produce, and new information on sustainable agriculture to their families and communities