Nourishing Bites | Sweet Rewards
A Sweet Partnership | April, Alma, and a flat of beautiful Peachwood Orchard peaches.
For several years now I have bought peaches and nectarines from a young orchardist in Hood River. Alma’s orchard is certified organic. The story that first endeared me to her was this: She told me that from a young age, she, like every member of her family, was responsible for the care and well being of a single fruit tree in their yard.
Now as a certified organic grower, she is devoted to keeping her land protected and healthy. She works against the conventional grain by rejecting the notion she must use toxic chemicals to grow stone fruit. She believes, as we do: “Organic practices promote the health of those who eat our fruit, our own health, and the health of the beautiful land we rely on. Taking care of the land, the fruits we grow, and the health of our community are completely intertwined.”
Each winter, I send Alma a sizable check as a way of supporting her work for the coming season. I hope for peaches and nectarines in return, but I do not expect a guarantee. In essence, I am utilizing the same principles of the Community Supported Agriculture model that our CSA family uses to support me. I feel it is my responsibility to share the risk and expense so that I can more fully appreciate and honor the gift of her work and the gorgeous fruit.
Our arrangement is not a standard practice; Alma did not ask me to do this. And I do not require Alma to send me a careful worded multi-page legalese contract stating the terms of our agreement. I am already aware of the numerous risks, having weathered some of them myself. Also, I do not put stipulations on the price of her fruit, or the exact quantity per week, or even what variety she must grow or when it must be ready.
All of those decisions are in the wise hands of Alma and Mother Nature. I agree to take the fruit when it is ready, in the quantities Alma needs to give me, and in the way Nature provides: bruised, scarred, large, small or miraculously (!) absolutely perfect. To do otherwise is to live entirely ignorant to the truth of how food comes into being- and that is a luxury increasingly fewer of us will enjoy.
I send money to Alma each winter, when the thought of peaches seems a distant, far off dream. I send her money because it is the right thing to do and I have the resources to do it. I send my hard earned money to Alma because I want her to spend her time deepening her knowledge to increase her operation’s resilience, not worrying about how she will cover her mortgage if there is a poor harvest. I want her to have the funds to make infrastructure improvements that help keep her and her special orchard healthy, safe, and nourished.
I want Alma to understand she is a providing an essential service to her community. I want her to understand that her worth is that she shows up every day, that she puts her passion into action, that she remains courageously devoted to her craft and her community. Each winter, I renew my investment in Alma so she knows in her heart that we honor and appreciate her and the precious land she stewards.
In this way, we are quietly dismantling a hidden but highly untenable food system structure that burdens farmers with all the risk and rewards the rest of us with unlimited choice.
I share this story because it is important you understand how powerful your food dollar truly is. Where that dollar ends up can reinforce positive, healing, transparent and just food systems, or it can support deeply damaging production practices that thrive on secrecy, false advertising, and exploitation.
By supporting farmers, you in turn make it possible for us farmers to extend our circle of support to other growers. You may not know it, but the ripple effect is profound - in how we support small, regional organic seed growers, or how we purchase tools, supplies and equipment directly from small, local businesses, or how we do our part to support other growers like Alma. One can spend their precious days lamenting what is wrong, or one can identify the power they possess and intentionally share that power with others who have a unique expertise and fiery passion to leverage it for the greater good.
We are dedicated to moving forward together, because together is the only way resilience can come to fruition, the only way joy will survive, and ultimately, the only way we will all have food on the table.
When the miracle of Alma’s trees and her hard work come to fruition, I sit on the farmhouse porch and let the juice of her truly tree-ripened organic peaches drip down my chin. After I eat my fill, I hold the pit in my palm and close my eyes. I think of the love and care Alma puts into her orchard. I think of how many things had to come together to produce the phenom of even a single peach. I feel so privileged to be connected to this collaboration. The amazing cycle of stewardship and community culminates in an undefinable, incomparable, untamed sort-of sweetness that for me is the best reward of all. ~AJ
Western Tiger Swallowtails | Adults live just 6-14 days. They love our Thistles and Zinnas best.
“Having a superpower has nothing to do with the ability to fly or jump, or superhuman strength. The truest superpowers are the ones we all possess: willpower, integrity, and most importantly, courage.”