Join us on Saturday, August 20, 2022 from 9:30am to 2pm for a free event celebrating grain and all its uses. We will have live music, a free meal, and education on how to prepare grain!
Local heritage grains are making a return to New Mexico! Join farmers, bakers, millers and more for a “Seed to Plate” experience. Try your hand at harvesting, seed cleaning; milling demonstrations; sample bread and baked goods made with local heritage grains; enjoy a grain-inspired lunch, live music, and much more.
Agenda
- 09:30-10:00: Sign-in and tastings
- 10:00-10:20: Introductions, welcome, and presentation
- 10:20-11:00: Field walk and harvest demos
- 11:00-12:00: Threshing and cleaning stations with live music
- 12:00-12:20/12:30: Milling demo
- 12:30-14:00: Meal and tabling by local organizations, with live music
Location: Agri-Nature Center, 4920 Rio Grande Boulevard Northwest, Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, NM 87107
Presented by Rio Grande Grain, Agri-Nature Center at Village of Los Ranchos, Seeding Regenerative Agriculture, and NM Healthy Soil.
ABOUT RIO GRANDE GRAIN
A small group of Northern New Mexico farmers, gardeners, and bread bakers have organized under the name Rio Grande Grain and hope to bring our grains back to their roots. Since spring 2018, we have trialed small quantities of over 60 varieties of heritage and ancient wheat, rye, and barley, in small plots near Alcalde. We have collected qualitative and quantitative data on each variety over six growing seasons and discovered a few that are strong performers in our unique high desert region. In fall 2019 we were able to move from trial quantities to seed-increase quantities of our top performing varieties—Khorasan (Kamut), Sonoran White, Einkorn, Emmer, Turkey Red, Red Fife, Spelt, and Poltavka wheat; Swiss Mountain rye; and Tibetan Purple barley. Our goal is to have hundreds of pounds of seed that we can provide to small-scale farmers who are ready to try a crop that supports regenerative agriculture principles and fetches a far higher price than commodity grain.
ABOUT THE AGRI-NATURE CENTER OF LOS RANCHOS
The goal of the Larry P. Abraham Agri-Nature Center is to be a center of excellence in regenerative agriculture. The Village of Los Ranchos has a deep history in agriculture, and we strive to maintain this heritage in three distinct ways: education, research, and economic development. The agricultural research that we do is aimed at supporting farmers in the village with resources by demonstrating best practices. We are home to a new soils lab that analyzes soil, water, and compost for landowners in the area. Additionally, we trial different varietals and grow using several distinct methods to provide information to growers. We promote economic development and agritourism through partnerships with local businesses, promotion of local farms, and community events.
ABOUT SEEDING REGENERATIVE AGRICULTURE
The mission of the Seeding Regenerative Agriculture (SRA) project is to promote agricultural practices that both protect the environment and work economically. Launched and currently administered by Cruces Creatives, SRA makes sustainable and regenerative agriculture easier to practice by coordinating peer-to-peer networking and knowledge-sharing among producers, as well as a range of support services.
Photos by I. Jenniches CC BY 2.0
Leave a Reply