One thing I appreciate about our team is that each one gets to lean on their own passion, and God somehow ties these together to strengthen the team as a whole. Josh and Kelly Tucker, arrived in 2019, and began renting a 1/2 acre field in our local area. They have been working this land with a few aims- helping the kids in the group homes have healthier foods, learning ways to effectively become more self sustainable, and providing some work for a few local farmers.

Josh and Jubilee sharing the “before”

Kelly sharing the “after” or current view

Josh has a problem solving mind that gets things done like organizing and building the gravity irrigation system, shed, and deepening the well, while Kelly has her masters in green thumb university! They both integrate naturally with heir neighbors and learn as they befriend local farmers. I’ll share Kelly’s story of their friend Don Filipe in another mini update.

One big challenge is pest control. Another major challenge is learning to farm in a 2 season climate– 6 months are so dry that the well can dry up, and 6 months where the rain falls so heavy that the back of the lot floods. Further, No winter means no natural rest for the land, and learning how to rest areas of the land and promote healthier soil. To the Left is the neighbor’s sharing some floodwater.

Current crops include Swiss Chart, carrots, lettuce, cilantro, macuy and chipilin (local leafy greens), onions, herbs, beets, pumpkins and squash! Some crops that do not do so well are tomatoes and melons because of the temperature swings of the day and night here in the mountains.

The Tuckers have about 3 part time farmers working with them, not to mention the volunteers and interested parties watching the gringos farm. I imagine their beautiful little ones and family farming style catch the attention of passers by as much as the unique styles they bring to the area.

Feel free to find the Tuckers on instagram at: @jk_tuckedaway