On Monday, February 23, I was able to go on my first field trip with my Advance Digital Art class to the Tierra Miguel Foundation farm in Pauma Valley, California. Driving east along Highway 76, I was slightly skeptical on what I would find out in the middle of nowhere. I have driven along Highway 76 before, on my way to Santa Ysabel, but had never stopped in the Pauma Valley area before, except for the occasional visit to the Pauma Casino. I had some trouble finding Cole Grade Rd to turn on, mainly because I am still waiting for my new prescription for my eyeglasses, but I did find the turn, and I was a bit surprised when I arrived at Tierra Miguel.
I am not sure what I expected, but what I found at the Tierra Miguel Foundation was nothing like I expected it to be. To be completely honest, after viewing their wonderful website, I was surprised to find a humble looking barn structure, with limited parking in front of it. It felt like I had just pulled up in front of an old run-down farm, and had there not been any other cars parked in the parking lot, I probably would not have stopped. After parking, I found my way inside to where a bunch of chairs were set up, with a laptop, projector, and projector screen. Inside was a bit sparse. An open structure with colorful, old mural paintings that reminded me of the beautiful Pauma Valley hills that surround the area.
I took my seat and waited for the presentation to start. After more students showed up, the presentation began. A spokeswoman, Beth, talked about the history of the Tierra Miguel land, and then proceeded to explain the purpose of the farm. I way absolutely blown away by the information she told us! I had no idea that San Diego was one of the biggest agricultural areas in California, and that our top grown crops are flowers and sod! Learning about the agricultural state of San Diego county really made me think about all the vegetables and fruits I find in my local grocery store, and makes me wonder how many of those are imported from other counties and countries, just so we can have the veggies we want year round.
One of Tierra Miguel's goals that really impressed me was their goal of teaching and helping with sustenance agriculture in Pauma Valley, and with helping the local community reconnect with the food they eat. Overall, I was extremely impressed learning about all that Tierra Miguel has achieved during their 8-9 years in Pauma Valley.
After sitting through the presentation, we finally got a chance to get up and take a tour of some of the field areas with our guide Jonathan. It was not as green as I had hoped it would be, but then again I probably was expecting something more like a normal industrial farm, which Tierra Miguel is not. We were able to walk through their small orchard area, past their strawberry fields, and past fields of "green cover," which they use and till into the ground to enhance nutrients for growing crops.
One of the fields that I found especially interesting was the kohlrabi field. As I was looking at the plants, all I could think to myself was "What the heck is a kohlrabi?" Unfortunately, I missed what our guide told us about the plant, but luckily there is always Google to help me out! Apparently, kohlrabi is a German turnip and "is a low, stout cultivar of the cabbage that will grow almost anywhere." Jonathan showed the class how to pull them up and which part to eat, and within a few minutes, everyone was trying to find themselves a kohlrabi to try, fresh from the ground! I grabbed myself a kohlrabi, broke off the leaves and the dirty roots and bit in! I was pleasantly surprised to find it tasted very much like a cabbage! It was a bit gritty since it was straight from the dirt, but the whole experience really made me feel connected to the food I was eating. I could not help hamming it up a bit and taking a picture of myself with a kohlrabi in my mouth for my friends and family to see (I wish I had used my Canon instead of my iPhone though). Later in the tour we got the chance to pull up baby carrots and eat them as well, which were absolutely delicious!
We finished our tour just as the sun was going down, which made for a beautiful opportunity for sunset pictures. As the sun disappears behind the western hills, the eastern hills turned a wonderful pinkish/purplish color, and looked almost as if they were painted that way. Overall, it was a wonderful experience, and I look forward to stopping by Tierra Miguel again next time I am out in the Pauma Valley area.
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